Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Biotechnology in Western China, Ministry of Education, School of Medicine, Department of Life Sciences and Medicine, Northwest University, Xi'an, 710069, China.
Dehong Biomedical Engineering Research Center, Dehong Teachers' College, Dehong, 678400, China.
Biomater Sci. 2023 Sep 12;11(18):6013-6034. doi: 10.1039/d3bm01043k.
Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are a family of natural microbial biopolyesters with the same basic chemical structure and diverse side chain groups. Based on their excellent biodegradability, biocompatibility, thermoplastic properties and diversity, PHAs are highly promising medical biomaterials and elements of medical devices for applications in tissue engineering and drug delivery. However, due to the high cost of biotechnological production, most PHAs have yet to be applied in the clinic and have only been studied at laboratory scale. This review focuses on the biosynthesis, diversity, physical properties, biodegradability and biosafety of PHAs. We also discuss optimization strategies for improved microbial production of commercial PHAs novel synthetic biology tools. Moreover, we also systematically summarize various medical devices based on PHAs and related design approaches for medical applications, including tissue repair and drug delivery. The main degradation product of PHAs, 3-hydroxybutyrate (3HB), is recognized as a new functional molecule for cancer therapy and immune regulation. Although PHAs still account for only a small percentage of medical polymers, up-and-coming novel medical PHA devices will enter the clinical translation stage in the next few years.
聚羟基脂肪酸酯（PHAs）是一类具有相同基本化学结构和不同侧链基团的天然微生物生物聚酯。由于其优异的生物降解性、生物相容性、热塑性和多样性，PHAs 是极具应用前景的医用生物材料和医疗器械元件，可应用于组织工程和药物输送。然而，由于生物技术生产的高成本，大多数 PHAs 尚未在临床上应用，仅在实验室规模进行研究。本综述聚焦于 PHAs 的生物合成、多样性、物理性质、生物降解性和生物安全性。我们还讨论了用于改善商业 PHAs 微生物生产的优化策略以及新型合成生物学工具。此外，我们还系统地总结了基于 PHAs 的各种医疗器械及其用于医学应用的相关设计方法，包括组织修复和药物输送。PHAs 的主要降解产物 3-羟基丁酸（3HB）被认为是癌症治疗和免疫调节的新型功能分子。尽管 PHAs 仅占医用聚合物的一小部分，但未来几年崭露头角的新型医用 PHAs 器械将进入临床转化阶段。
