-
Pitts Riber posted an update 4 days, 3 hours ago
Research on the 3D culturing of cancer cells that better mimic in vivo solid tumors is important for efficient drug screening. Herein, a new platform that effectively facilitates the formation of cancer spheroids for anticancer drug screening is reported. GNE-049 datasheet Cytophilic graphene oxide (GO), when selectively coated on the sidewalls of micro-wells fabricated from a cell-adhesion-resistive polymer, is found to efficiently initiates distinct donut-like formation of cancer cell spheroids. Scanning electron microscopy and Raman mapping are used to analyze vertically coated GO micropatterns (vGO-MPs) of different sizes (100-250 µm) on polymer platforms, and human liver cancer cells (HepG2), as a model cancer, are seeded on these platforms. Remarkably, the 150 µm-sized platform is found to easily and rapidly generate 3D spheroids in the absence of cell-adhesion proteins. In addition, owing to the unique characteristics of GO, vGO-MPs are highly stable for long periods of time (≈1 month), even under harsh conditions (>70 °C). Moreover, the anticancer effects of two drugs (hydroxyurea and cisplatin) and the potential anticancer compound (curcumin) on HepG2 cells are demonstrated by simply measuring decreases in spheroid sizes. Hence, this new platform is highly promising as a cancer spheroid-forming material for rapid drug screening. © 2020 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.Additive manufacturing techniques have evolved novel opportunities for the fabrication of highly porous composite scaffolds with well-controlled and interconnected pore structures which is notably important for tissue engineering. In this work, poly (ε-caprolactone) (PCL)-based composite scaffolds (average pore diameter of 450 μm and strut thickness of 400 μm) reinforced with 10 vol% bioactive glass particles (BG; ∼6 μm) or TiO2 nanoparticles (∼21 nm), containing different concentrations of tetracycline hydrochloride (TCH) as an antimicrobial agent, were prepared by 3D printing. In order to investigate the effect of fabrication process and scaffold geometry on the biocompatibility, drug release kinetics, and antibacterial activity, polymer and composite films (2D structures) were also prepared by solvent casting method. We demonstrate that even without any additional coating layer, sustainable release can be attained on highly porous scaffolds prepared by 3D printing due to chemical interactions between functional groups of TCH and the bioactive particles. Herein, the effect of TiO2 nanoparticles on the release rate is substantially more pronounced than BG particles. Nevertheless, agar well-diffusion and MTT assays determine better cellular viability and higher antibacterial effect for PCL/BG composite. Although all the drug-eluting composite scaffolds exhibit acceptable hemocompatibility, in vitro cellular and bacterial studies also determine that the maximum amount of TCH that can inhibit gram positive (Staphylococcus aureus) and gram negative (Escherichia coli) bacteria without cytotoxicity effect (≥95% viability) is 0.57 mg/ml. These findings may pave the way for designing structurally engineered composite scaffolds with sustainable drug release profile by additive manufacturing techniques for tissue engineering applications. © 2020 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.BACKGROUND Cancer diagnosis may be a cue for health behavior change. Previous research that assessed the impact of a cancer diagnosis on multiple health behavior (MHB) change is limited by small sample size, cross-sectional study design, and a focus on individual rather than multiple behaviors. This study investigated the impact of a cancer diagnosis on compliance with MHB recommendations. METHODS Data from Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health (ALSWH) were utilized. Compliance with MHB was assessed by cancer survivorship period; 0-3 years pre-diagnosis, 0-3 years postdiagnosis, 4-12 years postdiagnosis, and compared to controls. A MHB score based on the WCRF/AICR guidelines was calculated for six behaviors (physical activity, smoking, alcohol, BMI, fruit, and vegetable intake); scores ranged from 0 to 6, with a higher score indicating higher compliance. Generalized estimating equation (GEE) was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS Participants comprised 7585 women from the 2001 ALSWH survey, of whom 2285 developed cancer during 15 years of follow-up. Compared to controls, the mean MHB score was slightly lower (Mean Difference (MD) = -0.015, P > .05) in survivors pre-diagnosis, after adjusting for confounders; however, the compliance score increased during postdiagnosis, with the mean difference score being significantly higher in recent survivors (0-3 years post diagnosis; MD = 0.055, P .05). CONCLUSION In this sample, survivors had higher MHB score than controls. A cancer diagnosis may provide a teachable moment for health behavior change in the period immediately following diagnosis, but this effect was not sustained during longer-term survivorship. © 2020 The Authors. Cancer Medicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.Bulk ceramic that possess the combined features of structural stability at elevated temperatures, appropriate mechanical stability, luminescence features, magnetic resonance (MR) and computed tomography (CT) imaging capacity in a single platform is considered an exciting prospect in biomedical applications. In this study, six different lanthanides (Ln3+ Yb3+ , Dy3+ , Tb3+ , Gd3+ , Eu3+ , and Nd3+ ) were combined together to yield a Y2 O3 Ln2 O3 solid solution and subsequently tested for the proposed application. Three different Y2 O3 Ln2 O3 solid solutions were formed by varying the concentrations of Ln3+ precursors. A unique cubic crystal structure with Ia-3 (206) space setting is retained until 1500 °C and moreover an expanded lattice is accomplished with the gradual inclusion of six different Ln3+ . Optical analysis inferred the characteristic electronic transitions of all the Ln3+ and moreover up-conversion and down-conversion emission behavior were also attributed by the material during excitation at 795 and 350 nm. Nanoindentation studies exercised on the material envisaged reasonably enhanced hardness and Young’s modulus values. Further, the enhanced CT imaging potential alongside in vitro MRI study deliberating the longitudinal (T1 ) and transverse (T2 ) relaxivity ability of the material is also established. © 2020 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.