Hyaluronan applications

Gomis A, Miralles A, Schmidt RF, Belmonte C. Nociceptive nerve activity in an experimental model of knee joint osteoarthritis of the guinea pig effect of intra-articular hyaluronan application. Pain 2007 130 126-136. 

T. C. Laurent, The Chemistry, Biology and Medical Application of Hyaluronan and Its Derivatives. Portland Press, London, 1998. 

Biology, and Medical Applications of Hyaluronan and Its DerivativIsC. Laurent, ed., Portland Press, London, 43-65. 

One such application could be delivery of Has2-pDNA, a plasmid that codes for hyaluronan synthase 2 [66]. This enzyme facilitates the synthesis of larger HA molecules and can prevent post-surgical peritoneal adhesions. In one study, DNA-HA films were prepared using previously-described chemistry however, lyophili-zation was replaced with air-drying under sterile conditions and an isopropanol/ H20 mixture was used instead of DMF/H20. The release kinetics of DNA were similar to that from the HA film described previously, but release did not occur until after 7 days. The reason for this delay was not completely clear the authors suggest that a possible way to overcome the delay is to use a crosslinked DNA-HA film sandwiched between two non-crosslinked DNA-HA films. Non-crosslinked film... 

Recently, other approaches and modifications of HA for gene delivery applications have been investigated. Among the most interesting ones are mixed chitosan-hyaluronan based gene delivery systems [68-70] and PEG-HA photocrosslinked hydrogels [71]. HA has also been used to improve the biocompatibility of branched PEI via covalent conjugation [72],... 

Yun YH, Chen W (2005) Microspheres formulated from native hyaluronan for applications in gene therapy. In Mansoor MA (ed) Polymeric gene delivery principles and applications, CRC Press LLC, USA, pp 475 186... 

During these years, our work laid the foundation for future studies on the effect of elastoviscous solutions of hyaluronan on the migration, proliferation and function of white blood cells, and how such solutions affect some functions of the immune system. We discovered that hyaluronan regulates the synthesis of glycosaminoglycans in in vitro systems, and regulates inflammation and tissue regeneration in adult animal models and tissues. All these studies laid the theoretical foundation for the therapeutic applications of hyaluronan. 

For several years I tried to convince Pharmacia to work with me to develop new derivatives of hyaluronan and test them on a broad spectrum of medical therapeutic applications. But Pharmacia was not even ready to market my high molecular weight, non-inflammatory fraction of hyaluronan for the treatment of human arthritis, despite the fact that they had many successful clinical trials and that they were selling the material worldwide for treatment of arthritis in animals. I believe that this was because they were not ready to invest in a substantially larger manufacturing facility for hyaluronan. They were, however, ready to support me financially in my research and development effort to develop new hyaluronan derivatives. 

Cowman, L.M. and Ethier, C.R., Concentration and concentration gradient measurements in an ultrafiltration concentration polarization layer. Part II Application to hyaluronan. Journal of Membrane Science 131 1997 107-123. 

In recent years, new biological roles have been ascribed to HA along with its essential function as a component of ECM. Due to its unique rheological properties, hyaluronan has found many applications in pharmacy and medicine. Since it has been reported that biological effects of HA depend on its molar mass, methods of... 

Laurent, T. C. The chemistry, biology and medical applications of hyaluronan and its derivatives. London Portland Press, 1998. 

Sobotka, L. Velebny, V. Ruzickova, J. Kusalova, M. Zadak, Z. In Hyaluronan Structure, Metabolism, Biological Activities, Therapeutic Applications Balazs, E.A. Hascall, V.C., Eds. Matrix Biology Institute Press Edgewater, NJ 2005, pp. 851-853. 

Hyaluronan-induced hypertension in rats was significantly decreased by the application of one drop of brimonidine (0.2%), latanoprost (0.005%), or timolol (0.5%), suggesting that intracameral administration of hyaluronan could be a model for ocular hypertension (127). 

Intra-articular hyaluronan (lA-HA) injections are widely used to treat osteoarthritis (OA). This procedure is often referred to as viscosupplementation (22) because it involves the replacement of pathologic synovial fluid with viscoelastic hyaluro-nan-based solutions or gels. In the United States, lA-HA is specifically labeled as an intra-articular analgesic and is indicated to treat pain associated with knee OA when conservative measures and simple analgesics fail (e.g., acetaminophen). In other parts of the world, lA-HA is also approved for treatment of joints other than the knee and in some countries for arthritic conditions other than OA. The molecular basis for this application of hyaluronan, and the history of its development, has been recently reviewed (23). In this chapter, we will update the clinical evidence and describe the different types of hyaluronan formulations available in the United States. 

Balazs EA, Leshchiner E, Larsen N, Band P. Hyaluronan biomaterials medical applications. In Wise DL, ed. Handbook of Biomaterials and Applications. New York Marcel Dekker Inc., 1995 1693-1715. 

Prestwich G. Synthetic extracellular matrices for 3-D cell growth applications in reparative medicine and cell biology. In Seventh (7th) International Conference on Hyaluronan (Book of Abstracts). Charleston, SC, April 22-27, 2007 8. 

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