Programmable NIR Responsive Nanocomposite Enables Noninvasive Intratympanic Delivery of Dexamethasone to Reverse Cisplatin Induced Hearing Loss.

Local intratympanic drug delivery to the inner ear possesses significant otological clinical promise as cisplatin-induced hearing loss (CIHL) therapy, inducing significantly less side effects than systemic drug delivery. However, the multiple detoured barriers, round window membrane (RWM) and poorly controlled drug release hinder successful non-invasive drug delivery through intratympanic administration (IT). Here, a novel near-infrared (NIR) responsive nanocomposite functionalized with saponin, denoted gold nanorod@dexamethasone-mesoporous silica-saponin (AuNR@DEX-MS-saponin, NPs/DEX), is developed to enhance RWM permeation and to control the drug release spatiotemporally.

Reactive Oxygen Species-Regulated Conjugates Based on Poly(jasmine) Lactone for Simultaneous Delivery of Doxorubicin and Docetaxel.

In cancer therapy, it is essential to selectively release cytotoxic agents into the tumor to prevent the adverse effects associated with anticancer drugs. Thus, in this study, a stimuli-sensitive polymer-drug conjugate was synthesized for selective drug release. Doxorubicin (DOX) and docetaxel (DTX) were conjugated onto novel poly(jasmine lactone) based copolymer via a thioketal (TK) linker.

Switching the Chemoselectivity in the Preparation of [F]FNA--CooP, a Free Thiol-Containing Peptide for Targeted Positron Emission Tomography Imaging of Fatty Acid Binding Protein 3.

Fatty acid binding protein 3 (FABP3) is expressed both in tumor cells and in the tumor vasculature, making it a potential target for medical imaging and therapy. In this study, we aimed to radiolabel a CooP peptide with a free amino and thiol group, and evaluate the radiolabeled product [F]FNA--CooP for imaging FABP3 expression in breast cancer brain metastases by positron emission tomography. [F]FNA--CooP was prepared by highly chemoselective -acylation and characterized using different chemical approaches.

Self-Adaptive Synthesis of Non-Covalent Crosslinkers while Folding Single-Chain Polymers.

Peptide folding is a dynamic process driven by non-covalent cross-linking leading to functional nanostructures for essential biochemical activities. However, replicating this process in synthetic systems is challenging due to the difficulty in mimicking nature's real-time regulation of non-covalent crosslinking for single-chain polymer folding. Here, we address this by employing anionic dithiol building blocks to create macrocyclic disulfides as non-covalent crosslinkers that adapted to the folding process.

Sustainability challenges concerning the effects of high-priced drugs on the day-to-day operations of community pharmacies in Finland.

Background: High-priced drugs pose a challenge for health budgets, policies, and patient safety. One of the key roles of community pharmacies is to ensure availability to prescription drugs regardless of their price. This has been identified as challenging in certain situations concerning high-priced drugs.

Utilizing the allyl-terminated copolymer methoxy(poly(ethylene glycol))-block-poly(jasmine lactone) in the development of amorphous solid dispersions: A comparative study of functionalized and non-functionalized polymer.

Molecular interactions are crucial to stabilize amorphous drugs in amorphous solid dispersions (ASDs). Most polymers, however, have only a limited ability to form strong molecular interactions with drugs. Polymers tailored to fit the physicochemical properties of the drug molecule to be incorporated, for instance by allowing the incorporation of specific functional groups, would be highly sought-for in this regard.

Investigating the Effectiveness of Different Porous Nanoparticles as Drug Carriers for Retaining the Photostability of Pinosylvin Derivative.

Pinosylvin monomethyl ether (PsMME) is a natural compound known for its valuable bioactive properties, including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. However, PsMME's susceptibility to photodegradation upon exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation poses a significant limitation to its applications in the pharmaceutical field. This study, for the first time, introduces a strategy to enhance the photostability of PsMME by employing various nanoformulations.

Directing cellular responses in a nanocomposite 3D matrix for tissue regeneration with nanoparticle-mediated drug delivery.

Hydrogels play an important role in tissue engineering due to their native extracellular matrix-like characteristics, but they are insufficient in providing the necessary stimuli to support tissue formation. Efforts to integrate bioactive cues directly into hydrogels are hindered by incompatibility with hydrophobic drugs, issues of burst/uncontrolled release, and rapid degradation of the bioactive molecules. Skeletal muscle tissue repair requires internal stimuli and communication between cells for regeneration, and nanocomposite systems offer to improve the therapeutic effects in tissue regeneration.

Lipid-Polymer Hybrid Nanosystems: A Rational Fusion for Advanced Therapeutic Delivery.

Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) are spherical vesicles composed of ionizable lipids that are neutral at physiological pH. Despite their benefits, unmodified LNP drug delivery systems have substantial drawbacks, including a lack of targeted selectivity, a short blood circulation period, and in vivo instability. lipid-polymer hybrid nanoparticles (LPHNPs) are the next generation of nanoparticles, having the combined benefits of polymeric nanoparticles and liposomes.

Attenuation of celecoxib cardiac toxicity using Poly(δ-decalactone) based nanoemulsion via oral route.

Celecoxib (CLX), a poorly soluble anti-inflammatory drug, requires administration in higher concentrations to produce therapeutic effects, oftentimes resulting in cardiac toxicity. Therefore, in this study, we employed a nanoemulsion technology to improve the solubility of CLX using poly(δ-decalactone) (PDL) polymer as an oil and mPEG-b-PDL as a surfactant. The nanoemulsion (NE) was successfully prepared via the nanoprecipitation method.

Aqueous Processable One-Dimensional Polypyrrole Nanostructured by Lignocellulose Nanofibril: A Conductive Interfacing Biomaterial.

One-dimensional (1D) nanomaterials of conductive polypyrrole (PPy) are competitive biomaterials for constructing bioelectronics to interface with biological systems. Synergistic synthesis using lignocellulose nanofibrils (LCNF) as a structural template in chemical oxidation of pyrrole with Fe(III) ions facilitates surface-confined polymerization of pyrrole on the nanofibril surface within a submicrometer- and micrometer-scale fibril length. It yields a core-shell nanocomposite of PPy@LCNF, wherein the surface of each individual fibril is coated with a thin nanoscale layer of PPy.

Functionalized and Nonfunctionalized Nanosystems for Mitochondrial Drug Delivery with Metallic Nanoparticles.

The application of metallic nanoparticles as a novel therapeutic tool has significant potential to facilitate the treatment and diagnosis of mitochondria-based disorders. Recently, subcellular mitochondria have been trialed to cure pathologies that depend on their dysfunction. Nanoparticles made from metals and their oxides (including gold, iron, silver, platinum, zinc oxide, and titanium dioxide) have unique modi operandi that can competently rectify mitochondrial disorders.

Monitoring silica core@shell nanoparticle-bacterial film interactions using the multi-parametric surface plasmon resonance technique.

In a healthcare setting, biofilms are a major source of infection and difficult to eradicate once formed. Nanoparticles (NPs) can be designed to effectively penetrate biofilms to more efficiently either deliver antibiotic drugs throughout the biofilm matrix or elicit inherent antibiofilm activity. Antibacterial cerium oxide (CeO) NPs were employed as core material and coated with a mesoporous silica shell (MSN) to generate cerium oxide coated mesoporous silica NPs (CeO@MSN).

Personalizing oral delivery of nanoformed piroxicam by semi-solid extrusion 3D printing.

Semi-solid extrusion (SSE) 3D printing enables flexible designs and dose sizes to be printed on demand and is a suitable tool for fabricating personalized dosage forms. Controlled Expansion of Supercritical Solution (CESS®) is a particle size reduction technology, and it produces particles of a pure active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) in a dry state, suspendable in the printing ink. In the current study, as a model API of poorly water-soluble drug, nanoformed piroxicam (nanoPRX) prepared by CESS® was accommodated in hydroxypropyl methylcellulose- or hydroxypropyl cellulose-based ink formulations to warrant the printability in SSE 3D printing.

Minimally invasive injection of biomimetic Nano@Microgel for in situ ovarian cancer treatment through enhanced photodynamic reactions and photothermal combined therapy.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) induces immunogenic cell death (ICD) by producing reactive oxygen species (ROS), making it an ideal method for cancer treatment. However, the extremely lower level of oxygen, short half-life of produced ROS, and limited photosensitizers accumulating in the tumor site via intravenous administration are the main reasons that limit the further application of PDT. To address these issues, we loaded the photosensitizer porphine (THPP) into biomimetic gold nanorod-mesoporous silica core-shell nanoparticles (Au-MSN NPs) to prepare Au@MSN/THPP@CM NPs.

Nano Differential Scanning Fluorimetry as a Rapid Stability Assessment Tool in the Nanoformulation of Proteins.

The development and production of innovative protein-based therapeutics is a complex and challenging avenue. External conditions such as buffers, solvents, pH, salts, polymers, surfactants, and nanoparticles may affect the stability and integrity of proteins during formulation. In this study, poly (ethylene imine) (PEI) functionalized mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) were used as a carrier for the model protein bovine serum albumin (BSA).

Advancement in Solubilization Approaches: A Step towards Bioavailability Enhancement of Poorly Soluble Drugs.

A drug's aqueous solubility is defined as the ability to dissolve in a particular solvent, and it is currently a major hurdle in bringing new drug molecules to the market. According to some estimates, up to 40% of commercialized products and 70-90% of drug candidates in the development stage are poorly soluble, which results in low bioavailability, diminished therapeutic effects, and dosage escalation. Because of this, solubility must be taken into consideration when developing and fabricating pharmaceutical products.

Alternative Copper-Based Single-Atom Nanozyme with Superior Multienzyme Activities and NIR-II Responsiveness to Fight against Deep Tissue Infections.

Nanozymes are considered to represent a new era of antibacterial agents, while their antibacterial efficiency is limited by the increasing tissue depth of infection. To address this issue, here, we report a copper and silk fibroin (Cu-SF) complex strategy to synthesize alternative copper single-atom nanozymes (SAzymes) with atomically dispersed copper sites anchored on ultrathin 2D porous N-doped carbon nanosheets (CuN -CNS) and tunable N coordination numbers in the CuN sites ( = 2 or 4). The CuN -CNS SAzymes inherently possess triple peroxidase (POD)-, catalase (CAT)-, and oxidase (OXD)-like activities, facilitating the conversion of HO and O into reactive oxygen species (ROS) through parallel POD- and OXD-like or cascaded CAT- and OXD-like reactions.

A qualitative study on the views of experts on the social impact of the high-priced orphan drug nusinersen.

Background: Escalating medical costs due to the increasing occurrence of high-priced orphan drugs is a topic discussed in the media and specialist literature. However, there is no study investigating the social impact of such drugs through the views of experts.

Objectives: The aim was to demonstrate the social impact of the orphan drug nusinersen based on the views of experts within the community.