Electrosprayable Levan-Coated Nanoclusters and Ultrasound-Responsive Drug Delivery for Cancer Therapy.

In this study, we synthesized levan shell hydrophobic silica nanoclusters encapsulating doxorubicin (L-HSi-Dox) and evaluated their potential as ultrasound-responsive drug delivery systems for cancer treatment. L-HSi-Dox nanoclusters were successfully fabricated by integrating a hydrophobic silica nanoparticle-doxorubicin complex as the core and an amphiphilic levan carbohydrate polymer as the shell by using an electrospray technique. Characterization analyses confirmed the stability, size, and composition of the nanoclusters. In particular, the nanoclusters exhibited a controlled release of Dox under aqueous conditions, demonstrating their potential as efficient drug carriers. The levanic groups of the nanoclusters enhanced the targeted delivery of Dox to specific cancer cells. Furthermore, the synergism between the nanoclusters and ultrasound effectively reduced cell viability and induced cell death, particularly in the GLUT5-overexpressing MDA-MB-231 cells. In a tumor xenograft mouse model, treatment with the nanoclusters and ultrasound significantly reduced the tumor volume and weight without affecting the body weight. Collectively, these results highlight the potential of the L-HSi-Dox nanoclusters and ultrasound as promising drug delivery systems with an enhanced therapeutic efficacy for biomedical applications.

Aptamer-modified tetrahedral DNA nanostructure-immobilized liposome for specific gene delivery and potential cancer theragnostic.

Targeted delivery of therapeutic agents to cancer cells is crucial for effective cancer treatment without adverse effects. In this study, we developed a novel delivery carrier, Aptamer-modified tetrahedral DNA nanostructure (TDN) immobilized Liposome (ApTL), for specific delivery to nucleolin-overexpressing cancer cells. We demonstrated that targeted ApTL was highly effective in delivering plasmid and mRNA to nucleolin-overexpressing cancer cells compared to non-targeted ApTL with a non-specific aptamer. ApTL, which is highly negative and nano-sized, specifically delivered nucleic acids to MDA-MB-231 and HeLa cancer cells, primarily via lipid-raft-mediated endocytosis. Furthermore, the co-delivery of mRNA and doxorubicin resulted in increased apoptosis and reduced cancer cell viability. Interestingly, co-delivery of mRNA and Dox did not show a significant difference in EGFP expression at 24 h but dramatically increased EGFP expression at 48 h, making ApTL/mEGFP/Dox a promising candidate for detecting live cancer cells after targeted cancer drug treatment. Our results suggest that ApTL can be a promising tool for the targeted delivery of therapeutic agents to nucleolin-overexpressing cancer cells, providing a new strategy for cancer theragnostic.

Multiple suppressing small interfering RNA for cancer treatment-Application to triple-negative breast cancer.

Certain cancers, such as triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), pose a challenging prognosis due to the absence of identifiable hormone-related receptors and effective targeted therapies. Consequently, novel therapeutics are required for these cancers, offering minimal side effects and reduced drug resistance. Unexpectedly, siRNA-7, initially employed as a control, exhibited significant efficacy in inhibiting cell viability in MDA-MB-231 cells. Through a genome-wide search of seed sequences, the targets of siRNA-7 were identified as cancer-related genes, namely PRKCE, RBPJ, ZNF737, and CDC7 in MDA-MB-231 cells. The mRNA repression analysis confirmed the simultaneous suppression by siRNA-7. Combinatorial administration of single-targeting siRNAs demonstrated a comparable reduction in viability to that achieved by siRNA-7. Importantly, siRNA-7 selectively inhibited cell viability in MDA-MB-231 cells, while normal HDF-n cells remained unaffected. Furthermore, in a xenograft mouse model, siRNA-7 exhibited a remarkable 76% reduction in tumor volume without any loss in body weight. These findings position siRNA-7 as a promising candidate for a novel, safe, specific, and potent TNBC cancer therapeutic. Moreover, the strategy of multiple suppressing small interfering RNA holds potential for the treatment of various diseases associated with gene overexpression.

Actively cross-linking hemostatic sealant enables rapid hemostasis and wound closure.

A rapid hemostatic sealant can save a patient's life from shock and death due to severe trauma or excessive bleeding from the wound site during surgery. However, an ideal hemostatic sealant needs to meet the standards of safety, efficacy, usability, cost, and approvability and overcome new challenges. Here, we devised a combinatorial hemostatic sealant of PEG succinimidyl glutarate-based cross-linking branched polymers (CBPs) and the active hemostatic peptide (AHP). After ex vivo optimization, the best hemostatic combination was called an active cross-linking hemostatic sealant (ACHS). Interestingly, ACHS formed cross-links with serum proteins, blood cells, and tissue and interconnected coating on blood cells, which might induce hemostasis and tissue adhesion based on SEM images. Moreover, ACHS showed the highest coagulation efficacy, formation, and agglomeration of thrombi within 12 s, and in vitro biocompatibility. Mouse model experiments represented rapid hemostasis within 1 min, wound closure of the liver incision, and less bleeding than the commercialized sealant with tissue biocompatibility. ACHS has the advantages of rapid hemostasis, mild sealant, and easy supply by chemical synthesis without inhibition by anticoagulants, which might minimize bacterial infection by immediate wound closure. Therefore, ACHS could become a new-type hemostatic sealant to match surgical needs for internal bleeding.

Efficient and safe small RNA delivery to macrophage using peptide-based nanocomplex.

As one of the gene therapies, RNA interference (RNAi) effectively suppresses only specific genes, targeting various diseases in which they are involved. For the successful process of RNAi, efficient and safe delivery of small RNAs, including small interfering RNA and short hairpin RNA, is essential. Herein, an S-R11 fusion peptide, SPACE peptide conjugated with poly-arginine, was introduced to deliver small RNAs into immune cells that are difficult to transfect. This S-R11 peptide stably formed a spontaneous self-assembling nanocomplex through electrostatic attraction and hydrogen bonding with small RNAs. The nanocomplex showed about 5.3-fold better permeation efficiency than the conventional Lipofectamine™ 2000 for RAW 264.7 macrophage cells. Moreover, it induced about 66.2% silencing effect of the target gene in the cells activated with polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (poly (I:C)). In addition, the cell viability of fusion peptide was ensured even in a concentration range exceeding the concentration used in the nanocomplex. Based on these results, it is expected that the nanocomplex in this study can be used as a new gene delivery system that can overcome the challenge of gene therapies to immune cells.

Synergistic gene delivery by self-assembled nanocomplexes using fusion peptide and calcium phosphate.

Gene therapy can be a promising therapeutic approach to cure the fundamental causes of incurable genetic diseases. Because virus carriers are costly and can cause inflammation and immunogenicity, efficient non-viral carriers need to be developed for broader gene therapy applications. Therefore, we designed novel synergistic nanocomplexes for efficient transfection incorporated by the fusion of nuclear localization signal and cell-penetrating peptides with calcium phosphate. Fusion peptides were able to package large plasmid DNAs into nanocomplexes spontaneously and efficiently. After optimization, S-R/CaP or S-S/CaP nanocomplexes significantly improved specific luciferase expression up to 2-fold compared to Lipofectamine® 2000. In addition, the large Cas9-encoding plasmids were transfected into HEK293T cells more efficiently than Lipofectamine® 2000. Furthermore, subcutaneously injected cells to mice maintained more stable protein expression until 10 days than Lipofectamine® 2000. Moreover, the biocompatibility was revealed by observing negligible cytotoxicity, histological difference, and inflammatory cytokine release. Consequently, the new chimeric strategy will be an efficient and safe gene carrier into cells and tissues to treat various genetic diseases through gene therapy.

Novel fusion peptide-mediated siRNA delivery using self-assembled nanocomplex.

BACKGROUND: Gene silencing using siRNA can be a new potent strategy to treat many incurable diseases at the genetic level, including cancer and viral infections. Treatments using siRNA essentially requires an efficient and safe method of delivering siRNA into cells while maintaining its stability. Thus, we designed novel synergistic fusion peptides, i.e., SPACE and oligoarginine. RESULTS: Among the novel fusion peptides and siRNAs, nanocomplexes have enhanced cellular uptake and gene silencing effect in vitro and improved retention and gene silencing effects of siRNAs in vivo. Oligoarginine could attract siRNAs electrostatically to form stable and self-assembled nanocomplexes, and the SPACE peptide could interact with the cellular membrane via hydrogen bonding. Therefore, nanocomplexes using fusion peptides showed improved and evident cellular uptake and gene silencing of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) via the lipid raft-mediated endocytosis pathway, especially to the HDFn cells of the skin, and all of the fusion peptides were biocompatible. Also, intratumorally injected nanocomplexes had increased retention time of siRNAs at the site of the tumor. Finally, nanocomplexes demonstrated significant in vivo gene silencing effect without overt tissue damage and immune cell infiltration. CONCLUSIONS: The new nanocomplex strategy could become a safe and efficient platform for the delivery of siRNAs into cells and tissues to treat various target diseases through gene silencing.

Colorimetric biosensor using dual-amplification of enzyme-free reaction through universal hybridization chain reaction system.

On-site genetic detection needs to develop a sensitive and straightforward biosensor without special equipment, which can detect various genetic biomarkers. Hybridization chain reaction (HCR) amplifying signal isothermally could be considered as a good candidate for on-site detection. Here, we developed a novel genetic biosensor on the basis of enzyme-free dual-amplification of universal hybridization chain reaction (uHCR) and hemin/G-quadruplex horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-mimicking DNAzyme. The uHCR is the strategy which enables simple design for multiple target detection by the introduction of target-specific trigger hairpin without changing the whole system according to a target change. Also, HRP-mimicking DNAzyme could produce a sensitive and quantitative colorimetric signal with increased stability with a limit of detection (LOD) of 5.67 nM. The universality of the uHCR biosensor was proven by the detection of four different targets (miR-21, miR-125b, KRAS-Q61K, and BRAF-V600E) for cancer diagnosis. The uHCR biosensor showed specificity that could discriminate single-nucleotide polymorphism. Moreover, the uHCR biosensor could detect targets in the diluted serum sample. Overall, the uHCR biosensor demonstrated the potential for field testing with a simple redesign without complicated steps or special equipment using a universal hairpin system and enzyme-free amplification. This strategy could enable stable and sensitive detection of a variety of targets. Therefore, it could be applied to urgent detection of various pathogens, remote diagnosis, and self-screening of diseases.

Newly Identified HNP-F from Human Neutrophil Peptide-1 Promotes Hemostasis.

Active hemostatic agents can play a crucial role in saving patients' lives during surgery. Active hemostats have several advantages including utilization of natural blood coagulation and biocompatibility. Among them, although human neutrophil peptide-1 (HNP-1) has been previously reported with the hemostatic mechanism, which part of HNP-1 facilitates the hemostatic activity is not known. Here, a partial peptide (HNP-F) promoting hemostasis, originating from HNP-1, has been newly identified by the blood coagulation ability test. HNP-F shows the best hemostatic effect between the anterior half and posterior half of peptides. Moreover, microscopic images show platelet aggregation and an increase in the concentration of platelet factor 4, and the scanning electron microscope image of platelets support platelet activation by HNP-F. Thromboelastography indicates decreased clotting time and increased physical properties of blood clotting. Mouse liver experiments demonstrate improved hemostatic effect by treatment of peptide solution. Cell viability and hemolysis assays confirm the HNP-F's biosafety. It is hypothesized that the surface charge and structure of HNP-F could be favorable to interact with fibrinogen or thrombospondin-1. Collectively, because HNP-F as an active peptide hemostat has many advantages, it could be expected to become a potent hemostatic biomaterial, additive or pharmaceutical candidate for various hemostatic applications.

36H: A Novel Potent Inhibitor for Antimelanogenesis.

N-Hydroxycinnamoylphenalkylamides (36H) exhibited both antioxidation and antityrosinase abilities. The compound was studied for its antioxidative properties, using a 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazul- (DPPH-) scavenging test, a ferric ion-reducing antioxidant power assay (FRAP) assessment, and a metal-chelating power assay. The results showed that 36H had antioxidative capabilities in the DPPH-scavenging and ferric-reducing power examinations but the chelating power assay did not demonstrate antioxidative capability. 36H was also measured for tyrosinase inhibitory activity applying various species platforms, including in vitro mushroom, B16F10 mouse melanoma, and human melanocyte cells. In terms of in vitro mushroom tyrosinase suppression, 36H restrained the melanogenesis processes. It is assumed that 36H blocked the tyrosinase active site as a competitive inhibitor for mushroom tyrosinase, hence not decreasing the human normal melanocyte cellular viability. A quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and western blot discovered that 36H downregulated melanogenesis-related RNA and proteins, including pigment production (MITF, tyrosinase, TRP-1, and TRP-2), melanosome maturation (Rab27a), and melanosome transportation (Myo5a, MLPH and Mreg). Overall, 36H displayed the biofunctions of antioxidation and melanin suppression, so there was a possibility for its application as a food additive or a skin-whitening agent.

Enriched Astaxanthin Extract from Haematococcus pluvialis Augments Growth Factor Secretions to Increase Cell Proliferation and Induces MMP1 Degradation to Enhance Collagen Production in Human Dermal Fibroblasts.

Among many antioxidants that are used for the repairing of oxidative stress induced skin damages, we identified the enriched astaxanthin extract (EAE) from Haematococcus pluvialis as a viable ingredient. EAE was extracted from the red microalgae through supercritical fluid carbon dioxide extraction. To compare the effectiveness, EAE wastreated on human dermal fibroblasts with other components, phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), and doxycycline. With sirius red staining and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), we found that PMA decreased the collagen concentration and production while overall the addition of doxycycline and EAE increased the collagen concentration in a trial experiments. EAE increased collagen contents through inhibited MMP1 and MMP3 mRNA expression and induced TIMP1, the antagonists of MMPs protein, gene expression. As for when tested for various proteins through western blotting, it was seen that the addition of EAE increased the expression of certain proteins that promote cell proliferation. Testing those previous solutions using growth factor assay, it was noticeable that EAE had a positive impact on cell proliferation and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) than doxycycline, indicating that it was a better alternative treatment for collagen production. To sum up, the data confirmed the possible applications as medical cosmetology agentsand food supplements.

Delivery of Exenatide and Insulin Using Mucoadhesive Intestinal Devices.

A major disadvantage associated with current diabetes therapy is dependence on injectables for long-term disease management. In addition to insulin, incretin hormone replacement therapies including exenatide have added a new class of drugs for Type-2 diabetes. Although efficacious, patient compliance with current diabetic therapy is poor due to requirement of injections, inability to cross the intestinal epithelium and instability in the gastrointestinal tract. Here, we report the efficacy of a mucoadhesive device in providing therapeutic concentrations of insulin and exenatide via oral administration. Devices were prepared with a blend of FDA-approved polymers, carbopol, pectin and sodium carboxymethylcellulose, and were tested for drug carrying capability, in vitro release, Caco-2 permeability, and in vivo efficacy for insulin and exenatide. Results suggested that mucoadhesive devices successfully provided controlled release of FITC-insulin, released significant amounts of drug, while providing noteworthy enhancement of drug transport across Caco-2 monolayers without compromising monolayer integrity. In-vivo administration of the devices provided significant enhancement of drug absorption with 13- and 80-fold enhancement of relative bioavailability for insulin and exenatide compared to intestinal injections with significant increase in half-lives, thus resulting in prolonged blood glucose reduction. This study validates the efficacy of mucoadhesive devices in promoting oral peptide delivery to improve patient compliance and dose adherence.

Mussel adhesion-employed water-immiscible fluid bioadhesive for urinary fistula sealing.

Urinary fistulas, abnormal openings of a urinary tract organ, are serious complications and conventional management strategies are not satisfactory. For more effective and non-invasive fistula repair, fluid tissue adhesives or sealants have been suggested. However, conventional products do not provide a suitable solution due to safety problems and poor underwater adhesion under physiological conditions. Herein, we proposed a unique water-immiscible mussel protein-based bioadhesive (WIMBA) exhibiting strong underwater adhesion which was employed by two adhesion strategies of marine organisms; 3,4-dihydroxy-l-phenylalanine (DOPA)-mediated strong adhesion and water-immiscible coacervation. The developed biocompatible WIMBA successfully sealed ex vivo urinary fistulas and provided good durability and high compliance. Thus, WIMBA could be used as a promising sealant for urinary fistula management with further expansion to diverse internal body applications.

Mussel-Inspired Protein Nanoparticles Containing Iron(III)-DOPA Complexes for pH-Responsive Drug Delivery.

A novel bioinspired strategy for protein nanoparticle (NP) synthesis to achieve pH-responsive drug release exploits the pH-dependent changes in the coordination stoichiometry of iron(III)-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) complexes, which play a major cross-linking role in mussel byssal threads. Doxorubicin-loaded polymeric NPs that are based on Fe(III)-DOPA complexation were thus synthesized with a DOPA-modified recombinant mussel adhesive protein through a co-electrospraying process. The release of doxorubicin was found to be predominantly governed by a change in the structure of the Fe(III)-DOPA complexes induced by an acidic pH value. It was also demonstrated that the fabricated NPs exhibited effective cytotoxicity towards cancer cells through efficient cellular uptake and cytosolic release. Therefore, it is anticipated that Fe(III)-DOPA complexation can be successfully utilized as a new design principle for pH-responsive NPs for diverse controlled drug-delivery applications.

Ultrasonic delivery of silica-gold nanoshells for photothermolysis of sebaceous glands in humans: Nanotechnology from the bench to clinic.

Recent advances in nanotechnology have provided numerous opportunities to transform medical therapies for the treatment of diseases including cancer, atherosclerosis, and thrombosis. Here, we report, through in vitro studies and in vivo human pilot clinical studies, the use of inert, inorganic silica-gold nanoshells for the treatment of a widely prevalent and researched, yet poorly treated disease of acne. We use ~150nm silica-gold nanoshells, tuned to absorb near-IR light and near-IR laser irradiation to thermally disrupt overactive sebaceous glands in the skin which define the etiology of acne-related problems. Low-frequency ultrasound was used to facilitate deep glandular penetration of the nanoshells. Upon delivery of the nanoshells into the follicles and glands, followed by wiping of superficial nanoshells from skin surface and exposure of skin to near-infrared laser, nanoshells localized in the follicles absorb light, get heated, and induce focal thermolysis of sebaceous glands. Pilot human clinical studies confirmed the efficacy of ultrasonically-delivered silica-gold nanoshells in inducing photothermal disruption of sebaceous glands without damaging collateral skin.

Surface-independent antibacterial coating using silver nanoparticle-generating engineered mussel glue.

During implant surgeries, antibacterial agents are needed to prevent bacterial infections, which can cause the formation of biofilms between implanted materials and tissue. Mussel adhesive proteins (MAPs) derived from marine mussels are bioadhesives that show strong adhesion and coating ability on various surfaces even in wet environment. Here, we proposed a novel surface-independent antibacterial coating strategy based on the fusion of MAP to a silver-binding peptide, which can synthesize silver nanoparticles having broad antibacterial activity. This sticky recombinant fusion protein enabled the efficient coating on target surface and the easy generation of silver nanoparticles on the coated-surface under mild condition. The biosynthesized silver nanoparticles showed excellent antibacterial efficacy against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and also revealed good cytocompatibility with mammalian cells. In this coating strategy, MAP-silver binding peptide fusion proteins provide hybrid environment incorporating inorganic silver nanoparticle and simultaneously mediate the interaction of silver nanoparticle with surroundings. Moreover, the silver nanoparticles were fully synthesized on various surfaces including metal, plastic, and glass by a simple, surface-independent coating manner, and they were also successfully synthesized on a nanofiber surface fabricated by electrospinning of the fusion protein. Thus, this facile surface-independent silver nanoparticle-generating antibacterial coating has great potential to be used for the prevention of bacterial infection in diverse biomedical fields.

Mucoadhesive intestinal devices for oral delivery of salmon calcitonin.

One of the major challenges faced by therapeutic polypeptides remains their invasive route of delivery. Oral administration offers a potential alternative to injections; however, this route cannot be currently used for peptides due to their limited stability in the stomach and poor permeation across the intestine. Here, we report mucoadhesive devices for oral delivery that are inspired by the design of transdermal patches and demonstrate their capabilities in vivo for salmon calcitonin (sCT). The mucoadhesive devices were prepared by compressing a polymeric matrix containing carbopol, pectin and sodium carboxymethylcellulose (1:1:2), and were coated on all sides but one with an impermeable and flexible ethyl cellulose (EC) backing layer. Devices were tested for in vitro dissolution, mucoadhesion to intestinal mucosa, enhancement of drug absorption in vitro (Caco-2 monolayer transport) and in vivo in rats. Devices showed steady drug release with ≈75% cumulative drug released in 5h. Devices also demonstrated strong mucoadhesion to porcine small intestine to withstand forces up to 100 times their own weight. sCT-loaded mucoadhesive devices exhibited delivery of sCT across Caco-2 monolayers and across the intestinal epithelium in vivo in rats. A ≈52-fold (pharmacokinetic) and ≈44-fold (pharmacological) enhancement of oral bioavailability was observed with mucoadhesive devices when compared to direct intestinal injections. Oral delivery of devices in enteric coated capsules resulted in significant bioavailability enhancement.

Diagnostic opportunities based on skin biomarkers.

Systemic as well as localized skin diseases modify the molecular composition of human skin. Changes in skin chemistry have been observed in diseases such as cancer, psoriasis, eczema, diabetes, and atherosclerosis. Skin chemistry, represented by an enormous wealth of disease biomarkers including lipids, structural proteins, inflammatory mediators, nucleic acids and small molecules, therefore, can serve as a "window to body's health". Various methods including tape-stripping, iontophoresis, microneedles and ultrasound, among others, are being developed to access skin biomarkers and understand skin's detailed molecular composition. This information provides opportunities to diagnose various diseases and their response to therapeutic treatments. This review provides an overview of such diagnostic and theranostic opportunities.