Yuxing Guo, PhD |Peking University Hospital of Stomotology; Xuehai Yan, PhD; Qingxiang Li, PhD; Guizhi Shen, PhD； Ruirui Xing, PhD
Competition Sponsor: Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences
Awardee Year: 2022
Bone metastases are often occurred in patients with advanced tumors, and medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (MRONJ) is likely to occur once anti-angiogenic and/or anti-resorptive drugs are used for a long time. Surgery is a common method for the treatment of MRONJ, but oral mucosal is prone to have healing disorders after the application of anti-angiogenic drugs. How to reduce local inflammation in the oral mucosa and promote wound healing without interfering with the chemotherapy process has become a major clinical problem for cancer patients.
Host defense peptides are an emerging class of modulators involved in innate immunity. They mediate the migration of monocytes and leukocytes to the site of tissue damage, and regulate pro- and anti-inflammatory responses through TLR or C-type lectin receptors. However, when host defense peptide molecules are directly applied in vivo, there are still shortcomings such as short half-life, low efficiency, and easy degradation. The positive charges in the new-designed supramolecular self-assembled hydrogels can respond to the negatively charged surfaces in the microbial environment, so that they can function through slow disassembly, with the advantages of slow release, resistance to degradation, enhanced immune regulation, and long-lasting anti-microbial.
Based on our research work in the development of oral mucosal healing model after chemotherapy and peptide self-assembly mechanism, this project plans to design and select specific host defense peptides and focus on research of its self-assembly and immune regulation process, and the feasibility of its future clinical application to improve oral mucosal healing capability after chemotherapy.
To learn more about this proposal, email healthylongevity@nas.edu.