ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Immunol.
Sec. Inflammation
This article is part of the Research TopicNew Insights into Immunity in Musculoskeletal Disorders: Focusing on Bone, Joint, and Soft Tissue PathologiesView all 9 articles
Alleviation of tissue adhesion using dual-functional methacrylated gelatin via immunomodulation and antifibrotic activity
Provisionally accepted
- Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, China
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Intestinal adhesion is one of the most prevalent clinical conditions, affecting millions of patients globally. However, effective strategies to decrease the incidence of intestinal adhesion remain insufficient. In this study, we developed a novel and unreported dual-functional methacrylated gelatin (nhGelMA) that can regulate inflammation and antifibrotic functions by integrating gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA), Houttuynia cordata extract, and nintedanib. First, optimal concentrations of GelMA hydrogels were prepared and screened, followed by the selection of appropriate concentrations of Houttuynia cordata extract and nintedanib to prepare the final nhGelMA. Subsequently, nhGelMA was characterized, and its biocompatibility and biological functions were analyzed. The results indicated that nhGelMA exhibited good biocompatibility, no organ toxicity, and the ability to modulate the expression level of inflammation and fibronectin (FN). Finally, nhGelMA hydrogel was applied in the preventive treatment of hemorrhagic intestinal adhesion, and the results indicated that nhGelMA effectively reduced the deposition of FN, laminin (LAMA), and collagen type I (Col1), as well as decreased the infiltration of macrophages and neutrophils, thereby preventing the occurrence of intestinal adhesion. Importantly, the further transcriptomics demonstrated that nhGelMA could regulate protein digestion, absorption, and adhesion, as well as reconstruct the anatomical structure, contributing to the alleviation of hemorrhagic intestinal adhesion.
Keywords: Biomaterials, Houttuynia cordata extract, Hydrogel, Intestinal adhesion, Nintedanib, Tissue Engineering
Received: 30 Dec 2025; Accepted: 12 Feb 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Yuan, Feng, Tang, Gao, Qiu and Chen. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Geshuyi Chen
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