Advances in studies of phospholipids as carriers in skin topical application

Objective： This article provides an overview of characteristics of phospholipids, the characteristics and influential factors of liposome and microemulsion as carriers for skin delivery of drugs, and the latest advances of the phospholipids carriers in transdermal delivery systems. The perspective is that phospholipids carriers may be capable of a wide range of applications in the transdermal delivery system.

Potential prospects of Chinese medicine application in diabetic retinopathy

Current treatment strategies for diabetic retinopathy(DR),an eye condition that can lead to blindness,have mainly focused on proliferative DR,including vitreous injection,retinal photocoagulation,and vitrectomy.Vitreous injections mainly depend on anti-vascular endothelial growth factor therapy.In this editorial,we comment on the article by Sun et al.We focus specifically on the mechanisms of the protective effect of genipin on the retina.Genipin is a gardenia extract used in traditional Chinese medicine(TCM).In their study,the authors suggest that controlling advanced glycosylation by the intraocular injection of genipin may be a strategy for preventing retinopathy.The innovative use of a Chinese medicine extract injected into the eye to achieve a curative effect has attracted our attention.Although TCM is effective in treating DR,the topical application of DR,especially intraocular injections,is not yet feasible.Herein,we present a brief analysis of effective Chinese medicines for the treatment of DR.The effectiveness of local injections of TCM applied directly into the eyes holds promise as an effective treatment approach for DR.

Prevention of late complications with coverage agents in endoscopic resection of colorectal lesions: Current landscape in gastrointestinal endoscopy

Endoscopic removal of large(≥20 mm)non-pedunculated colorectal lesions(LNPCLs)may result in major adverse events,such as delayed bleeding(DB)and delayed perforation(DP),despite closure of the mucosal defects with clips.Topical application of a coverage agent refers to the creation of a shield with a biocompatible medical device(tissue or hydrogel)with proven bioactive properties.Coverage of the eschar after endoscopic resection provides shielding protection to prevent delayed complications.The aim of the present review was to systematically collect and review the currently available literature regarding the prevention of DB and DP with coverage agents after endoscopic mucosal resection or endoscopic submucosal dissection of LNPCLs.

Localized,non-viral delivery of nucleic acids:Opportunities,challenges and current strategies

Localized delivery of drugs is an emerging field both with regards to drug delivery during disease as well as in tissue engineering.Despite significant achievements made in the last decades,the efficient delivery of proteins and peptides remains challenging,especially in cases requiring long-term release of proteins after application.The localized delivery of nucleic acids(NA)represents an interesting alternative due to higher physicochemical stability of NA,increased efficiency by harnessing cells as bioreactors for the production of required proteins and improved versatility with regards to expression of specific proteins through plasmid DNA or repression of gene products through siRNA.However,unlike most proteins and peptides,NA must be delivered to the cytoplasm or nucleus to be efficacious,resulting in significant delivery challenges.We herein describe frequently used non-viral vectors for the delivery of NA including polyplexes,lipoplexes and lipopolyplexes and summarize recent developments in the field of nucleic acid delivery systems for local application based on hydrogels,solid scaffolds and physical delivery methods.The challenges associated with the different approaches are identified and options to address these challenges are discussed.

Effect of Topical Application of Puerarin and Propranolol on Pial Microcirculation of Rabbits

ＥｆｆｅｃｔｏｆＴｏｐｉｃａｌＡｐｐｌｉｃａｔｉｏｎｏｆＰｕｅｒａｒｉｎａｎｄＰｒｏｐｒａｎｏｌｏｌｏｎＰｉａｌＭｉｃｒｏｃｉｒｃｕｌａｔｉｏｎｏｆＲａｂｂｉｔｓＷＡＮＧＳｈｉ－ｊｕｎ（王世军）；ＦＡＮＧＱｉｕ－ｈａｎ（房秋寒）；ＤＯＮＧＪｕｎ（董军...

Comparative effects of insecticides with different mechanisms of action on Chrysoperla externa （Neuroptera＂ Chrysopidae）＂ Lethal, sublethal and dose-response effects

The comprehensive knowledge that the delayed systemic and reproduction side effects can be even more deleterious than acute toxicity, has caused a shift in focus toward sublethal effects assessment on physiology and behavior of beneficial insects. In this study, we assessed the risks posed by some insecticides with different mode of action through lethal and delayed systemic sublethal effects on the pupation, adult emergence, and repro- duction of the chrysopid Chrysoperla externa （Hagen, 1861; Neuroptera： Chrysopidae）, an important predator in pest biological control. The maximum field recommended dose （MFRD） and twice （2xMFRD） for chlorantraniliprole, tebufenozide, and pyriproxyfen were harmless to C. externa. In contrast, all the tested chitin synthesis inhibitors （CSIs） were highly detrimental to the predator, despite of their lack of acute lethal toxicity. There- fore, the safety assumed by using IGRs toward beneficial insects is not valid for chrysopids. Dose-response data showed that although all CSIs have a similar mechanism of action, the relative extent of toxicity may differ （novaluron 〉 lufenuron 〉 teflubenzuron）. For CSIs, the delayed systemic effects became obvious at adult emergence, where the predicted no observable effect dose （NOED） was 1/2 048 of the MFRD for novaluron （0.085 ng/insect）, and 1/256 of the MFRD for both lufenuron （0.25 ng/insect） and teflubenzuron （0.6 ng/insect）. Finally, this work emphasized the significance of performing toxicity risk assessments with an adequate posttreatment period to avoid underestimating the toxicities of insecticides, as the acute lethal toxicity assays may not provide accurate information regarding the long-range effects of hazardous compounds.

Appraisal of the Production-Oriented Approach： An Introduction

The production-oriented approach （POA） has been developed over a decade. It is driven by the need to improve English classroom instruction for university students in China （Wen, 2016）. It is also motivated by the aspiration to enhance the quality of foreign language education in other similar pedagogical contexts outside China. A volume of research has been done by Wen Qiufang and her research team, to formulate the theory of POA and to test its effectiveness in classroom pedagogy （e.g. Wen, 2016, 2015; Yang, 2015; Zhang, 2015）. At the moment, the POA is still at an early stage of theory building and almost all empirical research is done in the Chinese context. In order to improve the quality of this theory and to make it intelligible to the international academic community, a one-day symposium was held in Beijing Foreign Studies University on May 15, 2017. The symposium was entitled ＇The first international forum on innovative foreign language education in China： Appraisal of the POA＇. In the forum, leading experts in applied linguistics were invited to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the POA and the directions for its future development. The symposium was the first attempt for the POA research team to discuss its latest work with international scholars. This Viewpoint section collects the responses of four experts who participated in the symposium, listed in alphabetical order. The collection of articles covers three topics related to the POA： its pedagogical application, its use for teacher training, and its research. Alister Cumming is Professor Emeritus and the former Head of the Centre for Educational Research on Languages and Literacies, University of Toronto, Canada. His article focuses primarily on POA research as an exemplary case of design-based research. Rod Ellis is Research Professor in the School of Education at Curtin University, Australia. He discusses POA in terms of pedagogy, teacher training and research, with both critiques and constructive suggestions. Paul Kei Matsuda is Professor of English and Director of Second Language Writing at Arizona State University, the writed states. He responds to POA from the perspective of an expert researcher and teacher of L2 writing. Charlene Polio is Professor and Associate Chair in the Department of Linguistics ＆ Germanic, Slavic, Asian ＆ African Languages atMichigan State University, the writed states. She conceptualises POA as a useful method to address some issues in pre-service teacher development. Overall, the articles in this section are insightful and reader-friendly. They are not only useful for the development of POA in particular, but may also be valuable to a broad range of researchers as they touch upon pertaining issues, as well as emerging topics, in the field of applied linguistics. We therefore find it necessary to make them accessible to a wide readership.