Development of a decellularized liver matrix-based nanocarrier for liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy

Integrating carrier drug therapy with recent advances in liver tissue regeneration, this paper proposes a novel nanomedicine-based approach to drug delivery, with the aim of enhancing the regenerative capacity of hepatocytes and improving liver function after partial hepatectomy. The proposed decellularized liver matrix provides excellent biocompatibility and similarity to natural liver components, while the molecules encapsulated in the carrier (tannic acid) promote liver regeneration. In in vitro cultures, the 0.001 mg/mL TA-mPEG-DLM group consistently outperformed the blank group in terms of albumin synthesis: Day 1 (11.1 ± 2.4 vs. 8.2 ± 0.7), Day 3 (5.8 ± 1.3 vs. 4.2 ± 0.4), and Day 5 (1.6 ± 0.3 vs. 1.2 ± 0.2) (μg/100% proliferation rate/well/day). In a liver-injured in vivo model, the 0.5 mg/mL TA-mPEG-DLM group outperformed the blank group in terms of relative liver weight: Day 3 (3.50 ± 0.09% vs. 3.22 ± 0.03%) and Day 7 (4.13 ± 0.21% vs. 3.72 ± 0.06%). Furthermore, the TA-mPEG-DLM group outperformed the blank group in terms of Ki-67 expression in hepatocytes on Day 7 (192.7 ± 34.1% vs. 150.4 ± 11.6%). Taken together, these findings indicate that the proposed drug delivery strategy is a promising approach to liver regeneration following partial hepatectomy with potential for clinical translation.