Calcipotriol Nanosuspension-Loaded Trilayer Dissolving Microneedle Patches for the Treatment of Psoriasis: In Vitro Delivery and In Vivo Antipsoriatic Activity Studies.

Psoriasis, affecting 2-3% of the global population, is a chronic inflammatory skin condition without a definitive cure. Current treatments focus on managing symptoms. Recognizing the need for innovative drug delivery methods to enhance patient adherence, this study explores a new approach using calcipotriol monohydrate (CPM), a primary topical treatment for psoriasis. Despite its effectiveness, CPM's therapeutic potential is often limited by factors like the greasiness of topical applications, poor skin permeability, low skin retention, and lack of controlled delivery. To overcome these challenges, the study introduces CPM in the form of nanosuspensions (NSs), characterized by an average particle size of 211 ± 2 nm. These CPM NSs are then incorporated into a trilayer dissolving microneedle patch (MAP) made from poly(vinylpyrrolidone) and w poly(vinyl alcohol) as needle arrays and prefrom 3D printed polylactic acid backing layer. This MAP features rapidly dissolving tips and exhibits good mechanical properties and insertion capability with delivery efficiency compared to the conventional Daivonex ointment. The effectiveness of this novel MAP was tested on Sprague-Dawley rats with imiquimod-induced psoriasis, demonstrating efficacy comparable to the marketed ointment. This innovative trilayer dissolving MAP represents a promising new local delivery system for calcipotriol, potentially revolutionizing psoriasis treatment by enhancing drug delivery and patient compliance.

Transcriptome analysis reveals long non-coding natural antisense transcripts involved in muscle development in fetal goat (Capra hircus).

Non-coding RNAs have been shown to play vital roles in muscle development. However, the biological roles of long non-coding natural antisense transcripts, antisense lncRNAs (ASlncRNAs), are largely unknown in embryonic muscle development. Here, we identified a total of 466 ASlncRNAs in the longissimus dorsi muscle. And 48 differentially expressed ASlncRNAs were identified based on pairwise comparisons (P < 0.05), sixteen of which were validated by qPCR. Additionally, 466 ASlncRNAs were predicted to target 335 protein coding genes based on complementary base-pairing. Enrichment analysis suggests that ASlncRNAs may be involved in muscle development by negatively regulating the expression of target genes. Furthermore, 170 ASlncRNAs were identified as potential miRNA precursors, suggesting that these ASlncRNAs may be involved in the regulation of muscle development by producing miRNA precursors. Our results provide a catalog of goat muscle-related ASlncRNAs, and will contribute to a fuller understanding of the roles of ASlncRNAs in muscle development.

Effects of dietary L-Citrulline supplementation on growth performance, meat quality, and fecal microbial composition in finishing pigs.

Gut microbiota play an important role in the gut ecology and development of pigs, which is always regulated by nutrients. This study investigated the effect of L-Citrulline on growth performance, carcass characteristics, and its potential regulatory mechanism. The results showed that 1% dietary L-Citrulline supplementation for 52 days significantly increased final weight, liveweight gain, carcass weight, and average backfat and markedly decreased drip loss (p < 0.05) of finishing pigs compared with the control group. Microbial analysis of fecal samples revealed a marked increase in α-diversity and significantly altered composition of gut microbiota in finishing pigs in response to L-Citrulline. In particular, these altered gut microbiota at the phylum and genus level may be mainly involved in the metabolic process of carbohydrate, energy, and amino acid, and exhibited a significant association with final weight, carcass weight, and backfat thickness. Taken together, our data revealed the potential role of L-Citrulline in the modulation of growth performance, carcass characteristics, and the meat quality of finishing pigs, which is most likely associated with gut microbiota.