Development of Spanish Broom and Flax Dressings with Glycyrrhetinic Acid-Loaded Films for Wound Healing: Characterization and Evaluation of Biological Properties

Azithromycin-loaded liposomes and niosomes for the treatment of skin infections: Influence of excipients and preparative methods on the functional properties

The aim of this study was to develop azithromycin (AZT)-loaded liposomes (LP) and niosomes (NS) useful for the treatment of bacterial skin infections and acne. LP based on phosphatidylcholine from egg yolk (EPC) or from soybean lecithin (SPC), and NS composed of sorbitan monopalmitate (Span 40) or sorbitan monostearate (Span 60) were prepared through the thin film hydration (TFH) and the ethanol injection (EI) methods. The formulations were subsequently characterized for their physico-chemical and functional properties. Vesicles prepared through TFH showed higher average sizes than the corresponding formulations obtained by EI. All the vesicles presented adequate encapsulation efficiency and a negative ζ potential, which assured good stability during the storage period (except for LP-SPC). Formulations prepared with TFH showed a more prolonged AZT release than those prepared through EI, due to their lower surface area and multilamellar structure, as confirmed by atomic force microscopy nanomechanical characterization. Finally, among all the formulations, NS-Span 40-TFH and LP-EPC-TFH allowed the highest drug accumulation in the skin, retained the antimicrobial activity and did not alter fibroblast metabolism and viability. Overall, they could ensure to minimize the dosing and the administration frequency, thus representing promising candidates for the treatment of bacterial skin infections and acne.

Physiological and Pathological Considerations for the Use of Flaxseed as a Therapeutic Dietary Strategy

The inclusion of flaxseed in the diet may have a great number of potential benefits for the well-being of both healthy individuals and those challenged by disease conditions as well. With an increase in the number and quality of studies focused on the physiological and pathophysiological effects of dietary flaxseed, our knowledge concerning the rationale for the inclusion of flaxseed in our diet has become more convincing and stronger. The purpose of this review is threefold. First, the review will comprehensively document the evidence supporting the value of dietary flaxseed to improve bodily health in both normal and disease conditions. Second, this review will identify the mechanisms of action responsible for these effects. Finally, this article will review practical aspects relevant to the inclusion of flaxseed in the diet. Briefly, supplementing the diet with flaxseed has beneficial effects on the treatment and/or prevention of different kinds of cardiovascular disease (hypertension, ischemic heart disease, myocardial infarcts, atherosclerosis), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, breast cancer, bone strength, menopause, diabetes, and wound healing. Although some controversy exists on the component within flaxseed that provides these beneficial actions, it is likely that the rich content of the omega-3 fatty acid, alpha linolenic acid, is primarily responsible for the majority of these biological effects. It is concluded that the constantly expanding evidence in support of the inclusion of flaxseed in our daily diet to provide significant health benefits strongly encourages the initiation of additional work on dietary flaxseed in order to both confirm past findings as well as to further advance our knowledge regarding the important biological actions of dietary flaxseed.

In Vitro and In Vivo Characterization Methods for Evaluation of Modern Wound Dressings

Chronic wound management represents a major challenge in the healthcare sector owing to its delayed wound-healing process progression and huge financial burden. In this regard, wound dressings provide an appropriate platform for facilitating wound healing for several decades. However, adherent traditional wound dressings do not provide effective wound healing for highly exudating chronic wounds and need the development of newer and innovative wound dressings to facilitate accelerated wound healing. In addition, these dressings need frequent changing, resulting in more pain and discomfort. In order to overcome these issues, a wide range of affordable and innovative modern wound dressings have been developed and explored recently to accelerate and improve the wound healing process. However, a comprehensive understanding of various in vitro and in vivo characterization methods being utilized for the evaluation of different modern wound dressings is lacking. In this context, an overview of modern dressings and their complete in vitro and in vivo characterization methods for wound healing assessment is provided in this review. Herein, various emerging modern wound dressings with advantages and challenges have also been reviewed. Furthermore, different in vitro wound healing assays and in vivo wound models being utilized for the evaluation of wound healing progression and wound healing rate using wound dressings are discussed in detail. Finally, a summary of modern wound dressings with challenges and the future outlook is highlighted.

Investigation of the Properties of Linen Fibers and Dressings

In antiquity, flax was used as a dressing for healing wounds. Currently, work is underway on the genetic modification of flax fibers to improve their properties. Genetic modifications have resulted in an increased content of antioxidants and more favorable mechanical properties. The works published so far have presented independent tests of fibers and dressings after appropriate technological treatments in cell cultures. This study aimed to compare the properties of the fibers and the dressing produced in cell cultures—hamster fibroblasts—V79. The research material was traditional NIKE fibers; genetically modified M, B, and MB fibers; and linen dressings obtained from these fibers. The extract from 48-h incubation of 40 mg of fiber in the culture medium, which was desolved into 10, 20, and 30 mg, was administered to the cell culture. On the other hand, a linen dressing was placed on cells with an area of 0.5 cm², 1 cm², 1.5 cm², and 2 cm². Cells with fiber or dressing were incubated for 48 h, and then, biological tests were performed, including cell viability (in propidium iodide staining), cell proliferation (in the SRB assay), evaluation of the intracellular free radical level (in the DCF-DA assay), genotoxicity (in the comet assay), assessment of the apoptotic and necrotic cells (in staining anexin-V and iodide propidium), the course of the cell cycle, and the scratch test. The correlation between apoptosis and genotoxicity and the levels of free radicals and genotoxicity were determined for the tested linen fibers and fabrics. The tests presented that the fibers are characterized by the ability to eliminate damaged cells in the elimination phase. However, the obtained fabrics gain different properties during the technological processing of the fibers into linen dressings. Linen fabrics have better regenerative properties for cells than fibers. The linseed dressing made of MB fiber has the most favorable regenerative properties.

pH-Responsive PVA/BC-f-GO Dressing Materials for Burn and Chronic Wound Healing with Curcumin Release Kinetics

Polymeric materials have been essential biomaterials to develop hydrogels as wound dressings for sustained drug delivery and chronic wound healing. The microenvironment for wound healing is created by biocompatibility, bioactivity, and physicochemical behavior. Moreover, a bacterial infection often causes the healing process. The bacterial cellulose (BC) was functionalized using graphene oxide (GO) by hydrothermal method to have bacterial cellulose-functionalized-Graphene oxide (BC-f-GO). A simple blending method was used to crosslink BC-f-GO with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) by tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) as a crosslinker. The structural, morphological, wetting, and mechanical tests were conducted using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning electron microscope (SEM), water contact angle, and a Universal testing machine (UTM). The release of Silver-sulphadiazine and drug release kinetics were studied at various pH levels and using different mathematical models (zero-order, first-order, Higuchi, Hixson, Korsmeyer–Peppas, and Baker–Lonsdale). The antibacterial properties were conducted against Gram-positive and Gram-negative severe infection-causing pathogens. These composite hydrogels presented potential anticancer activities against the U87 cell line by an increased GO amount. The result findings show that these composite hydrogels have physical-mechanical and inherent antimicrobial properties and controlled drug release, making them an ideal approach for skin wound healing. As a result, these hydrogels were discovered to be an ideal biomaterial for skin wound healing.

Modern Wound Dressings: Hydrogel Dressings

Chronic wounds do not progress through the wound healing process in a timely manner and are considered a burden for healthcare system; they are also the most common reason for decrease in patient quality of life. Traditional wound dressings e.g., bandages and gauzes, although highly absorbent and effective for dry to mild, exudating wounds, require regular application, which therefore can cause pain upon dressing change. In addition, they have poor adhesional properties and cannot provide enough drainage for the wound. In this regard, the normalization of the healing process in chronic wounds is an extremely urgent task of public health and requires the creation and implementation of affordable dressings for patients with chronic wounds. Modern wound dressings (WDs) are aimed to solve these issues. At the same time, hydrogels, unlike other types of modern WDs (foam, films, hydrocolloids), have positive degradation properties that makes them the perfect choice in applications where a targeted delivery of bioactive substances to the wound is required. This mini review is focused on different types of traditional and modern WDs with an emphasis on hydrogels. Advantages and disadvantages of traditional and modern WDs as well as their applicability to different chronic wounds are elucidated. Furthermore, an effectiveness comparison between hydrogel WDs and the some of the frequently used biotechnologies in the field of regenerative medicine (adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADMSCs), mesenchymal stem cells, conditioned media, platelet-rich plasma (PRP)) is provided.