Advances in traditional herbal formulation based nano-vaccine for cancer immunotherapy: Unraveling the enigma of complex tumor environment and multidrug resistance.

Cancer is attributed to uncontrolled cell growth and is among the leading causes of death with no known effective treatment while complex tumor microenvironment (TME) and multidrug resistance (MDR) are major challenges for developing an effective therapeutic strategy. Advancement in cancer immunotherapy has been limited by the over-activation of the host immune response that ultimately affects healthy tissues or organs and leads to a feeble response of the patient's immune system against tumor cells. Besides, traditional herbal medicines (THM) have been well-known for their essential role in the treatment of cancer and are considered relatively safe due to their compatibility with the human body. Yet, poor solubility, low bio-availability, and lack of understanding about their pathophysiological mechanism halt their clinical application. Moreover, considering the complex TME and drug resistance, the most precarious and least discussed concerns for developing THM-based nano-vaccination, are identification of specific biomarkers for drug inhibitory protein and targeted delivery of bioactive ingredients of THM on the specific sites in tumor cells. The concept of THM-based nano-vaccination indicates immunomodulation of TME by THM-based bioactive adjuvants, exerting immunomodulatory effects, via targeted inhibition of key proteins involved in the metastasis of cancer. However, this concept is at its nascent stage and very few preclinical studies provided the evidence to support clinical translation. Therefore, we attempted to capsulize previously reported studies highlighting the role of THM-based nano-medicine in reducing the risk of MDR and combating complex tumor environments to provide a reference for future study design by discussing the challenges and opportunities for developing an effective and safe therapeutic strategy against cancer.

Mechanistic Study of Silver Nanoparticle's Synthesis by Dragon's Blood Resin Ethanol Extract and Antiradiation Activity.

Biological synthesis of nanoparticles is best way to avoid exposure of hazardous materials as compared to chemical manufacturing process which is a severe threat not only to biodiversity but also to environment. In present study, we reported a novel method of finding antiradiation compounds by bioreducing mechanism of silver nanoparticles formation using 50% ethanol extract of Dragons blood, a famous Chinese herbal plant. Color change during silver nanoparticles synthesis was observed and it was confirmed by ultra violet (UV) visible spectroscopy at wave length at 430 nm after 30 min of reaction at 60 °C. Well dispersed round shaped silver nanoparticles with approximate size (4 nm to 50 nm) were measured by TEM and particle size analyser. Capping of biomolecules on Ag nanoparticles was characterized by FTIR spectra. HPLC analysis was carried out to find active compounds in the extract. Furthermore, antiradiation activity of this extract was tested by MTT assay in vitro after incubating the SH-SY5Y cells for 24 h at 37 °C. The results indicate that presence of active compounds in plant extract not only involves in bioreduction process but also shows response against radiation. The dual role of plant extract as green synthesis of nanoparticles and exhibit activity against radiation which gives a new way of fishing out active compounds from complex herbal plants.

LX loaded nanoliposomes synthesis, characterization and cellular uptake studies in H2O2 stressed SH-SY5Y cells.

In this study, we report the cellular uptake studies of novel LX loaded nanoliposomes in H2O2 stress SH-SY5Y Cells synthesized by thin film evaporation method. We have isolated the smallest size nanoliposomes after 90 min ultrasonification, keeping Polydisperse Index as 0.259. The morphology, size, zepta potential and drug efficiency of prepared nanoliposomes are characterized by using Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM), particle size analyzer and High Pressure Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). The particle size analyzer have confirmed the particle size of nanoluposomes measured in range of 100-250 nm, whereas the shape of these nanoliposomes is almost spherical. The zeta potential of small size nanoliposomes was measured as -49.62 and encapsulation efficiency of the LX loaded nanoliposomes was 87%. The oxidative stress response in SH-SY5Y Cells for various doses of drug with and without nanoliposomes has affectively improved the cell-stress response up to 20% after 24 h of incubation at 37 degrees C. The results indicated that LX loaded nanoliposomes were taken by the cells effectively which ultimately improved the cell-stress response. Thus, this study confirmed that synthesized nanoliposomes are not only effective drug carriers but could be potentially used for delivery of genes, antibodies, and proteins in future.

Differential expression of specific cellular defense proteins in rat hypothalamus under simulated microgravity induced conditions: comparative proteomics.

Microgravity severely halts the structural and functional cerebral capacity of astronauts especially affecting their brains due to the stress produced by cephalic fluid shift. We employed a rat tail suspension model to substantiate simulated microgravity (SM) in brain. In this study, comparative mass spectrometry was applied in order to demonstrate the differential expression of 17 specific cellular defense proteins. Gamma-enolase, peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase A, glial fibrillary acidic protein, heat shock protein HSP 90-alpha, 10 kDa heat shock protein, mitochondrial, heat shock cognate 71 kDa protein, superoxide dismutase 1 and dihydropyrimidinase-related protein 2 were found to be upregulated by HPLC/ESI-TOF. Furthermore, five differentially expressed proteins including 60 kDa heat shock protein, mitochondrial, heat shock protein HSP 90-beta, peroxiredoxin-2, stress-induced-phosphoprotein, and UCHL-1 were found to be upregulated by HPLC/ESI-Q-TOF MS. In addition, downregulated proteins include cytochrome C, superoxide dismutase 2, somatic, and excitatory amino acid transporter 1 and protein DJ-1. Validity of MS results was successfully performed by Western blot analysis of DJ-1 protein. This study will not only help to understand the neurochemical responses produced under microgravity but also will give future direction to cure the proteomic losses and their after effects in astronauts.