Current understanding of synergistic interplay of chitosan nanoparticles and anticancer drugs: merits and challenges

Weaponizing chitosan and its derivatives in the battle against lung cancer

Lung cancer (LC) is a crisis of catastrophic proportions. It is a global problem and urgently requires a solution. The classic chemo drugs are lagging behind as they lack selectivity, where their side effects are spilled all over the body, and these adverse effects would be terribly tragic for LC patients. Therefore, they could make a bad situation worse, inflict damage on normal cells, and inflict pain on patients. Since our confidence in classic drugs is eroding, chitosan can offer a major leap forward in LC therapy. It can provide the backbone and the vehicle that enable chemo drugs to penetrate the hard shell of LC. It could be functionalized in a variety of ways to deliver a deadly payload of toxins to kill the bad guys. It is implemented in formulation of polymeric NPs, lipidic NPs, nanocomposites, multiwalled carbon nanotubes, and phototherapeutic agents. This review is a pretty clear proof of chitosan's utility as a weapon in battling LC. Chitosan-based formulations could work effectively to kill LC cells. If a researcher is looking for a vehicle for medication for LC therapy, chitosan can be an appropriate choice.

Exploring the current landscape of chitosan-based hybrid nanoplatforms as cancer theragnostic

In the last decade, investigators have put significant efforts to develop several diagnostic and therapeutic strategies against cancer. Many novel nanoplatforms, including lipidic, metallic, and inorganic nanocarriers, have shown massive potential at preclinical and clinical stages for cancer diagnosis and treatment. Each of these nano-systems is distinct with its own benefits and limitations. The need to overcome the limitations of single-component nano-systems, improve their morphological and biological features, and achieve multiple functionalities has resulted in the emergence of hybrid nanoparticles (HNPs). These HNPs integrate multicomponent nano-systems with diagnostic and therapeutic functions into a single nano-system serving as promising nanotools for cancer theragnostic applications. Chitosan (CS) being a mucoadhesive, biodegradable, and biocompatible biopolymer, has emerged as an essential element for the development of HNPs offering several advantages over conventional nanoparticles including pH-dependent drug delivery, sustained drug release, and enhanced nanoparticle stability. In addition, the free protonable amino groups in the CS backbone offer flexibility to its structure, making it easy for the modification and functionalization of CS, resulting in better drug targetability and cell uptake. This review discusses in detail the existing different oncology-directed CS-based HNPs including their morphological characteristics, in-vitro/in-vivo outcomes, toxicity concerns, hurdles in clinical translation, and future prospects.

Ameliorative effect of chitosan nanoparticles against carbon tetrachloride-induced nephrotoxicity in Wistar rats

CONTEXT

Chitosan is a biocompatible polysaccharide that has been widely exploited in biomedical and drug delivery applications.

OBJECTIVE

This study explores the renoprotective effect of chitosan nanoparticles in vivo in rats.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Chitosan nanoparticles were prepared via ionotropic gelation method, and several in vitro characterizations were performed, including measurements of particle size, zeta potential, polydispersity index, Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) imaging. Wistar rats were divided randomly into four groups; negative control, CCl₄-induced nephrotoxicity (untreated), and two groups receiving CCl₄ + chitosan NPs (10 and 20 mg/kg) orally for 2 weeks. The renoprotective effect was assessed by measuring oxidative, apoptotic, and inflammatory biomarkers, and via histopathological and immunohistochemical examinations for the visualization of NF-κB and COX-2 in renal tissues.

RESULTS

Monodisperse spherical nanosized (56 nm) particles were successfully prepared as evidenced by dynamic light scattering and TEM. Oral administration of chitosan nanoparticles (10 and 20 mg/kg) concurrently with CCl₄ for 2 weeks resulted in 13.6% and 21.5% reduction in serum creatinine and increase in the level of depleted reduced glutathione (23.1% and 31.8%), respectively, when compared with the positive control group. Chitosan nanoparticles (20 mg/kg) revealed a significant (p ˂ 0.05) decrease in malondialdehyde levels (30.6%), tumour necrosis factor-α (33.6%), interleukin-1β (31.1%), and caspase-3 (36.6%).

CONCLUSIONS

Chitosan nanoparticles afforded significant protection and amelioration against CCl₄-induced nephrotoxicity. Thus, chitosan nanoparticles could afford a potential nanotherapeutic system for the management of nephrotoxicity which allows for broadening their role in biomedical delivery applications.

Synthesis, Characterization and Bioactivity Evaluation of a Novel Nano Bagasse Xylan/Andrographolide Grafted and Esterified Derivative

In the in-depth research that has been conducted on nanometer biomaterials, how to use the biomass resources with high activity and low toxicity to prepare nanomaterials for biomedical applications has attracted much attention. To realize efficient and comprehensive utilization of biomass, bagasse xylan/andrographolide (BX/AD) was ued as a raw material and glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) as an esterification agent to synthesize bagasse xylan/andrographolide esterified derivative (GA-BX/AD). Then, the bagasse xylan/andrographolide grafted and esterified derivative (GA-BX/AD-g-IA) was synthesized by the graft crosslinking reactions using itaconic acid (IA) as graft monomer. The better synthesis conditions were optimized by single factor experiments, the degree of esterification substitution (DS) was 0.43, and the grafting rate (G) of the product reached 42%. The structure and properties of the product were characterized by FTIR, XRD, DTG, SEM, and ¹H NMR. The results showed that the product morphology was significantly changed, and the nanoparticles were spherical with a particle size of about 100 nm. The anti-cancer activity of the product was measured. The molecular docking simulations revealed that the product had good docking activity with human glucocorticoid protein (6CFN) with a binding free energy of 14.38 kcal/mol. The MTT assay showed that the product had a strong inhibitory effect on the growth of human liver cancer cells (BEL-7407) and gastric cancer cells (MGC80-3), with inhibition ratio of 38.41 ± 5.32% and 32.69 ± 4.87%. Therefore, this nanomaterial is expected to be applied to the development and utilization of drug carriers and functional materials.

Chitosan-modified nanocarriers as carriers for anticancer drug delivery: Promises and hurdles

With the advent of drug delivery, various polymeric materials are being explored to fabricate numerous nanocarriers. Each polymer is associated with a few characteristics attributes which further facilitate its usage in drug delivery. One such polymer is chitosan (CS), which is extensively employed to deliver a variety of drugs to various targets, especially to cancer cells. The desired properties like biological origin, bio-adhesive, biocompatibility, the scope of chemical modification, biodegradability and controlled drug release make it a highly rough after polymer in pharmaceutical nanotechnology. The present review attempts to compile various chemical modifications on CS and showcase the outcomes of the derived nanocarriers, especially in cancer chemotherapy and drug delivery.

Applications of Chitosan and its Derivatives in Skin and Soft Tissue Diseases

Chitosan and its derivatives are bioactive molecules that have recently been used in various fields, especially in the medical field. The antibacterial, antitumor, and immunomodulatory properties of chitosan have been extensively studied. Chitosan can be used as a drug-delivery carrier in the form of hydrogels, sponges, microspheres, nanoparticles, and thin films to treat diseases, especially those of the skin and soft tissue such as injuries and lesions of the skin, muscles, blood vessels, and nerves. Chitosan can prevent and also treat soft tissue diseases by exerting diverse biological effects such as antibacterial, antitumor, antioxidant, and tissue regeneration effects. Owing to its antitumor properties, chitosan can be used as a targeted therapy to treat soft tissue tumors. Moreover, owing to its antibacterial and antioxidant properties, chitosan can be used in the prevention and treatment of soft tissue infections. Chitosan can stop the bleeding of open wounds by promoting platelet agglutination. It can also promote the regeneration of soft tissues such as the skin, muscles, and nerves. Drug-delivery carriers containing chitosan can be used as wound dressings to promote wound healing. This review summarizes the structure and biological characteristics of chitosan and its derivatives. The recent breakthroughs and future trends of chitosan and its derivatives in therapeutic effects and drug delivery functions including anti-infection, promotion of wound healing, tissue regeneration and anticancer on soft tissue diseases are elaborated.

Recent advances in lipid-engineered multifunctional nanophytomedicines for cancer targeting

Cancer is a leading cause of death in many countries around the world. However, the efficacy of current treatments available for variety of cancers is considered to be suboptimal due to the pathophysiological challenges associated with the disease which limits the efficacy of the anticancer drugs. Moreover, the vulnerability towards off-target effects and high toxicity also limits the use of drugs for the treatment of cancers. Besides, the biopharmaceutical challenges like poor water solubility and permeability of the drugs, along with the absence of active targeting capability further decreases the utility of drugs in cancer therapy. As a result of these deficiencies, the current therapeutic strategies face noncompliance to patients for providing meaningful benefits after administration. With the advancements in nanotechnology, there has been a paradigm shift in the modalities for cancer treatment with the help of phytomedicine-based nanosized drug delivery systems coupled with variegated surface-engineering strategies for targeted drug delivery. Among these delivery systems, lipid-based nanoparticles are considered as one of the highly biocompatible, efficient and effective systems extensively explored for anticancer drug delivery. These include diverse range of systems including liposomes, nanoemulsions, solid lipid nanoparticles, nanostructured lipidic carriers and supramolecular carriers, which alters pharmacokinetic and biodistribution of the drugs for active targeting to the desired site of action by overcoming the biopharmaceutical challenges associated with anticancer drug delivery. The present review endeavours to provide a comprehensive account on the recent advances in the application of lipid-based nanostructured systems for improving the pharmacotherapeutic performance of phytomedicines for cancer targeting application.

The EZMTT cell proliferation assay provides precise measurement for drug combinations and better correlation between in vitro and in vivo efficacy

The rate of drug-induced proliferation (DIP) has been proposed as an unbiased alternative drug effect metric. However, current assays are not easy and precise enough to track minor changes in cell growth. Here, we report the optimized EZMTT based detection method which can continuously measure time-dependent growth after drug treatment and reliably detect partial drug resistance for cancer cells. Importantly, tracking time-dependent growth after drug treatment demonstrated that a KGA allosteric inhibitor alone failed to completely inhibit cancer cell growth, but a drug combination was able to provide complete inhibition in cell-based assays that translated well in in vivo animal experiments. In conclusion, this simple EZMTT method provided precise measurement of loss of susceptibility after drug treatment and has great potential to be developed for drug efficacy and drug combination studies to solve the unmet medical need.

Biosynthesis of Silver Nanoparticles from Eucalyptus corymbia Leaf Extract at Optimized Conditions

This study reports the biosynthesis of narrow range diameter silver nanoparticles at optimum conditions usingEucalyptus corymbiaas a reducing and stabilizing agent. Optimal conditions for biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were found to be; an extraction temperature of 90°C, pH of 5.7 a Silver Nitrate concentration of 1mM and AgNO3to plant extract ratio of 4:1. UV-Visible spectroscopy monitored the formation of colloidal AgNPs. The UV-Visible spectrum showed a peak around 425 nm corresponding to the Plasmon absorbance of the AgNPs. The size and shape characterization of the AgNPs was done using Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) techniques which revealed narrow range diameter (18-20 nm), almost monodispersed AgNPs, spherical in nature and with minimal agglomeration. Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) results showed the presence of two peaks at 3.0 and 3.15 keV in the silver region. The Fourier Transform Infrared-Spectra (FTIR) of the plant extract and the AgNPs gave rise to vibrational peaks at 3260 and 1634 wavenumbers which are due to the presence of OH and –C=C-functional groups respectively.

Next generation nutraceutical from shrimp waste: The convergence of applications with extraction methods

In recent years considerable progress in health therapy makes a significant improvement in natural nutraceuticals. Shrimp is a valuable natural sea food and is processed by removing head, tail and carapace as waste. The large amounts of waste produced by sea food industries capitulate, recoverable nutraceutical compound astaxanthin. This review emphasizes the chemistry and role of astaxanthin in pigmentation. The study highlights progress in applications and describes the current extraction methods starting with chemical to the best eco-friendly microbial processes. Relevant literature on the methods giving summary of results obtained using each approach has been reviewed and critically discussed. Intense research in advancing extraction methods to enhance productivity and to meet the demands of the consumer was discussed in future challenges. Further, aimed at collating valuable information about applications and recent extraction methodologies will promote a concept of intake of "a nutraceutical a day may keep the doctor away".

In vivo stepwise immunomodulation using chitosan nanoparticles as a platform nanotechnology for cancer immunotherapy

Dentritic cell (DC)-based cancer immunotherapy faces challenges in both efficacy and practicality. However, DC-based vaccination requires multiple injections and elaborates ex vivo manipulation, which substantially limits their use. Therefore, we sought to develop a chitosan nanoparticle (CH-NP)-based platform for the next generation of vaccines to bypass the ex vivo manipulation and induce immune responses via active delivery of polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid sodium salt (poly I:C) to target Toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) in endosomes. We developed CH-NPs encapsulating ovalbumin (OVA) as a model antigen and poly I:C as the adjuvant in an ionic complex. These CH-NPs showed increased in vivo intracellular delivery to the DCs in comparison with controls after injection into tumor-bearing mice, and promoted DC maturation, leading to emergence of antigen-specific cytotoxic CD8+ T cells. Finally, the CH-NPs showed significantly greater antitumor efficacy in EG.7 and TC-1 tumor-bearing mice compared to the control (p < 0.01). Taken together, these data show that the CH-NP platform can be used as an immune response modulatory vaccine for active cancer immunotherapy without ex vivo manipulation, thus resulting in increased anticancer efficacy.

Chitosan-based nanoparticles for improved anticancer efficacy and bioavailability of mifepristone

In addition to its well-known abortifacient effect, mifepristone (MIF) has been used as an anticancer drug for various cancers in many studies with an in-depth understanding of the mechanism of action. However, application of MIF is limited by its poor water solubility and low oral bioavailability. In this work, we developed a drug delivery system based on chitosan nanoparticles (CNs) to improve its bioavailability and anticancer activity. The MIF-loaded chitosan nanoparticles (MCNs) were prepared by convenient ionic gelation techniques between chitosan (Cs) and tripolyphosphate (TPP). The preparation conditions, including Cs concentration, TPP concentration, Cs/MIF mass ratio, and pH value of the TPP solution, were optimized to gain better encapsulation efficiency (EE) and drug loading capacity (DL). MCNs prepared with the optimum conditions resulted in spherical particles with an average size of 200 nm. FTIR and XRD spectra verified that MIF was successfully encapsulated in CNs. The EE and DL of MCNs determined by HPLC were 86.6% and 43.3%, respectively. The in vitro release kinetics demonstrated that MIF was released from CNs in a sustained-release manner. Compared with free MIF, MCNs demonstrated increased anticancer activity in several cancer cell lines. Pharmacokinetic studies in male rats that were orally administered MCNs showed a 3.2-fold increase in the area under the curve from 0 to 24 h compared with free MIF. These results demonstrated that MCNs could be developed as a potential delivery system for MIF to improve its anticancer activity and bioavailability.

Design, synthesis and anticancer activities of novel otobain derivatives

Twenty novel racemic otobain derivatives have been designed and synthesized, among which compound 27g exhibited the most potent anticancer activity.