Anti-inflammatory and collagenation effects of zinc oxide-based nanocomposites biosynthesised with Mentha longifolia leaf extract.

OBJECTIVE: The integration of nanomaterials and herbal medicine has led to the design of new nanocomposites, which are therapeutically more effective. The purpose of this study was to prepare different zinc oxide (ZnO)-based nanoparticles (NPs) via Mentha longifolia extract based on gauze linen fibre and study its effects on wound healing. METHODS: The textural properties, morphology, thermal stability, purity, spectroscopic and phase structure of nanoparticles were investigated. Subsequently, male Wistar rats were subjected to wounds in six different treatment groups: Group I: control; group II: ZnO/W prepared in water (W); group III: ZnO/M synthesised with Mentha longifolia (M) extract; group IV: ZnO/copper(II) oxide (CuO)/M nanocomposite synthesised with M extract; group IV: treated with ZnO/silver (Ag)/M nanocomposite; group V: treated with ZnO/Ag/M nanocomposite; and finally, group VI: treated with ZnO/CuO/Ag/M nanocomposite. In all groups, the wounds were treated for 21 days with prepared samples. Every seven days, after measuring the decreasing rate of the wound size, tissue samples from each group were taken for histopathological analysis. The prepared tissue sections were assessed by haematoxylin and eosin staining for the formation of the epidermis, dermis and muscular tissue, and Masson's Trichrome staining for the formation of collagen fibres. RESULTS: The results showed that the ZnO/CuO/Ag/M nanocomposite was a significantly more effective wound healing material in comparison with other samples (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: In this study, the integration of ZnO/CuO/Ag nanocomposites with secondary metabolites of Mentha longifolia gave rise to a superior combination, which could support different phases of wound healing via the regulation of cytokines and growth factors in the course of healing.

Biologically-synthesised ZnO/CuO/Ag nanocomposite using propolis extract and coated on the gauze for wound healing applications.

Wound healing has long been recognised as a major clinical challenge for which stablishing more effective wound therapies is necessary. The generation of metallic nanocomposites using biological compounds is emerging as a new promising strategy for this purpose. In this study, four metallic nanoparticles (NPs) with propolis extract (Ext) and one without propolis including ZnO/Ext, ZnO/Ag/Ext, ZnO/CuO/Ext, ZnO/Ag/CuO/Ext and ZnO/W were prepared by microwave method and assessed for their wound healing activity on excision experimental model of wounds in rats. The developed nanocomposites have been characterised by physico-chemical methods such as X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, diffuse reflectance UV-vis spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller analyses. The wounded animals treated with the NPs/Ext in five groups for 18 days. Every 6 days, for measuring wound closure rate, three samples of each group were examined for histopathological analysis. The prepared tissue sections were investigated by haematoxylin and Eosin stainings for the formation of epidermis, dermis and muscular and Masson's trichrome staining for the formation of collagen fibres. These findings toughly support the probability of using this new ZnO/Ag/Ext materials dressing for a wound care performance with significant effect compared to other NPs.

Lycopene-loaded nanoliposomes improve the performance of a modified Beltsville extender broiler breeder roosters.

Antioxidants may ameliorate the effects of the freeze-thawing stress on cryopreserved spermatozoa. Lycopene is an effective antioxidant yet to be tested for rooster sperm cryopreservation and nanoliposomes, a technology recently applied to sperm cryopreservation, could improve conservation and antioxidant delivery to spermatozoa. Therefore, we evaluated the effect of 0.1, 0.2, and 0.3 mM lycopene and lycopene-loaded nanoliposomes (LnL) on the cryopreservation of rooster sperm in Beltsville extender. Post-thawing evaluation included sperm motility, membrane integrity, abnormal morphology, mitochondria activity, apoptotic status, malondialdehyde (MDA) and antioxidant activities: Glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and total antioxidant capacity (TAC). Total and progressive motility, membrane integrity and mitochondria activity were higher with 0.2 mM lycopene and LnL (P < 0.05), compared to 0.1 and 0.3 mM (lycopene and LnL) and the control group. The 0.2 mM lycopene and LnL showed a lower percentage of apoptotic sperm and increased GPx activity and TAC when compared with the other treatments, and reduced MDA levels when compared to 0.3 mM (lycopene and LnL) and control. Supplementation did not significantly affect activities of SOD or the proportion of abnormal spermatozoa. A fertility trial showed that 0.2 mM lycopene increased the proportion of fertile and hatched eggs in comparison to the control, especially when using nanoliposomes. Therefore, the supplementation of the Beltsville extender with 0.2 mM lycopene could improve the quality of rooster spermatozoa after freeze-thawing, and the combination with nanoliposomes seems promising in order to improve the performance of existing approaches.

Effect of Achillea millefolium-loaded nanophytosome in the post-thawing sperm quality and oxidative status of rooster semen.

The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of antioxidants including Achillea millefolium extract (AmE) (n0t1.5: 1.5, n0t3: 3 and n0t4.5: 4.5 mg/L) and AmE loaded in nano phytosome (n1t1.5: 1.5, n1t3: 3 and n1t4.5: 4.5 mg/L) in the freezing of Ross 308 rooster semen. Sperm motility (CASA), membrane integrity (HOS test), viability, total abnormality and enzymatic parameters (SOD, CAT and GPx) were assessed after thawing. AmE-loaded nano phytosome at a concentration of 3 mg/l resulted in significantly (P < 0.05) higher total motility (MOT) (73.78 ±â€¯2.92) and at concentrations of 1.5 mg/L and 3 mg/L in progressive motility (PROG) (14.12 ±â€¯0.38, 16.78 ±â€¯0.38) in comparison with the control group (MOT: 58.48 ±â€¯2.92; PROG: 9.08 ±â€¯0.38). Sperm viability (Vi) was higher (P < 0.05) in n1t3 (74.62 ±â€¯1.55) and membrane integrity (Mi) in n0t3 and n1t3 groups (65.91 ±â€¯1.91, 63.73 ±â€¯1.91, respectively) compared to the control groups (Vi: 66.85 ±â€¯1.55; Mi: 53.18 ±â€¯1.91). Moreover, the lowest percentage of MDA was measured in n1t3 group (1.31 ±â€¯0.31). There was no significant difference for SOD and CAT values with the use of various extenders. In conclusion, we suggest that AmE loaded in nano phytosome at 3 mg/l dose can be added to basic extender for improving rooster sperm motility, viability and oxidative stress values during the freezing procedure.