AIE is a unique photophysical phenomenon, and its distinctive luminescence properties have demonstrated significant potential in the biomedical field. In urinary system diseases, AIE materials, with their high quantum yield, excellent optical properties, and environmental responsiveness, have been widely applied in the early diagnosis, precise treatment, and drug delivery of urinary system cancers. This review systematically summarizes the applications of AIE materials in urinary cancers, such as bladder cancer, renal cancer, prostate cancer, and upper urinary tract cancer, including fluorescence imaging, photodynamic therapy, and drug delivery techniques. Additionally, the review explores the application of AIE materials in the diagnosis of urinary tract infections and renal lesions, as well as their advantages when combined with other imaging technologies (e.g., CT, MRI, and ultrasound). Furthermore, the article analyzes the challenges faced in clinical translation, such as biocompatibility, stability, and large-scale synthesis, while proposing future development directions, including customized molecular design and multifunctional applications combined with nanotechnology.

The need for effective and safe approaches to promote tissue restoration, repair, replacement, and regeneration has spurred interest in biofunctional materials, including copper and microvesicles, given their potential synergistic effects. Indeed, the recently-introduced combination of copper and microvesicles has been recently proposed as a promising innovative and alternative approach showing promise in enhancing therapeutic effects, thereby, promoting in situ tissue repair and regeneration in various fields, such as orthopaedics, dermatology, and dentistry, amongst others. In this article, an overview of Copper-incorporated Microvesicles (CiMs) and their potential applications is provided; a promising avenue for addressing unmet needs in dental and oral surgery. Herein, CiMs have been shown to promote angiogenesis, enhance cell migration, and increase cell proliferation, leading to improved tissue regeneration outcomes. Additionally, the anti-microbial, angiogenic, and anti-inflammatory properties of copper enhance the therapeutic potential of microvesicles. The various methods employed to synthesize, formulate, and characterize CiMs and their potential applications in endodontics, implant dentistry, bone regeneration, treatment of gingival and periodontal disease, and prevention of dentin hypersensitivity, to mention a few, are also discussed. Henceforth, ongoing research, development, and innovation (R&D&I) efforts hold promise for further fine-tuning/optimization of formulated CiMs, leveraging the unique physico-chemico-mechanico-biological properties of novel biofunctional materials, suitable for clinical use in oro-dentistry and cranio-maxillo-facial surgery applications, and undoubtedly beyond.

Chirality, a fundamental property of biological systems, is intrinsic to numerous natural biosystems and plays a vital role in sustaining physiological processes. Leveraging their high specificity for biological targets, chiral nanomaterials have emerged as multifunctional tools in cancer therapy. These nanomaterials demonstrate superior biocompatibility, minimal cytotoxicity, and enhanced cellular penetration. Furthermore, the tunability of their surface structures enables precise chirality control, fostering the development of advanced biomaterials capable of targeting tumor metabolism, inducing apoptosis, and modulating immune responses. This review provides a comprehensive overview of recent advancements in the utilization of chiral materials for tumor-targeted therapies, metabolic modulation, apoptotic pathway intervention, photothermal applications, chiral cytotoxic effects, and immunomodulation. Moreover, we elucidate the mechanisms underlying these actions, examine the opportunities and challenges associated with employing chiral materials in oncology, and propose future directions for their advancement. Through the integration of these multifaceted strategies, chiral materials present considerable promise for improving the precision and efficacy of cancer therapeutics.

Accurate diagnosis is fundamental to effective healthcare, guiding clinical and surgical decisions and ultimately influencing treatment outcomes and prognosis. Recent advancements in nanomaterials and fabrication techniques, coupled with emerging computational approaches such as artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and deep learning, have revolutionized high-throughput screening and laboratory automation. AI-driven algorithms now process and analyze salivary proteomic data with remarkable accuracy, identifying patterns and biomarkers associated with diseases such as oral cancer at an early stage. This capability not only enhances diagnostic precision but also accelerates decision-making, enabling timely interventions. Despite their lower analyte content, oral fluids—particularly saliva—offer a non-invasive and accessible alternative for biomarker testing. This has led to the development and optimization of highly sensitive and amplified detection methods, including polymerase chain reaction, isothermal amplification, microfluidic, lab-on-a-chip, and biosensor technologies such as surface plasmon resonance and electrochemical sensing. These innovations have culminated in reliable Point-of-Care (PoC) solutions for molecular diagnostics, facilitating the detection and monitoring of a broad spectrum of conditions, including steroid levels, growth factors, drug and alcohol abuse, infectious diseases (such as HIV antibodies), diabetes (via salivary glucose), periodontitis, peri-implantitis, and oral cancer, with applications extending even into forensics. The precision, simplicity, and accessibility of salivary-based biomarkers and biosensors present a promising frontier in contemporary oro-dental healthcare, offering significant benefits to clinicians and surgeons. While significant progress has been made, challenges remain in standardizing salivary diagnostic techniques and ensuring their widespread clinical adoption. Addressing these challenges requires continued research into improving assay sensitivity, data integration, and cost-effectiveness. Henceforth, ongoing advancements are expected to further integrate predictive analytics into our routine clinical practice, ultimately improving patient outcomes through personalized, cost-effective, and timely care, thereby enhancing overall healthcare quality and efficiency. These are the topics to be discussed in this review.

Bone tissue engineering is an evolving area of tissue engineering using conventional and state-of-the art 3D printing methods. The present review focuses on introducing different methods used in developing scaffolds from biocompatible and biodegradable materials using several tissue engineering techniques including 3D printing. In addition, surface modification methods were also discussed to ensure the functionality of the scaffolds that facilitate a differentiation response in human mesenchymal stem cells in vitro or in vivo bone mineralization.

The efficiency of gene transfection using cationic polymers primarily depends on factors such as compact polyplex formation, cellular uptake, endosomal escape, cytoplasmic transport, nuclear entry, and the dissociation and release of plasmid from the polyplex. These factors can be manipulated through the chemical modification of cationic polymers. Branched polyethyleneimine (PEI) has been considered the "gold standard" in gene delivery due to its high transfection efficiency. However, cytotoxicity and serum sensitivity limit its therapeutic use. In the present study, we aimed to reduce cytotoxicity while maintaining or enhancing transfection efficiency by chemically modifying PEI with the amino acid histidine via five-armed alkylamino siloxane. We anticipated that the spatial orientation of histidine could enhance cellular uptake and endosomal escape. Histidine-modified PEI, termed P(S-His)1, improved gene transfection efficiency due to elevated cellular uptake through multiple pathways and rapid endosomal escape via the proton sponge effect, compared to PEI and other derivatives with higher histidine conjugation. When the same polymer was further chemically modified with polyethylene glycol-folic acid (PEG-FA) to facilitate receptor-mediated cellular targeting, cellular uptake improved through additional pathways; however, the transfection efficiency unexpectedly decreased. This reduction in transfection efficiency is likely due to the absence of plasmid release from the polyplex for gene transcription, caused by the reduced ionic strength of the polyplex resulting from the high molecular weight PEG.