The Therapeutic Potential of the Anticancer Activity of Fucoidan: Current Advances and Hurdles.

Several types of cancers share cellular and molecular behaviors. Although many chemotherapy drugs have been designed to weaken the defenses of cancer cells, these drugs may also have cytotoxic effects on healthy tissues. Fucoidan, a sulfated fucose-based polysaccharide from brown algae, has gained much attention as an antitumor drug owing to its anticancer effects against multiple cancer types. Among the anticancer mechanisms of fucoidan are cell cycle arrest, apoptosis evocation, and stimulation of cytotoxic natural killer cells and macrophages. Fucoidan also protects against toxicity associated with chemotherapeutic drugs and radiation-induced damage. The synergistic effect of fucoidan with existing anticancer drugs has prompted researchers to explore its therapeutic potential. This review compiles the mechanisms through which fucoidan slows tumor growth, kills cancer cells, and interacts with cancer chemotherapy drugs. The obstacles involved in developing fucoidan as an anticancer agent are also discussed in this review.

Nano-Biomaterials as Sensing and Therapeutic Tool to Mitigate Viral Pathogenesis with Special Reference to COVID-19.

In order to treat severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV), till now, no such specific treatment is available. Various coronaviruses (CoV) such as SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome), and SARS-CoV-2 can infect humans and the name was implicated due to their crown shape. SARS-CoV-2 is also called COVID-19 which was found to be a novel strain of coronavirus and is transmitted primarily through small droplets of viral particles that target the human body through the open pathways. Researchers have observed that microbes can survive for a longer duration as they get adhered to any object or surface. Nanoparticles have the capability to disable these pathogens even before they enter the body. To eradicate conventional time consuming steps like quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction for detection of COVID-19, nanoparticles mediated sensing approaches provide great advances in rapid diagnosis. Nanoparticles- based biosensors are comparatively beneficial which offer tremendous potential for rapid medical diagnosis. Nanotechnology can be refined and optimized to attack a wide variety of pathogens. As compared to other large molecular structures, nanoparticles being small in size, have high sensitivity for bio-sensing and can move throughout the body without disruption of the immune function.