Natl. Sci. Rev.: Autocatalytic bifunctional supramolecular hydrogels for osteoporotic bone repair

Title：

Autocatalytic bifunctional supramolecular hydrogels for osteoporotic bone repair

Authors：

Zhihui Han¹, Xiang Gao², Yuanjie Wang¹, Cheng Huang², Hao Song², Shuning Cheng¹, Xiaoyuan Yang¹, Xiaoliang Cui¹, Jie Wu¹, Kailu Wei¹and Liang Cheng^1,3*

Institutions：

¹Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.

²Department of Orthopedics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou 215004, China.

³Macao Institute of Materials Science and Engineering, Macau University of Science and Technology, Taipa 999078, China.

Abstract：

Conventional bone scaffolds, which are mainly ascribed to highly active osteoclasts and an inflammatory microenvironment with high levels of reactive oxygen species and pro-inflammatory factors, barely satisfy osteoporotic defect repair. Herein, multifunctional self-assembled supramolecular fiber hydrogels (Ce–Aln gel) consisting of alendronate (Aln) and cerium (Ce) ions were constructed for osteoporotic bone defect repair. Based on the reversible interaction and polyvalent cerium ions, the Ce–Aln gel, which was mainly composed of ionic coordination and hydrogen bonds, displayed good injectability and autocatalytic amplification of the antioxidant effect. In vitro studies showed that the Ce–Aln gel effectively maintained the biological function of osteoblasts by regulating redox homeostasis and improved the inflammatory microenvironment to enhance the inhibitory effect on osteoclasts. Ribonucleic acid (RNA) sequencing further revealed significant downregulation of various metabolic pathways, including apoptosis signaling, hypoxia metabolism and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) signaling via the nuclear factor kappa-B pathway after treatment with the Ce–Aln gel. In vivo experiments showed that the clinical drug-based Ce–Aln gel effectively promoted the tissue repair of osteoporotic bone defects by improving inflammation and inhibiting osteoclast formation at the defect. Notably, in vivo systemic osteoporosis was significantly ameliorated, highlighting the strong potential of clinical translation for precise therapy of bone defects.

IF：

16.3

Link：

https://doi.org/10.1093/nsr/nwae209

Editor: Guo Jia