Preliminary Results of CitraVes™ Effects on Low Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol and Waist Circumference in Healthy Subjects after 12 Weeks: A Pilot Open-Label Study

Isolation and Characterization of Extracellular Vesicles from Arabidopsis thaliana Cell Culture and Investigation of the Specificities of Their Biogenesis

Over recent years, extracellular vesicles (EVs), commonly termed exosomes, have gained prominence for their potential as natural nanocarriers. It has now been recognized that plants also secrete EVs. Despite this discovery, knowledge about EV biogenesis in plant cell cultures remains limited. In our study, we have isolated and meticulously characterized EVs from the callus culture of the model plant, Arabidopsis thaliana. Our findings indicate that the abundance of EVs in calli was less than that in the plant's apoplastic fluid. This difference was associated with the transcriptional downregulation of the endosomal sorting complex required for transport (ESCRT) genes in the calli cells. While salicylic acid increased the expression of ESCRT components, it did not enhance EV production. Notably, EVs from calli contained proteins essential for cell wall biogenesis and defense mechanisms, as well as microRNAs consistent with those found in intact plants. This suggests that plant cell cultures could serve as a feasible source of EVs that reflect the characteristics of the parent plant species. However, further research is essential to determine the optimal conditions for efficient EV production in these cultured cells.

Plant-Derived Vesicle-Like Nanoparticles: Clinical Application Exploration and Challenges

The utilization of plant-derived vesicle-like nanoparticles (PDVLNs) has shown effectiveness in the prevention/treatment of inflammatory-mediated diseases, malignancies, and immune-related diseases, such as acute liver injury, allergic asthma, gastric cancer and so on. This highlights the promising potential of PDVLNs as biotherapeutics. Furthermore, it should be noted that PDVLNs possess the ability to function as both natural and engineered drug carriers, making them an appealing option. This review aims to present the appropriate extraction methods of PDVLNs, summarize the applications of PDVLNs in different diseases, and provide an outlook on the prospects of PDVLNs. At the same time, the authors also express their discussion on the current limitations of PDVLNs.

Plant-derived extracellular vesicles (PDEVs) in nanomedicine for human disease and therapeutic modalities

BACKGROUND

The past few years have witnessed a significant increase in research related to plant-derived extracellular vesicles (PDEVs) in biological and medical applications. Using biochemical technologies, multiple independent groups have demonstrated the important roles of PDEVs as potential mediators involved in cell-cell communication and the exchange of bio-information between species. Recently, several contents have been well identified in PDEVs, including nucleic acids, proteins, lipids, and other active substances. These cargoes carried by PDEVs could be transferred into recipient cells and remarkably influence their biological behaviors associated with human diseases, such as cancers and inflammatory diseases. This review summarizes the latest updates regarding PDEVs and focuses on its important role in nanomedicine applications, as well as the potential of PDEVs as drug delivery strategies to develop diagnostic and therapeutic agents for the clinical management of diseases, especially like cancers.

CONCLUSION

Considering its unique advantages, especially high stability, intrinsic bioactivity and easy absorption, further elaboration on molecular mechanisms and biological factors driving the function of PDEVs will provide new horizons for the treatment of human disease.

The Use of Medicinal Plants in Blood Vessel Diseases: The Influence of Gender

Data available in the literature on the use of herbal products to treat inflammation-related vascular diseases were considered in this study, while also assessing the influence of gender. To this end, the articles published in PubMed over the past 10 years that described the use of plant extracts in randomized clinical trials studying the effectiveness in vascular pathologies were analyzed. The difference in efficacy of plant-derived preparations in female and male subjects was always considered when reporting. The safety profiles of the selected plants were described, reporting unwanted effects in humans and also by searching the WHO database (VigiBase^®). The medicinal plants considered were Allium sativum, Campomanesia xanthocarpa, Sechium edule, Terminalia chebula. Additionally, an innovative type of preparation consisting of plant-derived nanovesicles was also reported.

Anti-inflammatory properties of an aldehydes-enriched fraction of grapefruit essential oil

Chronic inflammation is linked to the development of numerous diseases and is accompanied by increased cytokine secretion. Macrophages provide a first line of defense against pathogens that under inflammatory stimuli release pro-inflammatory cytokines. The essential oil (EO) fractions obtained from Citrus spp. rich in different compounds have gained the attention of both researchers and users during the last decades. In particular, grapefruit (Citrus paradisi) peel is rich in phenolics and flavonoids with several health benefits, including anti-inflammatory actions. Additionally, its EO consists of a large number of compounds such as monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, alcohols, aldehydes, esters, and oxides. Among the methods for encapsulating EOs, spray-drying is the main one. In the present study, we aimed to determine the in vitro anti-inflammatory activity of EO from C. paradisi (grapefruit essential oil [GEO]) (whole and fractions) in a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation model. Results indicate that Fr-GEO and Fr-GEO_SD exert protective effects against LPS-induced inflammation by decreasing gene expression and levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines as IL-6 and TNF-α. Monoterpenes as the most common components, as well as aldehydes and sesquiterpenes, might be responsible for such effects, although a synergistic action is not excluded. Furthermore, a higher percent of aldehydes is linked to improved olfactory properties. Our findings support the anti-inflammatory effects of selected Fr-GEO with a great potential for the development of new nutraceuticals and/or functional food for the treatment of inflammatory-associated diseases. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: The findings of this study support the anti-inflammatory effects of selected Fr-GEO with a great potential for the development of new nutraceuticals and/or functional food for the treatment of inflammatory-associated diseases.

Alternative biological sources for extracellular vesicles production and purification strategies for process scale-up

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are phospholipidic bi-layer enclosed nanoparticles secreted naturally by all cell types. They are attracting increasing attention in the fields of nanomedicine, nutraceutics and cosmetics as biocompatible carriers for drug delivery, with intrinsic properties beneficial to human health. Scientific work now focuses on developing techniques for isolating EVs that can translate into industrial-scale production and meet rigorous clinical requirements. The science of EVs is ongoing, and many pitfalls must be addressed, such as the requirement for standard, reproducible, inexpensive, and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) adherent EV processing techniques. Researchers are exploring the use of alternative sources to EVs derived from mammalian cultures, such as plant EVs, as well as the use of bacteria, algae and milk. Regarding the downstream processing of EVs, many alternative techniques to the ultracentrifugation (UC) protocols most commonly used in the laboratory are emerging. In the context of process scale-up, membrane-based processes for isolation and purification of EVs are the most promising, either as stand-alone processes or in combination with chromatographic techniques. This review discusses current trends on EVs source selection and EVs downstream processing techniques, with a focus on plant-derived EVs and membrane-based techniques for EVs enrichment.

Recent developments in plant-derived edible nanoparticles as therapeutic nanomedicines

The use of nanotechnology in the treatment of numerous disorders has proven effective. The predicted development of plant-derived edible nanoparticles (PDNPs) as potential therapeutic agents for treating illness or in the delivery of drugs is inevitable. PDNPs generated from plants resemble mammal-extracted exosomes structurally. In contrast to their excellent biocompatibility with healthy cells, PDNPs are skewed toward malignancies by selectively targeting those cells via unique endocytic pathways. They can be generated in large quantities, are nontoxic, and have tissue-specific targeting abilities. Thus, with fewer off-target effects, using these PDNPs could broaden the breadth of pharmacological therapy. In this discussion, we emphasize the properties and biological activities of PDNPs isolated from fruits and vegetables and discuss the promising implications of these particles as nanomedicines. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: PDNPs have reportedly been employed for therapeutic applications for several ailments and are believed to have characteristics in common with exosomes generated from mammals. The advantages of PDNPs over mammalian-derived exosomes are numerous. Firstly, they may be produced on a commercial scale using a variety of efficient renewable sources. Secondly, the PDNPs' natural components developed in plant cells promise improved cytocompatibility, tolerability, low cytotoxicity, or other adverse effects. We evaluated some current studies on the applications and potential of PDNPs in this article. PDNPs could create new opportunities for drug discovery because of recent advancements in medicine and drug delivery system nanotechnology. Unfortunately, the precise mechanisms behind PDNP's functions and interaction in pathogenic processes have not yet been completely elucidated; as a result, the potential consequences of their clinical use are uncertain. Overall, PDNPs show a wide range of therapeutic possibilities that may be advantageous to patients and might eventually make up the next generation of pharmaceuticals.

Plant hairy roots for the production of extracellular vesicles with antitumor bioactivity

Plant extracellular vesicles (EVs) concentrate and deliver different types of bioactive molecules in human cells and are excellent candidates for a next-generation drug delivery system. However, the lack of standard protocols for plant EV production and the natural variations of their biomolecular cargo pose serious limitation to their use as therapeutics. To overcome these issues, we set up a versatile and standardized procedure to purify plant EVs from hairy root (HR) cultures, a versatile biotechnological system, already successfully employed as source of bioactive molecules with pharmaceutical and nutraceutical relevance. Herewith, we report that HR of Salvia dominica represent an excellent platform for the production of plant EVs. In particular, EVs derived from S. dominica HRs are small round-shaped vesicles carrying typical EV-associated proteins such as cytoskeletal components, chaperon proteins and integral membrane proteins including the tetraspanin TET-7. Interestingly, the HR-derived EVs showed selective and strong pro-apoptotic activity in pancreatic and mammary cancer cells. These results reveal that plant hairy roots may be considered a new promising tool in plant biotechnology for the production of extracellular vesicles for human health.

Emergence of Edible Plant-Derived Nanovesicles as Functional Food Components and Nanocarriers for Therapeutics Delivery: Potentials in Human Health and Disease

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are a highly heterogeneous population of membranous particles that are secreted by almost all types of cells across different domains of life, including plants. In recent years, studies on plant-derived nanovesicles (PDNVs) showed that they could modulate metabolic reactions of the recipient cells, affecting (patho)physiology with health benefits in a trans-kingdom manner. In addition to its bioactivity, PDNV has advantages over conventional nanocarriers, making its application promising for therapeutics delivery. Here, we discuss the characteristics of PDNV and highlight up-to-date pre-clinical and clinical evidence, focusing on therapeutic application.

Anti‐inflammatory properties of lemon‐derived extracellular vesicles are achieved through the inhibition of ERK / NF‐κB signalling pathways

Chronic inflammation is associated with the occurrence of several diseases. However, the side effects of anti‐inflammatory drugs prompt the identification of new therapeutic strategies. Plant‐derived extracellular vesicles (PDEVs) are gaining increasing interest in the scientific community for their biological properties. We isolated PDEVs from the juice of Citrus limon L. (LEVs) and characterized their flavonoid, limonoid and lipid contents through reversed‐phase high‐performance liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray ionization quadrupole time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry (RP‐HPLC–ESI‐Q‐TOF‐MS). To investigate whether LEVs have a protective role on the inflammatory process, murine and primary human macrophages were pre‐treated with LEVs for 24 h and then were stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). We found that pre‐treatment with LEVs decreased gene and protein expression of pro‐inflammatory cytokines, such as IL‐6, IL1‐β and TNF‐α, and reduced the nuclear translocation and phosphorylation of NF‐κB in LPS‐stimulated murine macrophages. The inhibition of NF‐κB activation was associated with the reduction in ERK1‐2 phosphorylation. Furthermore, the ability of LEVs to decrease pro‐inflammatory cytokines and increase anti‐inflammatory molecules was confirmed ex vivo in human primary T lymphocytes. In conclusion, we demonstrated that LEVs exert anti‐inflammatory effects both in vitro and ex vivo by inhibiting the ERK1‐2/NF‐κB signalling pathway.

Overview of Nutraceuticals and Cardiometabolic Diseases following Socio-Economic Analysis

The importance of functional food and nutraceutical products to deal with cardiometabolic diseases (CMDs) and metabolic syndrome (MetS) has gained attention in the past few years. The aim of this narrative review is to highlight the potential and effectiveness of nutraceutical in the improvement of CMDs and MetS biomarkers, alongside their burden of disease and economic health expenditure. A science database search was conducted between May and June 2021. A total of 35 studies were included in this paper. We included male and female subjects, children, and adults, in good health or with cardiovascular or metabolic disease. CMDs and MetS have gradually become worldwide health problems, becoming two of the major causes of morbidity and mortality in western countries. The results indicate a positive link between daily consumption of nutraceutical products and an improvement in cardiometabolic and anthropometric biomarkers. In this paper we included a wide range of nutraceutical products. Most of them showed promising data, indicating that nutraceuticals could provide a new therapeutic treatment to reduce prevalence and pharmaceutical expenditures attributed to CMDs and MetS. Unfortunately, there is a huge vacuum of data on nutraceutical usage, savings, and burden reduction. Therefore, further clinical and pharmaco-economic research in the field is highly required.

Plant-RNA in Extracellular Vesicles: The Secret of Cross-Kingdom Communication

The release of extracellular vesicles (EVs) is a common language, used by living organisms from different kingdoms as a means of communication between them. Extracellular vesicles are lipoproteic particles that contain many biomolecules, such as proteins, nucleic acids, and lipids. The primary role of EVs is to convey information to the recipient cells, affecting their function. Plant-derived extracellular vesicles (PDEVs) can be isolated from several plant species, and the study of their biological properties is becoming an essential starting point to study cross-kingdom communication, especially between plants and mammalians. Furthermore, the presence of microRNAs (miRNAs) in PDEVs represents an interesting aspect for understanding how PDEVs can target the mammalian genes involved in pathological conditions such as cancer, inflammation, and oxidative stress. In particular, this review focuses on the history of PDEVs, from their discovery, to purification from various matrices, and on the functional role of PDEV-RNAs in cross-kingdom interactions. It is worth noting that miRNAs packaged in PDEVs can be key modulators of human gene expression, representing potential therapeutic agents.

Isolation of Extracellular Vesicles From Microalgae: A Renewable and Scalable Bioprocess

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) play a crucial role as potent signal transducers among cells, with the potential to operate cross-species and cross-kingdom communication. Nanoalgosomes are a subtype of EVs recently identified and isolated from microalgae. Microalgae represent a natural bioresource with the capacity to produce several secondary metabolites with a broad range of biological activities and commercial applications. The present study highlights the upstream and downstream processes required for the scalable production of nanoalgosomes from cultures of the marine microalgae Tetraselmis chuii. Different technical parameters, protocols, and conditions were assessed to improve EVs isolation by tangential flow filtration (TFF), aiming to enhance sample purity and yield. The optimization of the overall bioprocess was enhanced by quality control checks operated through robust biophysical and biochemical characterizations. Further, we showed the possibility of recycling by TFF microalgae cells post-EVs isolation for multiple EV production cycles. The present results highlight the potential of nanoalgosome production as a scalable, cost-effective bioprocess suitable for diverse scientific and industrial exploitations.

Dietary modulation of large extracellular vesicles: the good and the bad for human health

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) encompassing nanovesicles derived from the endosome system and generated by plasmatic membrane shedding are of increasing interest in view of their ability to sustain cell-to-cell communication and the possibility that they could be used as surrogate biomarkers of healthy and unhealthy trajectories. Nutritional strategies have been developed to preserve health, and the impact of these strategies on circulating EVs is arousing growing interest. Data available from published studies are now sufficient for a first integration to better understand the role of EVs in the relationship between diet and health. Thus, this review focuses on human intervention studies investigating the impact of diet or its components on circulating EVs. Because of analytical bias, only large EVs have been assessed so far. The analysis highlights that poor-quality diets with elevated fat and sugar content increase levels of circulating large EVs, and these can be partly counteracted by healthy food or some food micronutrients and bioactive compounds. However, knowledge of the content and the biological functions of these diet-induced EVs is still missing. It is important to address these aspects in new research in order to state if EVs are mediators of the effects of diet on health.

The Relieving Effects of a Polyherb-Based Dietary Supplement ColonVita on Gastrointestinal Quality of Life Index (GIQLI) in Older Adults with Chronic Gastrointestinal Symptoms Are Influenced by Age and Cardiovascular Disease: A 12-Week Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial

Chronic gastrointestinal symptoms (CGS) negatively affect the quality of life in about 15–30% of the population without effective drugs. Recent studies suggest that dietary supplement may improve CGS, but inconsistent results exist. The goal of this study is to evaluate the effect of a polyherbal-based supplement ColonVita on the gastrointestinal quality of life index (GIQLI) in 100 old adults with CGS (63.1 ± 9.6 years) who were randomly assigned to daily ColonVita or placebo tablets (n = 50/group) for 12 weeks in a double-blind, randomized controlled trial design. No significant fibrdifferences were found between ColonVita and placebo in the baseline total GIQLI score (101.12 ± 16.87 vs. 101.80 ± 16.48) (P > 0.05) or postintervention total GIQLI score (114.78 ± 9.62 vs. 111.74 ± 13.01) (P > 0.05). However, ColonVita significantly improved 16 scores of the 19 core GI symptoms compared with 10 items improved by placebo. The ColonVita group significantly improved the remission rate of 5 core GI symptoms compared to placebo and significantly improved the total GIQLI scores (118.09 ± 7.88 vs. 109.50 ± 16.71) (P < 0.05) and core GI symptom scores (64.61 ± 3.99 vs. 60.00 ± 8.65) (P < 0.05) in people ≥60 years of age (n = 49) but not in those under 60 y (n = 51). ColonVita significantly improved the total GIQLI scores and core GI symptom scores in people without cardiovascular diseases (CVD) (n = 56) (116.74 ± 9.38 vs. 110.10 ± 14.28) (P < 0.05) and (63.11 ± 4.53 vs. 59.93 ± 8.03) (P=0.07), respectively, but not in those with CVD (n = 44). Thus, ColonVita was beneficial for old adults with CGS, especially those ≥60 years of age and without CVD. Because a heterogenous pathogenesis of CGS-like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and inflammatory bowel disease (ISD) is differentially associated with CVD, different comorbidities may have influenced the outcomes of different trials that should be controlled in further studies.

Extracellular Vesicles from Plants: Current Knowledge and Open Questions

The scientific interest in the beneficial properties of natural substances has been recognized for decades, as well as the growing attention in extracellular vesicles (EVs) released by different organisms, in particular from animal cells. However, there is increasing interest in the isolation and biological and functional characterization of these lipoproteic structures in the plant kingdom. Similar to animal vesicles, these plant-derived extracellular vesicles (PDEVs) exhibit a complex content of small RNAs, proteins, lipids, and other metabolites. This sophisticated composition enables PDEVs to be therapeutically attractive. In this review, we report and discuss current knowledge on PDEVs in terms of isolation, characterization of their content, biological properties, and potential use as drug delivery systems. In conclusion, we outline controversial issues on which the scientific community shall focus the attention shortly.