Selective ischemic-hemisphere targeting Ginkgolide B liposomes with improved solubility and therapeutic efficacy for cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury

Cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury(CI/RI)remains the main cause of disability and death in stroke patients due to lack of effective therapeutic strategies.One of the main issues related to CI/RI treatment is the presence of the blood-brain barrier(BBB),which affects the intracerebral delivery of drugs.Ginkgolide B(GB),a major bioactive component in commercially available products of Ginkgo biloba,has been shown significance in CI/RI treatment by regulating inflammatory pathways,oxidative damage,and metabolic disturbance,and seems to be a candidate for stroke recovery.However,limited by its poor hydrophilicity and lipophilicity,the development of GB preparations with good solubility,stability,and the ability to cross the BBB remains a challenge.Herein,we propose a combinatorial strategy by conjugating GB with highly lipophilic docosahexaenoic acid(DHA)to obtain a covalent complex GB-DHA,which can not only enhance the pharmacological effect of GB,but can also be encapsulated in liposomes stably.The amount of finally constructed Lipo@GB-DHA targeting to ischemic hemisphere was validated 2.2 times that of free solution in middle cerebral artery occlusion(MCAO)rats.Compared to the marketed ginkgolide injection,Lipo@GB-DHA significantly reduced infarct volume with better neurobehavioral recovery in MCAO rats after being intravenously administered both at 2 h and 6 h post-reperfusion.Low levels of reactive oxygen species(ROS)and high neuron survival in vitro was maintained via Lipo@GB-DHA treatment,while microglia in the ischemic brain were polarized from the pro-inflammatory M1 phenotype to the tissue-repairing M2 phenotype,which modulate neuroinflammatory and angiogenesis.In addition,Lipo@GB-DHA inhibited neuronal apoptosis via regulating the apoptotic pathway and maintained homeostasis by activating the autophagy pathway.Thus,transforming GB into a lipophilic complex and loading it into liposomes provides a promising nanomedicine strategy with excellent CI/RI therapeutic efficacy and industrialization prospects.

One Stone Four Birds:A Novel Liposomal Delivery System Multi-functionalized with Ginsenoside Rh2 for Tumor Targeting Therapy

Liposomes hold great potential in anti-cancer drug delivery and the targeting treatment of tumors.However,the clinical therapeutic efficacy of liposomes is still limited by the complexity of tumor microenvironment(TME)and the insufficient accumulation in tumor sites.Meanwhile,the application of cholesterol and polyethylene glycol(PEG),which are usually used to prolong the blood circulation and stabilize the structure of liposomes respectively,has been questioned due to various disadvantages.Herein,we developed a ginsenoside Rh2-based multifunctional liposome system(Rh2-lipo)to effectively address these challenges once for all.Different with the conventional’wooden’liposomes,Rh2-lipo is a much more brilliant carrier with multiple functions.In Rh2-lipo,both cholesterol and PEG were substituted by Rh2,which works as membrane stabilizer,long-circulating stealther,active targeting ligand,and chemotherapy adjuvant at the same time.Firstly,Rh2 could keep the stability of liposomes and avoid the shortcomings caused by cholesterol.Secondly,Rh2-lipo showed a specifically prolonged circulation behavior in the blood.Thirdly,the accumulation of the liposomes in the tumor was significantly enhanced by the interaction of glucose transporter of tumor cells with Rh2.Fourth,Rh2-lipo could remodel the structure and reverse the immunosuppressive environment in TME.When tested in a 4T1 breast carcinoma xenograft model,the paclitaxel-loaded Rh2-lipo realized high efficient tumor growth suppression.Therefore,Rh2-lipo not only innovatively challenges the position of cholesterol as a liposome component,but also provides another innovative potential system with multiple functions for anti-cancer drug delivery.

Plant-derived exosome-like nanoparticles and their therapeutic activities

Nanotechnologies have been successfully applied to the treatment of various diseases.Plant-derived exosome-like nanoparticles (PENs) are expected to become effective therapeutic modalities for treating disease or in drug-delivery. PENs are minimally cytotoxic to healthy tissues, with which they show excellent biocompatibility, and are biased towards tumors by targeting specific tissues through special endocytosis mechanisms. Thus, the use of these PENs may expand the scope of drug therapies while reducing the off-target effects.In this review, we summarize the fundamental features and bioactivities of PENs extracted from the grape, grapefruit, ginger, lemon, and broccoli and discuss the applications of these particles as therapeutics and nanocarriers.

Observation of Persistent Fundus Fluorescence after Internal Limiting Membrane Peeling Assisted by Indocyanine Green Solution of Different Concentrations

Purpose:To investigate how long indocyanine green (ICG) remains in the fundus after vitreoretinal surgery assisted with ICG,and to identify factors that influence the persistence duration.Methods:Fifty five eyes diagnosed as idiopathic macular hole (Stage 2 and 3) were randomly divided into five groups.ICG solution at concentrations of 5,2.5,2.5,1.25,and 0.5 mg/ml,employed in cases of Group I to V respectively,was applied to stain the internal limiting membrane(ILM) during the procedure of internal limiting membrane peeling..A prospective study was carried out after pars plana vitrectomy and ILM peeling were performed on 55 eyes with Stage 2,3,or 4 idiopathic macular holes..Infrared fundus pictures were obtained in all patients before and after surgery.Results:High levels of fluorescence from residual ICG (ICG hyperfluorescence) were mainly localized at the posterior pole of the fundus after surgery.In Group Ⅰ,Ⅱ,Ⅲ,Ⅳ and Ⅴ,the duration of persistence of flurorescence from ICG was 8.33±0.87,3.59±0.94,3.75±0.79,2.30±0.48,and 1.29±0.49 months,respectively.Although no significant difference was detected between Group Ⅱ and Group Ⅲ,the general inter-group difference was significant among the five groups in which different ICG concentration was applied.In Group Ⅲ,even though 90% of the macular holes acquired anatomical closure,ICG hyperfluorescence was detected in the macular area.Conclusion:ICG remains in the fundus for a period of months.The persistence duration of fluorescence from ICG is positively correlated with the concentration and the staining time of ICG.Hyaluronan is beneficial in reducing the amount of ICG residue in the macular area.

A DFT and TD-DFT study on electronic structures and UV-spectra properties of octaethyl-porphyrin with different central metals(Ni, V, Cu, Co)

In this work,the octaethyl-porphyrins with different central metals(M-OEP,M=Ni,VO,Cu,Co)were used to investigate the ground-state molecular structure,electron distribution and UV-spectra properties on molecular level by density functional theory(DFT).The results showed that the calculation structure parameters of metalloporphyrins agreed well with the experimental value.According to the Natural Bond Orbital(NBO)analysis,the charge distribution of different metalloporphyrins was found that the charge values of the central metal M decreased with the order of VO<Ni<Co<Cu,while the bonding strength between M and the coordinating atom N was VO>Ni>Co>Cu.At the same time,the frontier molecular orbital calculations showed that the SOMO energy of VO(OEP)molecules in the open-shell system was higher than that of Co(OEP)and Cu(OEP),which means that its UV absorption characteristic peak would be red-shifted.In addition,the IEFPCM model of Time-dependent Density functional theory(TD-DFT)was further utilized to simulate the four substance in toluene solution:Co(OEP),Ni(OEP),Cu(OEP)and VO(OEP),and the Soret band peaks were calculated respectively as:382 nm,383 nm,391 nm and 401 nm.Furthermore,the quantitative simulation analysis of metalloporphyrins was combined with experimental data.It could be found that the location rules of the four kinds of metalloporphyrins calculated absorption characteristic peaks were consistent with the experimental ones,and the relative errors of each peak were within 3%.These methods used above provide a theoretical path for analyzing and identifying unknown porphyrin compounds in petroleum.

AAZ2 induces mitochondrial-dependent apoptosis by targeting PDK1 in gastric cancer

Drastic surges in intracellular reactive oxygen species(ROS)induce cell apoptosis,while most chemotherapy drugs lead to the accumulation of ROS.Here,we constructed an organic compound,arsenical N-(4-(1,3,2-dithiarsinan-2-yl)phenyl)acrylamide(AAZ2),which could prompt the ROS to trigger mitochondrial-dependent apoptosis in gastric cancer(GC).Mechanistically,by targeting pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1(PDK1),AAZ2 caused metabolism alteration and the imbalance of redox homeostasis,followed by the inhibition of phosphoinositide-3-kinase(PI3K)/protein kinase B(AKT)/mammalian target of rapamycin(mTOR)pathway and leading to the activation of B-cell lymphoma 2(Bcl2)/Bcl2-associated X(Bax)/caspase-9(Cas9)/Cas3 cascades.Importantly,our in vivo data demonstrated that AAZ2 could inhibit the growth of GC xenograft.Overall,our data suggested that AAZ2 could contribute to metabolic abnormalities,leading to mitochondrial-dependent apoptosis by targeting PDK1 in GC.

富含氧空位的NiFe氢氧化物衍生的具有超疏气纳米阵列形貌的磷化物及其全解水性能

对高效催化剂进行多尺度调控可优化中间体的吸附能量(原子层面),并实现快速传质(三维宏观层面),这对于提升整体水分解性能至关重要.在本工作中,我们首先在镍铁氢氧化物中引入氧空位,然后通过磷化反应将其转化为具有纳米阵列形态的NiFe-Vo-P催化剂.在析氧反应催化过程中,NiFe-Vo-P表面会原位形成磷酸盐阴离子及具有催化活性的Ni(Fe)OOH,能显著优化反应中间体的吸附强度.结果表明,NiFeVo-P在过电位为289 mV时电流密度可达1.5 A cm^(-2).同时,其超亲水/超疏气纳米阵列形貌可有效促进传质,在25和70℃的条件下,可在~2.0V的电池电压下分别获得580 mA cm^(-2)和1.0 A cm^(-2)的电流密度,是未进行超疏气形貌工程催化剂的电流密度的2倍以上.

Adipose-derived stem cells inhibit dermal fibroblast growth and induce apoptosis in keloids through the arachidonic acid-derived cyclooxygenase-2/prostaglandin E2 cascade by paracrine

Background:The clinical features of keloids consist of aberrant proliferation,secretion,differentiation and apoptosis of keloid dermis-derived fibroblasts(KFBs).Notably,the apoptosis rate of KFBs is lower than the proliferation rate.Though the anti-fibrotic effect of adipose-derived stem cells(ADSCs)on keloids has become a hot topic of research,the exact anti-fibrotic mechanism of the paracrine effect remains unclear.This study aimed to find out how the conditioned medium of ADSCs(ADSC-CM)exerts an anti-fibrotic effect in KFBs.Methods:KFBs and ADSCs were extracted and cultured.Then,ADSC-CM was prepared.Whether ADSC-CM could inhibit KFB growth and induce apoptosis was verified by the use of a cell counting kit-8,an 5-Ethynyl-2-deoxyuridine(Edu)kit and flow cytometry.The expressions of cyclooxygenase-1(COX-1),COX-2,caspase 3 and B-cell lymphoma-2(Bcl-2)in ADSC-CM-cultured KFBs were tested by real-time PCR and western blotting.To clarify the role of COX-2 in ADSC-CM-induced KFB apoptosis,a specific COX-2 inhibitor,celecoxib,was applied to KFBs cultured in ADSC-CM.Moreover,we tested the production of arachidonic acid(AA)and prostaglandin E2(PGE2)by ELISA.Then,we established a keloid transplantation model in a nude mouse to validate the therapeutic effect in vivo.Results:The proliferation ability of KFBs cultured in ADSC-CM was found to be weakened and apoptosis was significantly increased.Caspase 3 expression was significantly upregulated and Bcl-2 was downregulated in ADSC-CM-cultured KFBs.Furthermore,ADSC-CM strikingly elevated COX-2 mRNA and protein expressions,but COX-1 expression was unaltered.COX-2 inhibitors reduced ADSC-CM-induced apoptosis.Additionally,COX-2 inhibition blocked the elevation of caspase 3 and reversed the decrease in Bcl-2 expression.ADSC-CM increased PGE2 levels by 1.5-fold and this effect was restrained by COX-2 inhibition.In the nude mouse model,expressions of AA,COX-2 and PGE2 were higher in the translated keloid tissues after ADSC-CM injection than in the controls.Conclusions:We showed activation of the COX-2/PGE2 cascade in KFBs in response to ADSC-CM.By employing a specific COX-2 inhibitor,COX-2/PGE2 cascade activation played a crucial role in mediating the ADSC-CM-induced KFB apoptosis and anti-proliferation effects.