To avoid tissue rejection during organ transplantation, research has focused on the use of tissue engineering to regenerate required tissues or organs for patients. The biomedical applications of hyperbranched, multivalent, structurally uniform, biocompatible dendrimers in tissue engineering include the mimicking of natural extracellular matrices (ECMs) in the 3D microenvironment. Dendrimers are unimolecular architects that can incorporate a variety of biological and/or chemical substances in a 3D architecture to actively support the scaffold microenvironment during cell growth. Here, we review the use of dendritic delivery systems in tissue engineering. We discuss the available literature, highlighting the 3D architecture and preparation of these nanoscaffolds, and also review challenges to, and advances in, the use dendrimers in tissue engineering. Advances in the manufacturing of dendritic nanoparticles and scaffold architectures have resulted in the successful incorporation of dendritic scaffolds in tissue engineering.
Maintenance of oral health is a major challenge in dentistry. Different materials have been used to treat various dental diseases, although treatment success is limited by features of the biomaterials used. To overcome these limitations, materials incorporated with nanoparticles (NPs) can be used in dental applications including endodontics, periodontics, tissue engineering, oral surgery, and imaging. The unique properties of NPs, including their surface:volume ratio, antibacterial action, physical, mechanical, and biological characteristics, and unique particle size have rendered them effective vehicles for dental applications. In this review, we provide insights into the various applications of NPs in dentistry, including their benefits, limitations, properties, actions and future potential.
Global increase in demand for food supply has resulted in surplus generation of wastes. What was once considered wastes, has now become a resource. Studies were carried out on the conversion of biowastes into wealth using methods such as extraction, incineration and microbial intervention. Agro-industry biowastes are promising sources of carbon for microbial fermentation to be transformed into value-added products. In the era of circular economy, the goal is to establish an economic system which aims to eliminate waste and ensure continual use of resources in a close-loop cycle. Biowaste collection is technically and economically practicable, hence it serves as a renewable carbon feedstock. Biowastes are commonly biotransformed into value-added materials such as bioethanol, bioplastics, biofuels, biohydrogen, biobutanol and biogas. This review reveals the recent developments on microbial transformation of biowastes into biotechnologically important products. This approach addresses measures taken globally to valorize waste to achieve low carbon economy. The sustainable use of these renewable resources is a positive approach towards waste management and promoting circular economy.
Membrane technology, especially nanofiltration (NF) has great attention to provide an imperative solution for water issues. The membrane is considered to be the heart in the separation plant. Understanding the membrane characteristics could allow predicting and optimizing the membrane performance namely flux, rejection and reduced fouling. The membrane development using biomaterials and nanomaterials provides a remarkable opportunity in the water application. This review focuses on the membrane characteristics of biomaterials and nanomaterials based nanofiltration. In this review, recent researches based on biomaterials and nanomaterials loaded membrane for salt rejection have been analyzed. Membrane fouling depends on the membrane characteristics and this review defined fouling as a ubiquitous bottleneck challenge that hampers the NF blooming applications. Fouling mitigation strategies via membrane modification using biomaterial (chitosan, curcumin and vanillin) and various other nanomaterials are critically reviewed. This review also highlights the membrane cleaning and focuses on concentrates disposal methods with zero liquid discharge system for resource recovery. Finally, the conclusion and future prospects of membrane technology are discussed. From this current review, it is apparent that the biomaterial and various other nanomaterials acquire exclusive properties that facilitate membrane advancement with improved capability for water treatment. Regardless of membrane material developments, still exist considerable difficulties in membrane commercialization. Thus, additional studies related to this field are needed to produce membranes with better performance for large‒scale applications.
As one of the potential bionanomaterials, nanocellulose has appeared as a favorable candidate for photoremediation of the environment because of its abundance in nature, inexpensive, eco-friendly, decomposable, high surface area, and outstanding mechanical properties. The current review carefully summarized the diverse type of nanocellulose, their preparation approaches, and several previous works on the use of nanocellulose for photoremediation. These include the role of nanocellulose for the increased surface active site of the hybrid photocatalysts by providing a large surface area for enhanced adsorption of photons and pollutant molecules, as a dispersing agent to increase distribution of metal/non-metal dopants photocatalysts, as well as for controlled size and morphology of the dopants photocatalysts. Furthermore, the recommendations for upcoming research provided in this review are anticipated to ignite an idea for the development of other nanocellulose-based photocatalysts. Other than delivering beneficial information on the present growth of the nanocellulose biomaterials photocatalysts, this review is expected will attract more interest to the utilization of nanocellulose photocatalyst and distribute additional knowledge in this exciting area of environmental photoremediation. This could be attained by considering that a review on nanocellulose biomaterials for environmental health photoremediation has not been described elsewhere, notwithstanding intensive research works have been dedicated to this topic.
Curcumin is a natural herb and polyphenol that is obtained from the medicinal plant Curcuma longa. It's anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, anti-mutagenic, antioxidant and antifungal properties can be leveraged to treat a myriad of oral and systemic diseases. However, natural curcumin has weak solubility, limited bioavailability and undergoes rapid degradation, which severely limits its therapeutic potential. To overcome these drawbacks, nanocurcumin (nCur) formulations have been developed for improved biomaterial delivery and enhanced treatment outcomes. This novel biomaterial holds tremendous promise for the treatment of various oral diseases, the majority of which are caused by dental biofilm. These include dental caries, periodontal disease, root canal infection and peri-implant diseases, as well as other non-biofilm mediated oral diseases such as oral cancer and oral lichen planus. A number of in-vitro studies have demonstrated the antibacterial efficacy of nCur in various formulations against common oral pathogens such as S. mutans, P. gingivalis and E. faecalis, which are strongly associated with dental caries, periodontitis and root canal infection, respectively. In addition, some clinical studies were suggestive of the notion that nCur can indeed enhance the clinical outcomes of oral diseases such as periodontitis and oral lichen planus, but the level of evidence was very low due to the small number of studies and the methodological limitations of the available studies. The versatility of nCur to treat a diverse range of oral diseases augurs well for its future in dentistry, as reflected by rapid pace in which studies pertaining to this topic are published in the scientific literature. In order to keep abreast of the latest development of nCur in dentistry, this narrative review was undertaken. The aim of this narrative review is to provide a contemporaneous update of the chemistry, properties, mechanism of action, and scientific evidence behind the usage of nCur in dentistry.
Dendrimers are hyperbranched nanoparticle structures along with its surface modifications can to be used in dental biomaterials for biomimetic remineralisation of enamel and dentin. The review highlights the therapeutic applications of dendrimers in the field of dentistry. It addresses the possible mechanisms of enhancement of mechanical properties of adhesives and resins structure. Dendrimers due to its unique construction of possessing inner hydrophobic and outer hydrophilic structure can act as drug carrier for delivery of antimicrobial drugs for treatment of periodontal diseases and at peripheral dental implant areas. Dendrimers due to its hyperbranched structures can provides a unique drug delivery vehicle for delivery of a drug at specific site for sustained release for therapeutic effects. Thus, dendrimers can be one of the most important constituents which can be incorporated in dental biomaterials for better outcomes in dentistry.
A novel injectable calcium phosphate bone cement (osteopaste) has been
developed. Its potential application in orthopaedics as a filler of bone defects has been
studied. The biomaterial was composed of tetra-calcium phosphate (TTCP) and tricalcium
phosphate (TCP) powder. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the
healing process of osteopaste in rabbit tibia.(Copied from article).
Polylactic acid (PLA) nanocomposites reinforced with hybrid montmorillonite/cellulose nanowhiskers [MMT/CNW(SO4)] were prepared by solution casting. The CNW(SO4) nanofiller was first isolated from microcrystalline cellulose using acid hydrolysis treatment. PLA/MMT/CNW(SO4) hybrid nanocomposites were prepared by the addition of various amounts of CNW(SO4) [1-9 parts per hundred parts of polymer (phr)] into PLA/MMT nanocomposite at 5 phr MMT content, based on highest tensile strength values as reported previously. The biodegradability, thermal, tensile, morphological, water absorption and transparency properties of PLA/MMT/CNW(SO4) hybrid nanocomposites were investigated. The Biodegradability, thermal stability and crystallinity of hybrid nanocomposites increased compared to PLA/MMT nanocomposite and neat PLA. The highest tensile strength of hybrid nanocomposites was obtained by incorporating 1 phr CNW(SO4) [∼ 36 MPa]. Interestingly, the ductility of hybrid nanocomposites increased significantly by 87% at this formulation. The Young's modulus increased linearly with increasing CNW(SO4) content. This is due to the relatively good dispersion of nanofillers in the hybrid nanocomposites, as revealed by transmission electron microscopy. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy indicated the formation of some polar interactions. In addition, water resistance of the hybrid nanocomposites improved and the visual transparency of neat PLA film did not affect by addition of CNW(SO4).
In this study, a chitosan co-polymer scaffold was prepared by mixing poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), NO, carboxymethyl chitosan (NOCC) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) solutions to obtain desirable properties for chondrocyte cultivation. Electron beam (e-beam) radiation was used to physically cross-link these polymers at different doses (30 kGy and 50 kGy). The co-polymers were then lyophilized to form macroporous three-dimensional (3-D) matrix. Scaffold morphology, porosity, swelling properties, biocompatibility, expression of glycosaminoglycan (GAG) and type II collagen following the seeding of primary chondrocytes were studied up to 28 days. The results demonstrate that irradiation of e-beam at 50 kGy increased scaffold porosity and pore sizes subsequently enhanced cell attachment and proliferation. Scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy revealed extensive interconnected microstructure of PVA-PEG-NOCC, demonstrated cellular activities on the scaffolds and their ability to maintain chondrocyte phenotype. In addition, the produced PVA-PEG-NOCC scaffolds showed superior swelling properties, and increased GAG and type II collagen secreted by the seeded chondrocytes. In conclusion, the results suggest that by adding NOCC and irradiation cross-linking at 50 kGy, the physical and biological properties of PVA-PEG blend can be further enhanced thereby making PVA-PEG-NOCC a potential scaffold for chondrocytes.
The effects of organic solvents and their binary mixture in the glucose functionalization of bacterial poly-3-hydroxyalkanoates catalyzed by Lecitase™ Ultra were studied. Equal volume binary mixture of DMSO and chloroform with moderate polarity was more effective for the enzyme catalyzed synthesis of the carbohydrate polymer at ≈38.2 (±0.8)% reactant conversion as compared to the mono-phasic and other binary solvents studied. The apparent reaction rate constant as a function of medium water activity (aw) was observed to increase with increasing solvent polarity, with optimum aw of 0.2, 0.4 and 0.7 (±0.1) observed in hydrophilic DMSO, binary mixture DMSO:isooctane and hydrophobic isooctane, respectively. Molecular sieve loading between 13 to 15gL(-1) (±0.2) and reaction temperature between 40 to 50°C were found optimal. Functionalized PHA polymer showed potential characteristics and biodegradability.
In this study, biodegradable composite films were prepared by using thermoplastic cornstarch matrix and corn husk fiber as a reinforcing filler. The composite films were manufactured via a casting technique using different concentrations of husk fiber (0-8%), and fructose as a plasticizer at a fixed amount of 25% for starch weight. The Physical, thermal, morphological, and tensile characteristics of composite films were investigated. The findings indicated that the incorporation of husk fiber, in general, enhanced the performance of the composite films. There was a noticeable reduction in the density and moisture content of the films, and soil burial assessment showed less resistance to biodegradation. The morphological images presented a consistent structure and excellent compatibility between matrix and reinforcement, which reflected on the improved tensile strength and young modulus as well as the crystallinity index. The thermal stability of composite films has also been enhanced, as evidenced by the increased onset decomposition temperature of the reinforced films compared to neat film. Fourier transform infrared analysis revealed increasing in intermolecular hydrogen bonding following fiber loading. The composite materials prepared using corn husk residues as reinforcement responded to community demand for agricultural and polymeric waste disposal and added more value to waste management.
This study describes a sago starch-based film by incorporation of cinnamon essential oil (CEO) and nano titanium dioxide (TiO2-N). Different concentrations (i.e., 0%, 1%, 3%, and 5%, w/w) of TiO2-N and CEO (i.e., 0%, 1%, 2%, and 3%, v/w) were incorporated into sago starch film, and the physicochemical, barrier, mechanical, and antimicrobial properties of the bionanocomposite films were estimated. Incorporation of CEO into the sago starch matrix increased oxygen and water vapor permeability of starch films while increasing TiO2-N concentration decreased barrier properties. Moisture content also decreased from 12.96% to 8.04%, solubility in water decreased from 25% to 13.7%, and the mechanical properties of sago starch films improved. Sago starch bionanocomposite films showed excellent antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, and Staphylococcus aureus. Results also showed that incorporation of TiO2-N and CEO had synergistic effects on functional properties of sago starch films. In summary, sago starch films incorporated with both TiO2-N and CEO shows potential application for active packaging in food industries such as fresh pistachio packaging.
Chitosan, collagen, gelatin, polylactic acid and polyhydroxyalkanoates are notable examples of biopolymers, which are essentially bio-derived polymers produced by living cells. With the right techniques, these biological macromolecules can be exploited for nanotechnological advents, including for the fabrication of nanocarriers. In the world of nanotechnology, it is highly essential (and optimal) for nanocarriers to be biocompatible, biodegradable and non-toxic for safe in vivo applications, including for drug delivery, cancer immunotherapy, tissue engineering, gene delivery, photodynamic therapy and many more. The recent advancements in understanding nanotechnology and the physicochemical properties of biopolymers allows us to modify biological macromolecules and use them in a multitude of fields, most notably for clinical and therapeutic applications. By utilizing chitosan, collagen, gelatin, polylactic acid, polyhydroxyalkanoates and various other biopolymers as synthesis ingredients, the 'optimal' properties of a nanocarrier can easily be attained. With emphasis on the aforementioned biological macromolecules, this review presents the various biopolymers utilized for nanocarrier synthesis along with their specific synthetization methods. We further discussed on the characterization techniques and related applications for the synthesized nanocarriers.
Arabinoxylan (AX) is a natural biological macromolecule with several potential biomedical applications. In this research, AX, nano-hydroxyapatite (n-HAp) and titanium dioxide (TiO2) based polymeric nanocomposite scaffolds were fabricated by the freeze-drying method. The physicochemical characterizations of these polymeric nanocomposite scaffolds were performed for surface morphology, porosity, swelling, biodegradability, mechanical, and biological properties. The scaffolds exhibited good porosity and rough surface morphology, which were efficiently controlled by TiO2 concentrations. MC3T3-E1 cells were employed to conduct the biocompatibility of these scaffolds. Scaffolds showed unique biocompatibility in vitro and was favorable for cell attachment and growth. PNS3 proved more biocompatible, showed interconnected porosity and substantial mechanical strength compared to PNS1, PNS2 and PNS4. Furthermore, it has also showed more affinity to cells and cell growth. The results illustrated that the bioactive nanocomposite scaffold has the potential to find applications in the tissue engineering field.
This study is focusing to develop a porous biocompatible scaffold using hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC) and poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) with improved cellular adhesion profiles and stability. The combination of HEC and PVA were synthesized using freeze-drying technique and characterized using SEM, ATR-FTIR, TGA, DSC, and UTM. Pore size of HEC/PVA (2-40 μm) scaffolds showed diameter in a range of both pure HEC (2-20 μm) and PVA (14-70 μm). All scaffolds revealed high porosity above 85%. The water uptake of HEC was controlled by PVA cooperation in the polymer matrix. After 7 days, all blended scaffolds showed low degradation rate with the increased of PVA composition. The FTIR and TGA results explicit possible chemical interactions and mass loss of blended scaffolds, respectively. The Tg values of DSC curved in range of HEC and PVA represented the miscibility of HEC/PVA blend polymers. Higher Young's modulus was obtained with the increasing of HEC value. Cell-scaffolds interaction demonstrated that human fibroblast (hFB) cells adhered to polymer matrices with better cell proliferation observed after 7 days of cultivation. These results suggested that biocompatible of HEC/PVA scaffolds fabricated by freeze-drying method might be suitable for skin tissue engineering applications.
Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are biodegradable polyesters produced by microorganisms, under unbalanced growth conditions, as a carbon storage compound. PHAs are composed of various monomers such as 3-hydroxybutyrate (3HB) and 3-hydroxyhexanoate (3HHx). Silk fibroin (SF) derived from Bombyx mori cocoons, is a widely studied protein polymer commonly used for biomaterial applications. In this study, non-woven electrospun films comprising a copolymer of 3HB and 3HHx [P(3HB-co-3HHx)], SF and their blends were prepared by electrospinning technique. The growth and osteogenic differentiation of human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSCs) were studied using different types of fabricated electrospun films. The differentiation study revealed that electrospun P(3HB-co-3HHx)/SF film supports the differentiation of hUC-MSCs into the osteogenic lineage, confirmed by histological analysis using Alizarin Red staining, energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) and quantitative real-time PCR analysis (qPCR). Electrospun P(3HB-co-3HHx)/SF film up-regulated the expression of osteogenic marker genes, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and osteocalcin (OCN), by 1.6-fold and 2.8-fold respectively, after 21 days of osteogenic induction. In conclusion, proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of hUC-MSCs were enhanced through the blending of P(3HB-co-3HHx) and SF. The results from this study suggest that electrospun P(3HB-co-3HHx)/SF film is a promising biomaterial for bone tissue engineering.
This study aimed to develop and characterize the calcium alginate films loaded with diclofenac sodium and other hydrophilic polymers with different degrees of cross-linking obtained by external gelation process. To the formed films different physicochemical evaluation were performed which showed an initial character of the films. The films produced by this external gelation process were found thicker (0.031-0.038 mm) and stronger (51.9-52.9 MPa) but less elastic (2.3%) than those non-cross-linked films (0.029 mm; 39.7 MPa; 4.4%). The lower water vapor permeability (WVP) values of the films were obtained where maximum level of crosslinking occurs. Composite films can be cross-linked in presence of external crosslinking agent to improve the quality of the produced matrices for various uses. The characterization of the film was performed using Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis. The Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) study showed the morphology of treated composite films. The kinetic release studies showed a sustained release of the drug from the formulated films as it can be prolonged in composite film. The prepared biodegradable Ca-Alginate bio-composite film may be of clinical importance for its therapeutic benefit.
Globally, people suffering from bone disorders are steadily increasing and bone tissue engineering is an advanced approach to treating fractured and defected bone tissues. In this study, we have prepared polymeric nanocomposite by free-radical polymerization from sodium alginate, hydroxyapatite, and silica with different GO amounts. The porous scaffolds were fabricated using the freeze drying technique. The structural, morphological, mechanical, and wetting investigation was conducted by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope, universal tensile machine, and water contact angle characterization techniques. The swelling, biodegradation, and water retention were also studied. The biological studies were performed (cell viability, cell adherence, proliferation, and mineralization) against osteoblast cell lines. Scaffolds have exhibited different pore morphology SAG-1 (pore size = 414.61 ± 56 μm and porosity = 81.45 ± 2.17 %) and SAG-4 (pore size = 195.97 ± 82 μm and porosity = 53.82 ± 2.45 %). They have different mechanical behavior as SAG-1 has the least compression strength and compression modulus 2.14 ± 2.35 and 16.51 ± 1.27 MPa. However, SAG-4 has maximum compression strength and compression modulus 13.67 ± 2.63 and 96.16 ± 1.97 MPa with wetting behavior 80.70° and 58.70°, respectively. Similarly, SAG-1 exhibited the least and SAG-4 presented maximum apatite mineral formation, cell adherence, cell viability, and cell proliferation against mouse pre-osteoblast cell lines. The increased GO amount provides different multifunctional materials with different characteristics. Hence, the fabricated scaffolds could be potential scaffold materials to treat and regenerate fracture bone tissues in bone tissue engineering.
Carbohydrate polymers are biological macromolecules that have sparked a lot of interest in wound healing due to their outstanding antibacterial properties and sustained drug release. Arabinoxylan (ARX), Chitosan (CS), and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) sheets were combined and crosslinked using tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) as a crosslinker to fabricate composite hydrogels and assess their potential in wound dressing for skin wound healing. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and biological assays were used to evaluate the composite hydrogels. FTIR validated the effective fabrication of the composite hydrogels. The rough morphologies of the composite hydrogels were revealed by SEM and AFM (as evident from the Ra values). ATC-4 was discovered to have the roughest surface. TEM revealed strong homogeneous anchoring of the rGO to the polymer matrix. However, with higher amount of rGO agglomeration was detected. The % swelling at various pHs (1-13) revealed that the hydrogels were pH-sensitive. The controlled release profile for the antibacterial drug (Silver sulfadiazine) evaluated at various pH values (4.5, 6.8, and 7.4) in PBS solution and 37 °C using the Franz diffusion method revealed maximal drug release at pH 7.4 and 37 °C. The antibacterial efficacy of the composite hydrogels against pathogens that cause serious skin diseases varied. The MC3T3-E1 cell adhered, proliferated, and differentiated well on the composite hydrogels. MC3T3-E1 cell also illustrated excellent viability (91%) and proper cylindrical morphologies on the composite hydrogels. Hence, the composite hydrogels based on ARX, CS, and rGO are promising biomaterials for treating and caring for skin wounds.