Antioxidant Efficacy of Rosemary Extract in Improving the Oxidative Stability of Rapeseed Oil during Storage.

Rapeseed oil is an important source of edible oil in the human diet and is also highly susceptible to oxidative deterioration. It has been demonstrated that rosemary extract (RE) can increase the oxidative stability of oils. In this work, the antioxidant capacity of rapeseed oil after the addition of RE during storage and the optimum addition of RE in rapeseed oil were investigated. Oxidative stability evaluation results demonstrate that the shelf life of rapeseed oil with the incorporation of 100 mg/kg of RE was equivalent to that with the addition of 50 mg/kg of tert-butyl hydroxyquinone (TBHQ). Storage test analysis results show that RE remarkably delayed the oxidation of rapeseed oil when the storage container was unsealed. The optimum amount of RE as an addition was 50-200 mg/kg under room temperature storage, while it was 150 mg/kg under Schaal oven storage. The antioxidant capacity of rapeseed oil with 50 mg/kg of RE added was remarkably higher than that with 50 mg/kg of TBHQ added after 20 d of storage, according to the Schaal oven test. Additionally, the addition of RE delayed the degradation of endogenous α-tocopherol in rapeseed oil. This study comprehensively evaluated the antioxidant properties of rapeseed oil when RE was added and it provides a new strategy for establishing healthy, nutritious, and safe oil preservation measures.

Effect of Extraction Methods on the Physicochemical Properties, Chemical Composition, and Antioxidant Activities of Samara Oil.

Samara oil (Elaeagnus mollis Diels kernel oil) exhibits diverse healthy functions; however, the effect of extraction on its quality is still unclear. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of extraction methods (solvent extraction: ethyl acetate, acetone, n-hexane, and petroleum ether; mechanical extraction: hot-pressing and cold-pressing) on the color, acid value, peroxide value, fatty acid composition, bioactive compounds, antioxidant activities, and oxidative stability index of samara oil obtained from Elaeagnus mollis Diels kernels. The results indicated that extraction methods affected the physicochemical properties, chemical composition, and antioxidant activities of samara oil except for fatty acid composition and γ-tocopherol. The highest values of bioactive compounds including polyphenols (140.27 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/kg) and carotenoids (42.95 mg/kg) were found in samara oil extracted with acetone. The values of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS) assays, as well as oxidative stability index (OSI), were the highest in this oil. Correlation analysis results demonstrated that DPPH, ABTS, and OSI of samara oil were positively correlated with polyphenols and carotenoids. After evaluation, acetone could be used to extract samara oil. The study provides new information on the samara oil process.

Hepatocellular Carcinoma Targeting and Pharmacodynamics of Paclitaxel Nanoliposomes Modified by Glycyrrhetinic Acid and Ferric Tetroxide.

AIMS: Research on developing targeted delivery of anticancer drugs for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is ongoing. This study aimed to synthesize nanoliposomes modified by glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) and ferric tetroxide (Fe3O4) for targeted delivery of paclitaxel for selective and specific therapy of HCC. OBJECTIVE: During this project, GA and Fe3O4 were used to jointly modify the active targeting and magnetic orientation of paclitaxel nanoliposomes for enhanced targeting of HCC to improve the efficacy, while reducing the systemic toxicity and side effects of the drug. METHODS: In this study, liposomes were prepared utilizing a thin film dispersion method, in which the average particle size of GA/Fe3O4-PTX-LP was 148.9 ± 2.3 nm, and the average Zeta potential was -23.2 ± 3 mV. Based on TEM characterization, GA/Fe3O4-PTX-LP is a closed particle with bilayer membranes. In vitro release assessments of the drug indicated that the release of GA/Fe3O4- PTX-LP was sustained. RESULTS: In vitro cell tests have demonstrated that GA/Fe3O 4-PTX-LP can inhibit the proliferation, affect the morphology, migration and invasion, and interfere with the cycle of HCC cells. Uptake tests have confirmed that GA/Fe3O4-PTX-LP can promote the uptake of the drug in HCC cells. CONCLUSION: In vivo targeting experiments have shown that GA/Fe3O4-PTX-LP has a strong ability to target tumors. In vivo antitumor assessments have proven that GA/Fe3O4-PTX-LP can inhibit tumor growth without obvious toxicity. This project provides a promising nano-targeted drug delivery system for the treatment of HCC.

Docetaxel-loaded exosomes for targeting non-small cell lung cancer: preparation and evaluation in vitro and in vivo.

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a highly lethal disease and the majority of NSCLC patients are desperate for therapies that can effectively target their cancer and ultimately improve their overall survival. Docetaxel (DTX) represents the first-line of the antitumor agent that is used to treat NSCLC; however, it has poor solubility in water and unsatisfactory encapsulation efficiency. In our study, exosomes were isolated from A549 cancer cells by ultracentrifugation and then characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA), and Western blot (WB). The particle size changes of EXO and EXO-DTX were measured daily for seven days to test the stability. DTX was selected payload by electroporation (EXO-DTX). For the in vitro evaluation, cell proliferation, cell cycle, cell apoptosis, reactive oxygen species (ROS) assay and cellular uptake were evaluated in the A549 cells. Also, this study evaluated the target and therapeutic effect of DTX as an antitumor agent in vivo. As a result, EXO-DTX with a particle size of 149.5 nm were successfully prepared and the cytotoxicity of the EXO-DTX was much greater than that of DTX monomers. Exosomes significantly increased the cellular uptake in vitro evaluation and showed better targeting to tumor tissue compared to the free DTX in the mice. We also explored the potential of tumor cell-derived exosomes as a drug delivery agent to target the parent cancer. Hence, we conclude that exosomes might be used as a potential antitumor drug delivery system (DDS).