Cutaneous microbial biofilm formation as an underlying cause of red scrotum syndrome

Current state of the red scrotum syndrome

Red scrotum syndrome is a chronic, difficult-to-recognize dermatosis affecting middle-aged and elderly people. It is manifested by erythema of the scrotum with clear boundaries, without neck. The etiology and pathogenesis of the disease have not been established. Hypotheses about the causes of dermatosis as a consequence of uncontrolled use of topical steroids, neurological inflammation, formation of microbial biofilm are based on anamnestic data and the results of trial treatments. Etiologically and pathogenetically justified therapy has not been proposed. Therapy with the use of doxycycline, gabapentin, pregabalin, indomethacin, tacrolimus was carried out in small groups of patients. The lack of clarity in the etiology and understanding of the mechanism of development of the disease explains the lack of a unified focus of the proposed therapies based on isolated clinical cases. In general, the problem of diagnosis and treatment rests on the absence of major clinical, epidemiological and laboratory studies that allowed to establish the pathophysiology and assess the true prevalence of red scrotum syndrome.

Antimicrobial and antiviral activity of selenium sulphide nanoparticles synthesised in extracts from spices in natural deep eutectic solvents (NDES)

Selenium sulphide is a well-known bioactive chemical, but its preparation in nanometric form stabilised in water has not been widely reported. In the article, extracts of cinnamon, curcumin, and pepper obtained using natural deep eutectic solvents (NDES) were used to obtain stable selenium sulphide nanoparticles. The analysis confirmed that selenium sulphide nanoparticles with an average crystallite size of 28–44 nm and a particle size of approximately 500 nm were successfully synthesised. The use of NDES stabilised the SeS₂ nanoparticles and increased their bioactivity towards microorganisms. The obtained systems revealed high biocidal and antiviral activity against S. aureus, E. coli, P. aeruginosa, and C. albicans strains, Human influenza virus A/H1N1, and Betacoronavirus 1 (Human coronavirus HCoV-OC43). The SeS₂ nanoparticles obtained in the NDES extract of curcuma strongly inhibited the growth of pathogenic fungi and bacteria with minimum biocidal concentration (MBC) values of 117.2, 117.2, 117.2, and 468.8 mg/dm³ against E. coli, P. aeruginosa, S. aureus, and C. albicans, respectively. The suspensions containing selenium sulphide nanoparticles stabilised by spice extracts were also highly active against influenza viruses and B-coronavirus, showing a reduction of over 99%.