Progress in biomedical engineering (Bristol, England)最新文献

The journey of a prosthetic user is characterized by the opportunities and the limitations of a device that should enable activities of daily living (ADL). In particular, experiencing a bionic hand as a functional (and, advantageously, embodied) limb constitutes the premise for promoting the practice in using the device, mitigating the risk of its abandonment. In order to achieve such a result, different aspects need to be considered for making the artificial limb an effective solution to accomplish ADL. According to such a perspective, this review aims at presenting the current issues and at envisioning the upcoming breakthroughs in upper limb prosthetic devices. We first define the sources of input and feedback involved in the system control (at user-level and device-level), alongside the related algorithms used in signal analysis. Moreover, the paper focuses on the user-centered design challenges and strategies that guide the implementation of novel solutions in this area in terms of technology acceptance, embodiment, and, in general, human-machine integration based on co-adaptive processes. We here provide the readers (belonging to the target communities of researchers, designers, developers, clinicians, industrial stakeholders, and end-users) with an overview of the state-of-the-art and the potential innovations in bionic hands features, hopefully promoting interdisciplinary efforts for solving current issues of upper limb prostheses. The integration of different perspectives should be the premise to a transdisciplinary intertwining leading to a truly holistic comprehension and improvement of the bionic hands design. Overall, this paper aims to move the boundaries in prosthetic innovation beyond the development of a tool and toward the engineering of human-centered artificial limbs.

As the field of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine progresses, the possibility for artificial organs to restore normal tissue functions seems to become more feasible. However, a major challenge in the long-term culture of the engineered tissues is the lack of adequate oxygenation. The photosynthetic supply of oxygen (O₂) for tissues and organs using photoautotrophic microorganisms has been explored recently in bothin vitroandin vivostudies. The biofabrication of photosymbiotic scaffolds using biomaterials, photosynthetic microorganisms, and human cells has shown constant generation of O₂in response to light illumination while avoiding hypoxic conditions. This emerging strategy of photosymbiotic oxygenation is potentially an attractive approach to overcome the need of adequate oxygenation in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. This Perspective aims to present an overview on the applications of photoautotrophic microorganism-enabled oxygenation strategies for overcoming hypoxia-related challenges in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.

Exosomes have emerged as natural nanocarriers and are advantageous in the field of nanomedicine due to their lipid bilayer membrane comprising many proteins, nucleic acids and cell debris. Exosomes are secreted from all types of living cells and play a role in cancer diagnosis and therapy because of their biological properties, such as intercellular communication, modulation of immune responses, biocompatibility and target specificity. Many studies have shown that exosomes can be engineered or modified with different therapeutic substances, including nucleic acids, proteins, drugs and other nanomaterials, to improve their specificity, efficiency and safety in nanomedicine. In this review, we summarize the methodologies of exosome biogenesis, purification, the possible mechanisms of cellular uptake and the important role of exosomes in cancer diagnosis, followed by the role of engineered exosomes in cancer therapy. Also, future trends and challenges are discussed. We strongly suggest that a clear articulation of the fundamental principles for the creation of exosome-based theranostic platforms will help reveal the unique powers of exosomes in early cancer diagnosis and therapeutics, including chemotherapy, gene therapy, immunotherapy and phototherapy.

Conventional 2D cell cultures are widely used for the development of new anticancer drugs. However, their relevance asin vitromodels is increasingly questioned as they are considered too simplistic compared to complex, three-dimensionalin vivotumors. Moreover, animal experiments are not only costly and time-consuming, but also raise ethical issues and their use for some applications has been restricted. Therefore, it becomes crucial to develop new experimental models that better capture the complexity and dynamic aspects ofin vivotumors. New approaches based on microfluidic technology are promising. This technology has indeed been used to create microphysiological systems called 'organ-on-chip' which simulate key structural and functional features of human tissues and organs. These devices have further been adapted to create cancer models giving rise to the 'cancer-on-chip' (COC) concept. In this review, we will discuss the main COC models described so far for major cancer types including lung, prostate, breast, colorectal, pancreatic, and ovarian cancers. Then, we will highlight the challenges that this technology is facing and the possible research perspectives that can arise from them.