Decidualization-empowered ECM hydrogel integrating sustained Tβ4 release drives endometrial regeneration in intrauterine adhesions

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Authors and Affiliations

1. Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Shanxi Key Laboratory of Birth Defect and Cell Regeneration, MOE Key Laboratory of Coal Environmental Pathogenicity and Prevention, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China

   Yuxiang Liang, Zhaowei Yu, Shaobo Du, Yuqian Guo, Jing Li, Yujia Yan, Shanshan Jin, Wenjing Liang, Mengyuan Li, Ning Jin, Jiao Yang, Zhiwei Peng, Zhizhen Liu, Qizhi Shuai, Liping Li & Jun Xie

2. Shanxi Key Laboratory of Human Disease and Animal Models, Experimental Animal Center, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China

   Yuxiang Liang & Zhaoyang Chen

3. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China

   Hailan Yang

Contributions

Y.X.L., Z.Z.L., QZ.S., LP.L., and J.X. conceived the concept and designed the experiments. Y.X.L., Z.W.Y., and SB.D. synthesized the Tβ4@PLGA microspheres and prepared the composite hydrogels. YX.L., Z.W.Y., Y.Q.G., J.L., and Y.J.Y. performed the material characterization and in vitro cellular assays. Z.W.Y., S.S.J., N.J. J.Y., Z.W.P., and W.J.L. S.S.J., N.J. J.Y., Z.W.P., and W.J.L. established the IUA mouse model, performed the animal surgeries, and conducted the in vivo therapeutic evaluations. Z.Y.C., H.L.Y., N.J. Z.Z.L., and Q.Z.S. assisted with the histological staining, flow cytometry, and Western blot analyses. Y.X.L. and L.P.L. analyzed the data and wrote the original draft of the manuscript. Y.X.L. and J.X. supervised the study, provided resources, and reviewed and edited the manuscript. All authors discussed the results and approved the final version of the manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Yuxiang Liang, Zhizhen Liu, Qizhi Shuai, Liping Li or Jun Xie.

Competing interests

Yuxiang Liang, Jun Xie, Mengyuan Li, Zhiwei Peng, and Zhizhen Liu have submitted a patent application to the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) pertaining to the preparation and application of the composite hydrogel system described in this work (application number 202511595392.5). The remaining authors declare no competing interests.

Peer review information

Nature Communications thanks Yi Wang, who co-reviewed with Zhongyi Zhu, and the other, anonymous, reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work. A peer review file is available.

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