Review
Version 1
Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed
Hyaluronic Acid in the 3rd Millennium
Version 1
: Received: 28 May 2018 / Approved: 29 May 2018 / Online: 29 May 2018 (12:13:48 CEST)
A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.
Fallacara, A.; Baldini, E.; Manfredini, S.; Vertuani, S. Hyaluronic Acid in the Third Millennium. Polymers 2018, 10, 701. Fallacara, A.; Baldini, E.; Manfredini, S.; Vertuani, S. Hyaluronic Acid in the Third Millennium. Polymers 2018, 10, 701.
Abstract
Since its first isolation in 1934, hyaluronic acid (HA) has been studied across a variety of research areas. This unbranched glycosaminoglycan consisting of repeating disaccharide units of N-acetyl-D-glucosamine and D-glucuronic acid is almost ubiquitary in humans and in other vertebrates. HA is involved in many key processes -including cell signaling, wound reparation, tissue regeneration, morphogenesis, matrix organization and pathobiology-, and has unique physico-chemical properties -such as biocompatibility, biodegradability, mucoadhesivity, hygroscopicity and viscoelasticity. For these reasons, exogenous HA has been investigated as drug delivery system and treatment in cancer, ophthalmology, arthrology, pneumology, rhinology, urology, aesthetic medicine and cosmetic. To improve and customize its properties and applications, HA can be subjected to chemical modifications: conjugation and crosslinking. The present review gives an overview regarding HA, describing its history, physico-chemical, structural and hydrodynamic properties, and biology –occurrence, biosynthesis (by hyaluronan synthases), degradation (by hyaluronidases and oxidative stress), roles, mechanisms of action and receptors. Furthermore, both conventional and recently emerging methods developed for the industrial production of HA and its chemical derivatization are presented. Finally, the medical, pharmaceutical and cosmetic applications of HA and its derivatives are reviewed, reporting examples of HA-based products which currently are on the market or are undergoing further investigations.
Keywords
biological activity; crosslinking; drug delivery; cosmetic; food-supplement; functionalization; hyaluronan applications; hyaluronan derivatives; hyaluronan synthases; hyaluronic acid; hyaluronidases; physico-chemical properties
Subject
Medicine and Pharmacology, Medicine and Pharmacology
Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Comments (0)
We encourage comments and feedback from a broad range of readers. See criteria for comments and our Diversity statement.
Leave a public commentSend a private comment to the author(s)
* All users must log in before leaving a comment
