sinthetic cells

In the last years, peptide based hydrogels are being increasingly used as suitable matrices for biomedical and pharmaceutical applications, including drug delivery and tissue engineering. Recently, we decrived the synthesis and the gelation properties of a small library of cationic peptides, containing a Lys residue at the C-teminus and derivatized with a Fmoc group or with the Fmoc-diphenylalanine (FmocFF) at the N-terminus. Here, we demonstrate that the combination of these peptides with the well known hydrogelator FmocFF, in different weight/weight ratios, allows the achievement of seven novel self-sorted hydrogels, which share similar peptide organization of their supramolecular matrix...

Heparin-Binding Epidermal Growth Factor (HB-EGF) is growth factor member of EGF family that stimulate differentiation and growth. HB-EGF was initially identified as a secreted product of human macrophage-like cells, it is sinthetized as a transmembrana protein; proHB-EGF; that is shed by specific metalloproteases, releasing soluble growth factor(sHB-EGF). It exerts biological activity trough activation of the EGFR. sHB-EGF is implicated in diverse biological processes: angiogenesis, shin wound, blastocysts implantation, atherosclerosis, tumor formation moreover it acts as the Diphtheria Toxin (DT) receptor...