Poly(glycerol sebacate) (PGS), a tough elastomer, has been proposed for tissue engineering applications due to its desired mechanical properties, biocompatibility and controlled degradation. Despite interesting physical and chemical properties, PGS shows limited water uptake capacity (∼2%), thus constraining its utility for soft tissue engineering. Therefore, a modification of PGS that would mi...

Poly(glycerol sebacate) (PGS) has increasingly become a desirable biomaterial due to its elastic mechanical properties, biodegradability, and biocompatibility. Here, we report microfibrous core−shell mats of polycaprolactone (PCL)−PGS prepared using wet−wet coaxial electrospinning. The anticoagulant heparin was immobilized onto the surface of these electrospun fiber mats, and they were evaluate...

Poly(glycerol sebacate) (PGS) is a biodegradable polymer increasingly used in a variety of biomedical applications. This polyester is prepared by polycondensation of glycerol and sebacic acid. PGS exhibits biocompatibility and biodegradability, both highly relevant properties in biomedical applications. PGS also involves cost effective production with the possibility of up scaling to industrial...

Only a few years ago the American Society of Assisted Reproductive Medicine (ASRM), the European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) and the British Fertility Society declared preimplantation genetic screening (PGS#1) ineffective in improving in vitro fertilization (IVF) pregnancy rates and in reducing miscarriage rates. A presumably upgraded form of the procedure (PGS#2) has ...

Activated macrophages produce substantial quantities of paracrine mediators, including cytokines, nitric oxide, and prostaglandins. Transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-beta) is a potent modulator of immune function. TGF-beta inhibits the cytotoxic activity of endotoxin/lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated macrophage cell lines and primary macrophage cultures, reducing their expression of cytok...

Cyclooxygenase (COX)-derived prostaglandins (PGs) regulate numerous maternal-fetal interactions during pregnancy. PGs stimulate uterine contractions and prepare the cervix for parturition, whereas in the fetus, PGs maintain patency of the ductus arteriosus (DA), a vascular shunt that transmits oxygenated placental blood to the fetal systemic circulation. However, the origin and site of action o...

The precipitation of collagen fibrils from solutions at 37°C and approximately physiological pH and ionic strength is retarded markedly in the presence of small amounts of proteoglycan monomer (PGS), proteoglycan aggregate (PGC), reduced and alkylated PGS, or cyanogen bromide-cleavage products of PGS. The polysaccharide-peptide fragments produced from PGS with papain, trypsin, cathepsin D, or t...

Prostaglandins (PGs), derivatives of arachidonic acid, play an indispensable role in embryo implantation. PGs have been reported to participate in the increase in vascular permeability, stromal decidualization, blastocyst growth and development, leukocyte recruitment, embryo transport, trophoblast invasion, and extracellular matrix remodeling during implantation. Deranged PGs syntheses and acti...

The function and sites of action of prostaglandins (PGs) vary in different animal species and tissues. In this study the effects of PGs (E1, E2, F2 alpha ,D2) on intraocular muscles and outflow facility of the eye were investigated, using enucleated bovine eyes. None of these PGs exogenously applied influenced the neuromuscular transmission. By contrast, after treatment with indomethacin, all P...

The regulation of the two isoforms of prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase (PGS-1 and PGS-2) and prostaglandin synthesis by luteinizing hormone (LH)/3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (IBMX) and progesterone was examined in granulosa cells and residual ovarian tissue of rat ovaries perfused in vitro. The endogenous progesterone synthesis was blocked by an inhibitor of 3 beta-dehydroxysteroid-dehydrogen...