The role of surfactants and biosurfactants in the wound healing process: a review.

Wound healing refers to the complex process of restoring the forms and functions of damaged tissues. Multiple growth factors and released cytokines tightly regulate the wound site. Healing processes can be disrupted by any alteration that would aggravate the damage and lengthen the repair process. Some of the conditions that may impair wound healing include infections and inflammation. Surfactants are amphiphilic compounds widely used in various formulations including detergents, food, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. Biosurfactants, therefore, are surface-active compounds produced by biological agents, particularly yeast or bacteria, and represent a safer and environmentally preferred alternative to chemical surfactants. Numerous studies have targeted surface-active molecules as wound healing agents for their anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and antibacterial potential. This review focuses on surface-active molecules used in wound healing activities and analyses their effectiveness and mechanisms of action.

Potential Use of Microbial Surfactant in Microemulsion Drug Delivery System: A Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: Microemulsions drug delivery systems (MDDS) have been known to increase the bioavailability of hydrophobic drugs. The main challenge of the MDDS is the development of an effective and safe system for drug carriage and delivery. Biosurfactants are preferred surface-active molecules because of their lower toxicity and safe characteristics when compared to synthetic surfactants. Glycolipid and lipopeptide are the most common biosurfactants that were tested for MDDS. The main goal of the present systematic review was to estimate the available evidence on the role of biosurfactant in the development of MDDS. SEARCH STRATEGY: Literature searches involved the main scientific databases and were focused on the period from 2005 until 2017. The Search filter composed of two items: "Biosurfactant" and/or "Microemulsion." INCLUSION CRITERIA: Twenty-four studies evaluating the use of biosurfactant in MDDS were eligible for inclusion. Among these 14 were related to the use of glycolipid biosurfactants in the MDDS formulations, while four reported using lipopeptide biosurfactants and six other related review articles. RESULTS: According to the output study parameters, biosurfactants acted as active stabilizers, hydrophilic or hydrophobic linkers and safety carriers in MDDS, and among them glycolipid biosurfactants had the most application in MDDS formulations. CONCLUSION: Synthetic surfactants could be replaced by biosurfactants as an effective bio-source for MDDS due to their excellent self-assembling and emulsifying activity properties.

Hydrogels For Peptide Hormones Delivery: Therapeutic And Tissue Engineering Applications.

Peptides are the most abundant biological compounds in the cells that act as enzymes, hormones, structural element, and antibodies. Mostly, peptides have problems to move across the cells because of their size and poor cellular penetration. Therefore, a carrier that could transfer peptides into cells is ideal and would be effective for disease treatment. Until now, plenty of polymers, e.g., polysaccharides, polypeptides, and lipids were used in drug delivery. Hydrogels made from polysaccharides showed significant development in targeted delivery of peptide hormones because of their natural characteristics such as networks, pore sizes, sustainability, and response to external stimuli. The main aim of the present review was therefore, to gather the important usages of the hydrogels as a carrier in peptide hormone delivery and their application in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.