Permanent Makeup (PMU) Removal with Plant Origin Extracts

Permanent makeup (PMU) is a popular application for the correction of face and body imperfections. It can be applied over the facial area to correct the shape and color of eyebrows, to the eyelids to create permanent eyeliner shapes, and the lips to create permanent lipliner and lip shading features. Furthermore, its “medical” use on the scalp and men’s facial hair area to camouflage hair follicles and to cover hairless areas makes it popular for hair transplants. No matter how useful these procedures are, there are always mistakes and the factor of bad application which raises the number of patients who want to “remove” it or “correct” it on their face or body. In order to find a non-laser solution for PMU removal, we investigated the decolorization capacity of common plants and plant origin extracts on mouse models. Two methods were used for PMU decolorization. The first one included the use of traditional tattooing with needles combined with plant origin extracts applied over the tattooed area. The second one included the use of electroporation technology application with the combination of plant origin materials to remove the PMU colorants over the tattooed area. In both cases, the permanent makeup colorants for eyebrows, eyeliners, and lipliners were applied in vivo

Royal Jelly Components Encapsulation in a Controlled Release System—Skin Functionality, and Biochemical Activity for Skin Applications

Royal jelly is a yellowish-white substance with a gel texture that is secreted from the hypopharyngeal and mandibular glands of young worker bees. It consists mainly of water (50–56%), proteins (18%), carbohydrates (15%), lipids (3–6%), minerals (1.5%), and vitamins, and has many beneficial properties such as antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antioxidant, antidiabetic, immunomodulatory, and anti-aging. Royal jelly has been used since ancient times in traditional medicine, cosmetics and as a functional food due to its high nutritional value. The main bioactive substances are royalactin, and 10-hydroxy-2-decenoic acid (10-HDA). Other important bioactive molecules with antioxidant and photoprotective skin activity are polyphenols. However, they present difficulties in extraction and in use as they are unstable physicochemically, and a higher temperature causes color change and component degradation. In the present study, a new encapsulation and delivery system consisting of liposomes and cyclodextrins incorporating royal jelly has been developed. The new delivery system aims to the elimination of the stability disadvantages of royal jelly’s sensitive component 10-HDA, but also to the controlled release of its ingredients and, more particularly, 10-HDA, for an enhanced bioactivity in cosmeceutical applications

Safety of Tattoos and Permanent Make up (PMU) Colorants

The art of tattooing is a popular decorative approach for body decoration and has a corrective value for the face. The tattooing procedure is characterized by placing exogenous pigments into the dermis with a number of needles. The process of creating traditional and cosmetic tattoos is the same. Colorants are deposited in the dermis by piercing the skin with needles of specific shape and thickness, which are moistened with the colorant. Colorants (pigments or dyes) most of the time include impurities which may cause adverse reactions. It is commonly known that tattoo inks remain in the skin for lifetime. It is also a fact that the chemicals that are used in permanent makeup (PMU) colorants may stay in the body for a long time so there is a significant long-term risk for harmful ingredients being placed in the body. Tattoo and PMU colorants contain various substances and their main ingredients and decomposition components may cause health risks and unwanted side effects to skin

Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH) and Atherosclerosis: Explaining Their Pathophysiology, Association and the Role of Incretin-Based Drugs

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is the most severe manifestation of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a common complication of type 2 diabetes, and may lead to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Oxidative stress and liver cell damage are the major triggers of the severe hepatic inflammation that characterizes NASH, which is highly correlated with atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease. Regarding drug therapy, research on the role of GLP-1 analogues and DPP4 inhibitors, novel classes of antidiabetic drugs, is growing. In this review, we outline the association between NASH and atherosclerosis, the underlying molecular mechanisms, and the effects of incretin-based drugs, especially GLP-1 RAs, for the therapeutic management of these conditions

Production of Antioxidants and High Value Biomass from <i>Nannochloropsis</i> <i>oculata</i>: Effects of pH, Temperature and Light Period in Batch Photobioreactors

Nannochloropsis oculata is a marine microalgal species with a great potential as food or feed due to its high pigment, protein and eicosapentaenoic acid contents. However, for such an application to be realized on a large scale, a biorefinery approach is necessary due to the high cost of microalgal biomass production. For example, techno economic analyses have suggested the co-production of food or feed with antioxidants, which can be extracted and supplied separately to the market. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of cultivation conditions on the antioxidant capacity of Nannochlosopsis oculata extracts, derived with ultrasound-assisted extraction at room temperature, as well as the proximate composition and fatty acid profile of the biomass. A fractional factorial approach was applied to examine the effects of temperature (20–35 °C), pH (6.5–9.5) and light period (24:0, 12:12). At the end of each run, biomass was collected, washed with 0.5M ammonium bicarbonate and freeze-dried. Antioxidant capacity as gallic acid equivalents as well as pigment content were measured in the ethanolic extracts. Optimal conditions were different for productivity and biomass composition. Interesting results regarding the effect of light period (LP) and pH require further investigation, whereas the effect of moisture on the extraction process was confounded with biomass composition. Finally, further data is provided regarding the relation between chlorophyll content and apparent phenolic content using the Folin–Ciocalteu assay, in agreement with our previous work

Visualisation of liposomes prepared from skin and stratum corneum lipids by transmission electron microscopy

Transmission electron microscopy was used to visualize the liposomes prepared from total lipids extracted from mouse, human and porcine skin and stratum corneum. The total lipid composition was monitored by high precision thin layer chromatography coupled with a flame identification detector (HPTLC/FID, Iatroscan) and the fatty acid content of the samples was monitored by gas chromatography. The liposomes were prepared by the thin lipid film hydration method and they were visualized by transmission electron microscopy after negative staining using uranyl acetate. The structure of the vesicular structures present in the formulations largely depended on the lipid composition of the samples. The liposomes with high ceramide content were drop like vesicles with sharp tips, whereas the presence of excessive phospholipid content lead to bag like liposomes with two hemispheres divided by a membrane. Finally, the tendency of triacylglycerides to accumulate in the lipophylic region of the lipid bilayer, forms membranes with uneven thickness, resulting in structures with undulated membranes. A degree of fusion depending on the phospholipid content was also observed

Physicochemical stability assessment of all-in-one parenteral emulsion for neonates containing SMOFlipid

AbstrAct The aim of the study was to assess the stability of all-in-one (AIO) parenteral admixture used for neonates, containing SMOFlipid, an alternative to soybean, an α-tocopherol-enriched lipid emulsion. SMOFlipid, consisting of soybean oil, medium chain triglycerides, olive oil and fish oil, was introduced commercially in 2005. Stability assays consisted of the assessment of the admixture&apos;s macroscopic aspect, droplet size distribution, pH, peroxide value and α-tocopherol concentration. The admixture was stored at room temperature or at 4°C and analysed over time (0, 24 and 48 h). The SMOFlipid-containing AIO parenteral admixture was shown to be physicochemically stable. All changes were reversible, the droplet size was under the upper limit (0.5 µm) set by the US Pharmacopeia, maximum loss for vitamin E was 25% and the lipid peroxidation occurred within 24 h after preparation. In conclusion, the addition of SMOFlipid to an AIO parenteral admixture for neonates did not affect its physicochemical stability, and it was safe for administration on the first day of its preparation

Gene Therapy with Chitosan Nanoparticles: Modern Formulation Strategies for Enhancing Cancer Cell Transfection

Gene therapy involves the introduction of exogenous genetic material into host tissues to modify gene expression or cellular properties for therapeutic purposes. Initially developed to address genetic disorders, gene therapy has expanded to encompass a wide range of conditions, notably cancer. Effective delivery of nucleic acids into target cells relies on carriers, with non-viral systems gaining prominence due to their enhanced safety profile compared to viral vectors. Chitosan, a biopolymer, is frequently utilized to fabricate nanoparticles for various biomedical applications, particularly nucleic acid delivery, with recent emphasis on targeting cancer cells. Chitosan’s positively charged amino groups enable the formation of stable nanocomplexes with nucleic acids and facilitate interaction with cell membranes, thereby promoting cellular uptake. Despite these advantages, chitosan-based nanoparticles face challenges such as poor solubility at physiological pH, non-specificity for cancer cells, and inefficient endosomal escape, limiting their transfection efficiency. To address these limitations, researchers have focused on enhancing the functionality of chitosan nanoparticles. Strategies include improving stability, enhancing targeting specificity, increasing cellular uptake efficiency, and promoting endosomal escape. This review critically evaluates recent formulation approaches within these categories, aiming to provide insights into advancing chitosan-based gene delivery systems for improved efficacy, particularly in cancer therapy

The Role of Oral Antivirals for COVID-19 Treatment in Shaping the Pandemic Landscape

Several vaccines against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) were developed and made available in a record time, just over a year after the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) [...

Polymeric Nanoparticles of Pistacia lentiscus var. chia Essential Oil for Cutaneous Applications

Polymeric nanoparticles (NPs) encapsulating Pistacia lentiscus L. var. chia essential oil (EO) were prepared by a solvent evaporation method, in order to obtain a novel carrier for administration on the skin. The specific EO exhibits antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties thus stimulating considerable interest as a novel agent for the treatment of minor skin inflammations. The incorporation into nanoparticles could overcome the administration limitations that inserts the nature of the EO. Nanoparticles were prepared, utilizing poly(lactic acid) (PLA) as shell material, due to its biocompatibility and biodegradability, while the influence of surfactant type on NPs properties was examined. Two surfactants were selected, namely poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and lecithin (LEC) and NPs&rsquo; physicochemical characteristics i.e. size, polydispersity index (PdI) and &zeta;-potential were determined, not indicating significant differences (p &gt; 0.05) between PLA/PVA-NPs (239.9 nm, 0.081, -29.1 mV) and PLA/LEC-NPs (286.1 nm, 0.167, &minus;34.5 mV). However, encapsulation efficiency (%EE) measured by GC-MS, was clearly higher for PLA/PVA-NPs than PLA/LEC-NPs (37.45% vs. 9.15%, respectively). Moreover PLA/PVA-NPs remained stable over a period of 60 days. The in vitro release study indicated gradual release of the EO from PLA/PVA-NPs and more immediate from PLA/LEC-NPs. The above findings, in addition to the SEM images of the particles propose a potential structure of nanocapsules for PLA/PVA-NPs, where shell material is mainly consisted of PLA, enclosing the EO in the core. However, this does not seem to be the case for PLA/LEC-NPs, as the results indicated low EO content, rapid release and a considerable percentage of humidity detected by SEM. Furthermore, the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) of the EO was determined against Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis, while NPs, however did not exhibit considerable activity in the concentration range applied. In conclusion, the surfactant selection may modify the release of EO incorporated in NPs for topical application allowing its action without interfering to the physiological skin microbiota