Chitosan nanoparticles: a versatile platform for biomedical applications

Chitosan is a biodegradable and biocompatible natural polymer that has been extensively explored in recent decades. The Food and Drug Administration has approved chitosan for wound treatment and nutritional use. Furthermore, chitosan has paved the way for advancements in different biomedical applications including as a nanocarrier and tissue-engineering scaffold. Its antibacterial, antioxidant, and haemostatic properties make it an excellent option for wound dressings. Because of its hydrophilic nature, chitosan is an ideal starting material for biocompatible and biodegradable hydrogels. To suit specific application demands, chitosan can be combined with fillers, such as hydroxyapatite, to modify the mechanical characteristics of pH-sensitive hydrogels. Furthermore, the cationic characteristics of chitosan have made it a popular choice for gene delivery and cancer therapy. Thus, the use of chitosan nanoparticles in developing novel drug delivery systems has received special attention. This review aims to provide an overview of chitosan-based nanoparticles, focusing on their versatile properties and different applications in biomedical sciences and engineering.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Effect of quercetin on steroidogenesis and folliculogenesis in ovary of mice with experimentally-induced polycystic ovarian syndrome

IntroductionPolycystic Ovary syndrome (PCOS) affects the health of many women around the world. Apart from fundamental metabolic problems connected to PCOS, focus of our study is on the role of quercetin on genes relevant to steroidogenesis and folliculogenesis.MethodsEighteen mature parkes strain mice (4-5 weeks old) weighing 18–21 g were randomly divided into three groups of six each as follows: Group I serves as the control and was given water and a regular chow diet ad lib for 66 days; group II was given oral gavage administration of letrozole (LETZ) (6 mg/kg bw) for 21 days to induce PCOS and was left untreated for 45 days; For three weeks, Group III received oral gavage dose of LETZ (6 mg/kg), after which it received Quercetin (QUER) (125 mg/kg bw orally daily) for 45 days.ResultsIn our study we observed that mice with PCOS had irregular estrous cycle with increased LH/FSH ratio, decreased estrogen level and decline in expression of Kitl, Bmp1, Cyp11a1, Cyp19a1, Ar, lhr, Fshr and Esr1 in ovary. Moreover, we observed increase in the expression of CYP17a1, as well as increase in cholesterol, triglycerides, testosterone, vascular endothelial growth factor VEGF and insulin levels. All these changes were reversed after the administration of quercetin in PCOS mice.DiscussionQuercetin treatment reversed the molecular, functional and morphological abnormalities brought on due to letrozole in pathological and physiological setting, particularly the issues of reproduction connected to PCOS. Quercetin doesn’t act locally only but it acts systematically as it works on Pituitary (LH/FSH)- Ovary (gonad hormones) axis. the Side effects of Quercetin have to be targeted in future researches. Quercetin may act as a promising candidate for medical management of human PCOS

Microfluidic fabrication of lipid nanoparticles for the delivery of nucleic acids

Gene therapy has emerged as a potential platform for treating several dreaded and rare diseases that would not have been possible with traditional therapies. Viral vectors have been widely explored as a key platform for gene therapy due to their ability to efficiently transport nucleic acid-based therapeutics into the cells. However, the lack of precision in their delivery has led to several off-target toxicities. As such, various strategies in the form of non-viral gene delivery vehicles have been explored and are currenlty employed in several therapies including the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. In this review, we discuss the opportunities lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) present for efficient gene delivery. We also discuss various synthesis strategies via microfluidics for high throughput fabrication of non-viral gene delivery vehicles. We conclude with the recent applications and clinical trials of these vehicles for the delivery of different genetic materials such as CRISPR editors and RNA for different medical conditions ranging from cancer to rare diseases

Insight into Oncogenic Viral Pathways as Drivers of Viral Cancers: Implication for Effective Therapy

As per a recent study conducted by the WHO, 15.4% of all cancers are caused by infectious agents of various categories, and more than 10% of them are attributed to viruses. The emergence of COVID-19 has once again diverted the scientific community’s attention toward viral diseases. Some researchers have postulated that SARS-CoV-2 will add its name to the growing list of oncogenic viruses in the long run. However, owing to the complexities in carcinogenesis of viral origin, researchers across the world are struggling to identify the common thread that runs across different oncogenic viruses. Classical pathways of viral oncogenesis have identified oncogenic mediators in oncogenic viruses, but these mediators have been reported to act on diverse cellular and multiple omics pathways. In addition to viral mediators of carcinogenesis, researchers have identified various host factors responsible for viral carcinogenesis. Henceforth owing to viral and host complexities in viral carcinogenesis, a singular mechanistic pathway remains yet to be established; hence there is an urgent need to integrate concepts from system biology, cancer microenvironment, evolutionary perspective, and thermodynamics to understand the role of viruses as drivers of cancer. In the present manuscript, we provide a holistic view of the pathogenic pathways involved in viral oncogenesis with special emphasis on alteration in the tumor microenvironment, genomic alteration, biological entropy, evolutionary selection, and host determinants involved in the pathogenesis of viral tumor genesis. These concepts can provide important insight into viral cancers, which can have an important implication for developing novel, effective, and personalized therapeutic options for treating viral cancers