What do you guys have in your backpacks?
Russian scientists put on fibroblasts "backpacks" to increase the effectiveness of cell therapy
Press Center of the Ministry of Education and Science
Cell therapy is based on the use of living cells for the treatment of various pathologies. Biophysicists from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT) together with colleagues have developed a method for delivering protein to polymer microparticles and a method for attaching them to the cell surface, which allows to improve the regenerative properties of fibroblasts - cells of the connective tissue of the body synthesizing extracellular matrix and collagen. The technology of modification of fibroblasts occurs by attaching polymer "backpacks" — microcontainers with the multifunctional protein peroxyredoxin to their surface. The development is useful for use in tissue engineering and cosmetic dermatology.
Fibroblasts are connective tissue cells that produce components of the extracellular matrix, the most important of which is collagen. Collagen forms the basis of the dermis of the skin, tendons, bone and cartilage tissues. That is why fibroblasts are often used for various tasks of regenerative medicine. Usually, these cells are taken from a patient, multiplied in the laboratory, and then injected into damaged tissues by injection or as part of a tissue—engineered graft - tissue used to replace the damaged part of the body during transplantation. One of the main problems associated with the use of fibroblasts is the low rate of division of these cells in elderly patients. In addition, a significant part of the cells may die during transplantation as a result of oxidative stress, which is accompanied by inflammation in the damaged tissue.
"Recently, our colleagues from the Institute of Cell Biophysics of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Pushchino showed that if the protein peroxyredoxin is added to fibroblasts, it is recognized by special receptors on the surface of cells, which suppresses their aging process under stressful conditions and increases viability. We have developed a method for encapsulating this protein in polymer microparticles and a method for attaching them to the cell surface. These microparticles slowly release biologically active peroxyredoxin, which stimulates fibroblasts for a long time," said Mikhail Durymanov, deputy head of the Laboratory of Special Cellular Technologies at MIPT and the author of the idea.
The study proved that the attachment of polymer microparticles containing peroxyredoxin to the surface of fibroblasts significantly increases their viability under conditions of oxidative stress. In addition, this method of delivering fibroblasts to the body increases their mobility and positively affects the ability to produce collagen. Scientists are confident that using this approach will allow cells to adapt better in the body and not die during transplantation, which increases the effectiveness of cell therapy using fibroblasts.
Diagram and photos of fibroblasts with microparticles with peroxyredoxin covalently attached to their surface (microparticles are marked with arrows). Drawings from the article by Shen et al.
In addition to the employees of the Laboratory of Special Cell Technologies of MIPT, their colleagues from the Institute of Cell Biophysics of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Pushchino), Lomonosov Moscow State University and the Kulakov National Medical Research Center of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Perinatology took part in the work.
The work was carried out with the financial support of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation. The results of the study are published in the international scientific journal Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces (Shen et al., Surface modification of fibroblasts with peroxiredoxin-1-loaded polymer microparticles increases cell mobility, resistance to oxidative stress and collagen I production).
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