Magnetic soft microrobots for erectile dysfunction therapy.

Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
PMID: 39556757

Abstract

Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a major threat to male fertility and quality of life, and mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) are a promising therapeutic option. However, therapeutic outcomes are compromised by low MSC retention and survival rates in corpus cavernosum tissue. Here, we developed an innovative magnetic soft microrobot comprising an ultrasoft hydrogel microsphere embedded with a magnetic nanoparticle chain for MSC delivery. This design also features phenylboronic acid groups for scavenging reactive oxygen species (ROS). With a Young's modulus of less than 1 kPa, the ultrasoft microrobot adapts its shape within narrow blood vessels, ensuring a uniform distribution of MSCs within the corpus cavernosum. Our findings showed that compared with traditional MSC injections, the MSC delivery microrobot (MSC-Rob) significantly enhanced MSC retention and survival. In both rat and beagle ED models, MSC-Rob treatment accelerated the repair of corpus cavernosum tissue and restored erectile function. Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) revealed that MSC-Rob treatment facilitates nerve and blood vessel regeneration in the corpus cavernosum by increasing the presence of regenerative macrophages. Overall, our MSC-Rob not only advances the clinical application of MSCs for ED therapy but also broadens the scope of microrobots for other cell therapies.

Authors

  • Shuting Wang
    Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, China.
  • Zhenqing Wang
    Department of Urology, Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Jinan 250021, P. R. China.
  • Zongshan Shen
    Hospital of Stomatology, Guanghua School of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510055, P. R. China.
  • Min Zhang
    Department of Infectious Disease, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China.
  • Dongdong Jin
    Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, N.T., Hong Kong.
  • Ke Zheng
    Department of Orthopaedics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui, China.
  • Xuemin Liu
    National Engineering Research Centre for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
  • Muyuan Chai
    National Engineering Research Centre for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
  • Zhenxing Wang
    Center for Genomic and Personalized Medicine, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China.
  • Ani Chi
    National Engineering Research Centre for Tissue Restoration and Reconstruction, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, P. R. China.
  • Serge Ostrovidov
    Institute of Biomaterials and Bioengineering, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Chiyoda-ku 113-8510, Tokyo, Japan.
  • Hongkai Wu
    Department of Chemistry, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong 999077, P. R. China.
  • Dan Shao
    Key Laboratory of Symbol Computation and Knowledge Engineering of Ministry of Education, College of Computer Science and Technology, Jilin University, Changchun 130012, China.
  • Guihua Liu
    Reproductive Centre The Sixth Affiliated Hospital Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510655, P. R. China.
  • Kai Wu
  • Kam W Leong
    Department of Biomedical Engineering, Columbia University, USA.
  • Xuetao Shi
    Department of Medical Electronic Engineering, Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710032, China.

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