scholarly journals Polymeric Materials: Surfaces, Interfaces and Bioapplications

Materials ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 1312
Author(s):  
Alexandra Muñoz-Bonilla ◽  
Coro Echeverría ◽  
Águeda Sonseca ◽  
Marina P. Arrieta ◽  
Marta Fernández-García
Keyword(s):  
Tissue Engineering ◽  
Food Packaging ◽  
Polymeric Materials ◽  
Dental Restoration ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Agricultural Films

This special issue “Polymeric Materials: Surfaces, Interfaces and Bioapplications” was proposed to cover all the aspects related to recent innovations on surfaces, interfaces and bioapplications of polymeric materials. The collected articles show the advances in polymeric materials, which have tremendous applications in agricultural films, food packaging, dental restoration, antimicrobial systems and tissue engineering. We hope that readers will be able to enjoy highly relevant topics that are related to polymers. Therefore, we hope to prove that plastics can be a solution and not a problem.

scholarly journals Gum Tragacanth (GT): A Versatile Biocompatible Material beyond Borders

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 1510 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Ehsan Taghavizadeh Yazdi ◽  
Simin Nazarnezhad ◽  
Seyed Hadi Mousavi ◽  
Mohammad Sadegh Amiri ◽  
Majid Darroudi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tissue Engineering ◽  
Food Packaging ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Great Promise ◽  
Anionic Polymer ◽  
Gum Tragacanth ◽  
New Horizons ◽  
Tissue Healing ◽  
The Stability ◽  
Therapeutic Substance

The use of naturally occurring materials in biomedicine has been increasingly attracting the researchers’ interest and, in this regard, gum tragacanth (GT) is recently showing great promise as a therapeutic substance in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. As a polysaccharide, GT can be easily extracted from the stems and branches of various species of Astragalus. This anionic polymer is known to be a biodegradable, non-allergenic, non-toxic, and non-carcinogenic material. The stability against microbial, heat and acid degradation has made GT an attractive material not only in industrial settings (e.g., food packaging) but also in biomedical approaches (e.g., drug delivery). Over time, GT has been shown to be a useful reagent in the formation and stabilization of metal nanoparticles in the context of green chemistry. With the advent of tissue engineering, GT has also been utilized for the fabrication of three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds applied for both hard and soft tissue healing strategies. However, more research is needed for defining GT applicability in the future of biomedical engineering. On this object, the present review aims to provide a state-of-the-art overview of GT in biomedicine and tries to open new horizons in the field based on its inherent characteristics.

Special Issue on Tissue Engineering for Women's Health

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (13-14) ◽  
pp. 685-687
Author(s):  
Jenny Robinson ◽  
Ariella Shikanov ◽  
Brendan Harley
Keyword(s):  
Tissue Engineering ◽  
Women’S Health ◽  
Women's Health ◽  
Special Issue

scholarly journals Nanocomposites Materials of PLA Reinforced with Nanoclays Using a Masterbatch Technology: A Study of the Mechanical Performance and Its Sustainability

Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 2133
Author(s):  
Helena Oliver-Ortega ◽  
Josep Tresserras ◽  
Fernando Julian ◽  
Manel Alcalà ◽  
Alba Bala ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Packaging ◽  
Mechanical Performance ◽  
Polymeric Materials ◽  
Barrier Properties ◽  
Food Tray ◽  
Environmental Concerns ◽  
Poly Lactic Acid ◽  
The Matrix ◽  
Surface Modified ◽  
Being Moved

Packaging consumes around 40% of the total plastic production. One of the most important fields with high requirements is food packaging. Food packaging products have been commonly produced with petrol polymers, but due to environmental concerns, the market is being moved to biopolymers. Poly (lactic acid) (PLA) is the most promising biopolymer, as it is bio-based and biodegradable, and it is well established in the market. Nonetheless, its barrier properties need to be enhanced to be competitive with other polymers such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Nanoclays improve the barrier properties of polymeric materials if correct dispersion and exfoliation are obtained. Thus, it marks a milestone to obtain an appropriate dispersion. A predispersed methodology is proposed as a compounding process to improve the dispersion of these composites instead of common melt procedures. Afterwards, the effect of the polarity of the matrix was analyzing using polar and surface modified nanoclays with contents ranging from 2 to 8% w/w. The results showed the suitability of the predispersed and concentrated compound, technically named masterbatch, to obtain intercalated structures and the higher dispersion of polar nanoclays. Finally, the mechanical performance and sustainability of the prepared materials were simulated in a food tray, showing the best assessment of these materials and their lower fingerprint.

scholarly journals Optical Properties of Polypropylene upon Recycling

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felice De Santis ◽  
Roberto Pantani
Keyword(s):  
Optical Properties ◽  
Rheological Properties ◽  
Isotactic Polypropylene ◽  
Food Packaging ◽  
Polymeric Materials ◽  
Optical Characteristics ◽  
Cooling Rates ◽  
Commercial Grade

In the last few years there has been an increasing interest in the possibility of recycling polymeric materials, using physical recycling. However, is it well known that polymers experience a depletion of all the properties upon recycling. These effects have been widely characterized in the literature for what concerns the mechanical or rheological properties. The changes of optical properties after recycling have been much less studied, even if, especially in food packaging, optical characteristics (above all the opacity) are of extreme importance, and thus it is quite significant to assess the effect of recycling on these properties. In this work, the influence of recycling steps on the opacity of films of a commercial grade of isotactic polypropylene (i-PP) was studied. The material was extruded several times to mimic the effect of recycling procedures. After extrusion, films were obtained by cooling samples of material at different cooling rates. The opacity of the obtained films was then measured and related to their crystallinity and morphology. It was found that opacity generally increases on increasing the amount ofαphase and for the same amount ofαphase on increasing the size of the spherulites.

scholarly journals Redox Polymers for Tissue Engineering

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Binbin Z. Molino ◽  
Junji Fukuda ◽  
Paul J. Molino ◽  
Gordon G. Wallace
Keyword(s):  
Tissue Engineering ◽  
Conducting Polymers ◽  
Polymeric Materials ◽  
Redox Polymers ◽  
Design Synthesis ◽  
Materials Development ◽  
Biologically Relevant ◽  
Fundamental Properties

This review will focus on the targeted design, synthesis and application of redox polymers for use in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering. We define redox polymers to encompass a variety of polymeric materials, from the multifunctional conjugated conducting polymers to graphene and its derivatives, and have been adopted for use in the engineering of several types of stimulus responsive tissues. We will review the fundamental properties of organic conducting polymers (OCPs) and graphene, and how their properties are being tailored to enhance material - biological interfacing. We will highlight the recent development of high-resolution 3D fabrication processes suitable for biomaterials, and how the fabrication of intricate scaffolds at biologically relevant scales is providing exciting opportunities for the application of redox polymers for both in-vitro and in-vivo tissue engineering. We will discuss the application of OCPs in the controlled delivery of bioactive compounds, and the electrical and mechanical stimulation of cells to drive behaviour and processes towards the generation of specific functional tissue. We will highlight the relatively recent advances in the use of graphene and the exploitation of its physicochemical and electrical properties in tissue engineering. Finally, we will look forward at the future of organic conductors in tissue engineering applications, and where the combination of materials development and fabrication processes will next unite to provide future breakthroughs.

scholarly journals Hydrogels for the Application of Articular Cartilage Tissue Engineering: A Review of Hydrogels

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Er-Yuan Chuang ◽  
Chih-Wei Chiang ◽  
Pei-Chun Wong ◽  
Chih-Hwa Chen
Keyword(s):  
Tissue Engineering ◽  
Articular Cartilage ◽  
Cartilage Damage ◽  
Medical Science ◽  
Cartilage Tissue Engineering ◽  
Polymeric Materials ◽  
Tissue Growth ◽  
Cartilage Tissue ◽  
Cellular Interaction ◽  
Polymeric Hydrogels

The treatment of articular cartilage damage is a major task in the medical science of orthopedics. Hydrogels possess the ability to form multifunctional cartilage grafts since they possess polymeric swellability upon immersion in an aqueous phase. Polymeric hydrogels are capable of physiological swelling and greasing, and they possess the mechanical behavior required for use as articular cartilage substitutes. The chondrogenic phenotype of these materials may be enhanced by embedding living cells. Artificial hydrogels fabricated from biologically derived and synthesized polymeric materials are also used as tissue-engineering scaffolds; with their controlled degradation profiles, the release of stimulatory growth factors can be achieved. In order to make use of these hydrogels, cartilage implants were formulated in the laboratory to demonstrate the bionic mechanical behaviors of physiological cartilage. This paper discusses developments concerning the use of polymeric hydrogels for substituting injured cartilage tissue and assisting tissue growth. These gels are designed with consideration of their polymeric classification, mechanical strength, manner of biodegradation, limitations of the payload, cellular interaction, amount of cells in the 3D hydrogel, sustained release for the model drug, and the different approaches for incorporation into adjacent organs. This article also summarizes the different advantages, disadvantages, and the future prospects of hydrogels.

scholarly journals Vegetable Additives in Food Packaging Polymeric Materials

Polymers ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvestru Bogdănel Munteanu ◽  
Cornelia Vasile
Keyword(s):  
Plant Extracts ◽  
Food Packaging ◽  
Polymeric Materials ◽  
Lignocellulosic Materials ◽  
Lignocellulosic Fibers ◽  
Nano Cellulose ◽  
Biomass Plant ◽  
Phenolic And Flavonoid ◽  
Phenolic And Flavonoid Compounds ◽  
By Products

Plants are the most abundant bioresources, providing valuable materials that can be used as additives in polymeric materials, such as lignocellulosic fibers, nano-cellulose, or lignin, as well as plant extracts containing bioactive phenolic and flavonoid compounds used in the healthcare, pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and nutraceutical industries. The incorporation of additives into polymeric materials improves their properties to make them suitable for multiple applications. Efforts are made to incorporate into the raw polymers various natural biobased and biodegradable additives with a low environmental fingerprint, such as by-products, biomass, plant extracts, etc. In this review we will illustrate in the first part recent examples of lignocellulosic materials, lignin, and nano-cellulose as reinforcements or fillers in various polymer matrices and in the second part various applications of plant extracts as active ingredients in food packaging materials based on polysaccharide matrices (chitosan/starch/alginate).

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