Cytotoxicity and anti-inflammatory activity of cyclosporine A loaded PLGA nanoparticles for ocular use.

Cyclosporine A loaded poly(lactide-co-glycolide) nanoparticles were prepared using the o/w emulsification solvent evaporation method and the effect of four preparation parameters on particle size and zeta potential was investigated. Release properties of the nanoparticles were examined and in vitro experiments were performed in order to evaluate the cytotoxicity and anti-inflammatory activity of the nanoparticles developed. Particle sizes varied between 191 and 303 nm depending on the different preparation parameters and all nanoparticle dispersions were monodisperse. The nanoparticles showed negative zeta potential values varying between -16 and -35 mV and 57 to 70 % of the amount of loaded cyclosporine A was released after 24 h. None of the nanoparticle formulations showed significant cytotoxicity compared to the negative control using human epithelial cells (HaCaT). Cyclosporine A incorporated in the various nanoparticle formulations retained its anti-inflammatory activity as significant suppression of interleukine-2 secretion in concanavalin A stimulated Jurkat T cells was measured. As the overall influence of the freeze-drying process on the characteristics of nanoparticles was limited, trehalose and carnitine should be preferred as cryoprotectants in ocular formulations for treatment of dry eye disease.

The Use of a New Wound Alginogel for the Treatment of Partial-thickness Hand Burns.

UNLABELLED:  The following retrospective analysis reports on patients with partial-thickness wounds admitted to the burn unit of the General Hospital of Athens who were treated with a new alginogel and were later compared to the burn center's standard treatment. METHODS: Patient information from January-December 2008 was analyzed for the number of days until healing and wound bacterial loads. Wound healing was characterized as a quick onset of epithelialization and low occurrence of inflammation. RESULTS: A limited number of wounds (15%) were found to be positive for wound swabs and accordingly few signs of inflammation were reported. The organisms that were retrieved from the alginogel treated wounds were Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus hominis, and Acinetobacter baumanii. CONCLUSION: These data are discussed and compared with the experience of the burn unit and its standard treatment. .

Study of the environmental effect of a commercial wound cleanser used with different mechanical forces.

Important improvements have been made in wound care over the last decade. However, few data are available on the influence that these have outside their intended use. This study aimed to clarify the effects of the use of wound cleansers on bacterial contamination of the immediate surroundings. Little evidence was found from either laboratory or clinical settings that wound-derived micro-organisms become airborne during wound cleansing. Bacterial dispersion around wounds may be attributed to general activity rather than wound cleansing. If simple precautions are taken, risks for personnel and patients in hospitals and consultation rooms during wound cleansing can be minimized.

Messenger RNA electroporation is highly efficient in mouse embryonic stem cells: successful FLPe- and Cre-mediated recombination.

Development of efficient short-term gene transfer technologies for embryonic stem (ES) cells is urgently needed for various existing and new ES cell-based research strategies. In this study, we present a highly efficient, nonviral non-DNA technology for genetic loading of mouse ES cells based on electroporation of defined mRNA. Here, we show that mouse ES cells can be efficiently loaded with mRNA encoding a green fluorescent reporter protein, resulting in a level of at least 90% of transgene expression without loss of cell viability and phenotype. To show that transgenes, introduced by mRNA electroporation, exert a specific cellular function in transfected cells, we electroporated stably transfected ES cell lines with mRNA encoding FLPe or Cre recombinase proteins in order to excise an FRT- or LoxP-flanked reporter gene. The results, as determined by the disappearance and/or appearance of a fluorescent reporter gene expression, show that FLPe and Cre recombinase proteins, introduced by mRNA electroporation, efficiently exert their function without influence on further culture of undifferentiated ES cell populations and their ability to differentiate towards a specific lineage.