Endoscopicandimagingappearanceafterinjectionofanano-rectalbulking agent

The use of hyaluronic acid and dextranomer (Solesta, Salix) injection in the anal canal is an emerging modal-ity in the treatment of fecal incontinence. However, little is known regarding the endoscopic and radiological appearance following injection of this ano-rectal bulking agent. We report computed tomography and endoscopic findings after hyaluronic acid/dextranomer injection in the ano-rectal area.

Theranostic hyaluronic acid prodrug micelles with aggregation- induced emission characteristics for targeted drug delivery

Theranostic hyaluronic acid(HA) prodrug micelles with pH-responsive drug release and aggregation-induced emission(AIE)properties were prepared by chemical graft of biomimetic phosphorylcholine(PC), anticancer drug doxorubicin(DOX) and AIE fluorogen tetraphenylene(TPE) to the HA backbone. DOX was conjugated to the HA backbone by a hydrazone bond which can be hydrolyzed under acidic environment and result in pH-triggered smart release of DOX. The TPE units with typical AIE characteristics were applied for real time drug tracking in cancer cells. The HA-based prodrugs could self-assemble into micelles in aqueous solution as confirmed by the dynamic light scattering(DLS) and transmission electron microscopy(TEM). The intracellular distribution of HA prodrug micelles could be clearly observed by fluorescence microscopy based on the strong fluorescence of TPE. Moreover, after treated with the micelles, stronger fluorescence of TPE in CD44 overexpressed MDA-MB-231 cancer cells was observed, compared to the CD44 negative cell line, NIH3T3 cells, suggesting efficient cell uptake of HA prodrug micelles by receptor-mediated endocytosis. The cell viability results indicated that the prodrug micelles could inhibit the proliferation of the cancer cells effectively. Such pH-triggered theranostic drug delivery system with AIE features can provide a new platform for targeted and image-guided cancer therapy.

Hyaluronic acid as a rescue therapy for trinitrobenzene sulfonica cid-induced colitis through Cox-2 and PGE_2 in a Toll-like receptor 4-dependent way

We hypothesized whether systemic administration of high-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid(HMW HA) could rescue trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid(TNBS)-induced colitis through Toll-like receptor 4(TLR4) signal.C3H/HeN mice and C3H/HeJ mice were used.Mice were divided into four groups:control,50% ethanol treatment group,TNBS treatment group,and TNBS plus HA treatment group.The weight changes,clinical scores,macroscopic scores,and histological scores were recorded.Cyclooxygenase 2(Cox-2) and prostaglandin E 2(PGE 2) expressions were measured both in colons and peritoneal macrophages from these mice.HA was a rescue therapy for the colitis induced by TNBS only in C3H/HeN mice.The clinical score,macroscopic score,and histological score were much lower in C3H/HeN mice receiving TNBS plus HA treatment.Cox-2 and PGE 2 expressions only increased in C3H/HeN mice.These Cox-2 expressing cells were macrophages.HA can also promote the production of Cox-2 and PGE 2 in peritoneal macrophages from C3H/HeN mice.Our data demonstrated that HMW HA can rescue TNBS-induced colitis through inducing Cox-2 and PGE 2 expressions in a TLR4-dependent way.Macrophages may be the effector cells of HMW HA.