Curcumin and chemokines: mechanism of action and therapeutic potential in inflammatory diseases.

Chemokines belong to the family of cytokines with chemoattractant properties that regulate chemotaxis and leukocyte migration, as well as the induction of angiogenesis and maintenance of hemostasis. Curcumin, the major component of the Curcuma longa rhizome, has various pharmacological actions, including anti-inflammatory, immune-regulatory, anti-oxidative, and lipid-modifying properties. Chemokines and chemokine receptors are influenced/modulated by curcumin. Thus, the current review focuses on the molecular mechanisms associated with curcumin's effects on chemoattractant cytokines, as well as putting into context the many studies that have reported curcumin-mediated regulatory effects on inflammatory conditions in the organs/systems of the body (e.g., the central nervous system, liver, and cardiovascular system). Curcumin's effects on viral and bacterial infections, cancer, and adverse pregnancy outcomes are also reviewed.

Recent advances in improving intranasal allergen-specific immunotherapy; focus on delivery systems and adjuvants.

Allergen-specific Immunotherapy (AIT) is the main therapeutic strategy to control and treat allergic disorders. Intranasal Immunotherapy (INIT) was introduced as a needle-free, noninvasive, and efficient approach among various routes of allergen administration. Since direct exposure of nasal mucosa to allergen extracts could induce local and systemic reactions, recent studies focus on establishing novel formulations using various delivery systems and adjuvants to improve INIT efficacy. This review categorizes and describes natural and synthetic micro/nanoparticles such as chitosan, PLGA, liposome, exosome, and nano-emulation droplets used as delivery systems or immunomodulatory and immune-regulatory agents. Also, multiple microbial agents, including probiotics, mycobacterial and viral components, TLR ligands, and biologic agents, i.e., antibody fragments, recombinant cytokines, vitamin A, and pulsed dendritic cells (DCs), are other platforms that are discussed. In addition, future perspectives and proposed strategies to help INIT were provided.

Antiinflammatory potential of nano-curcumin as an alternative therapeutic agent for the treatment of mild-to-moderate hospitalized COVID-19 patients in a placebo-controlled clinical trial.

The present study conducted a placebo-controlled clinical trial to evaluate the impact of nano-curcumin on the inflammatory cytokines in mild-to-moderate hospitalized COVID-19 patients. A total of 60 COVID-19 patients were randomly divided into nano-curcumin and control groups, and then they received 240 mg/day nano-curcumin for 7 days. The clinical manifestation and laboratory parameters in patients were recorded on days 0 and seven. Also, SYBR Green real-time PCR and ELISA techniques were implicated in assessing the mRNA expression of IFN-γ, IL-1ß, IL-6, MCP-1, and TNF-α and the serum levels of IL-1ß, IL-6, and TNF-α inflammatory mediators, respectively. Although the clinical manifestations and laboratory parameters improved via the nano-curcumin treatment, the mRNA expression of IFN-γ (p = 0.006) and TNF-α (p = 0.04) were significantly reduced. Besides, a considerable difference was observed between the nano-curcumin and control groups in the expression of IFN-γ (p = 0.001), IL-1ß (p = 0.0002), and IL-6 (p = 0.008). In addition, there was a significant difference between the nano-curcumin and control groups in the serum levels of IL-1ß (p = 0.042). The evidence demonstrated that nano-curcumin could be implicated as a complementary medication to act as an antiinflammatory agent and inhibit inflammatory complications.

Current possibilities and future perspectives for improving efficacy of allergen-specific sublingual immunotherapy.

Allergen-specific sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT), a safe and efficient route for treating type I hypersensitivity disorders, requires high doses of allergens. SLIT is generally performed without adjuvants and delivery systems. Therefore, allergen formulation with appropriate presentation platforms results in improved allergen availability, targeting the immune cells, inducing regulatory immune responses, and enhancing immunotherapy's efficacy while decreasing the dose of the allergen. In this review, we discuss the adjuvants and delivery systems that have been applied as allergen-presentation platforms for SLIT. These adjuvants include TLRs ligands, 1α, 25-dihydroxy vitamin D3, galectin-9, probiotic and bacterial components that provoke allergen-specific helper type-1 T lymphocytes (TH1), and regulatory T cells (Tregs). Another approach is encapsulation or adsorption of the allergens into a particulate vector system to facilitate allergen capture by tolerogenic dendritic cells. Also, we proposed strategies to increasing the efficacy of SLIT via new immunopotentiators and carrier systems in the future.