Effect of water content on stratum corneum penetration mechanism of W/O type microemulsions.

The stratum corneum (SC) consists of a lipid layer that forms two types of lamellar structures: short lamellar (S-La) and long lamellar (L-La). It has been reported that S-La contains water phases in the hydrophilic region of the lipids, and that it may play an important role in regulating the water content of the SC. The amount of water in the SC can affect how a drug carrier permeates through the intercellular lipid pathway.

Giant amino acids designed on the polysaccharide scaffold and their protein-like structural interconversion.

Amphoteric β-1,3-glucans possessing both amino groups and carboxylic acid groups on the C6 positions of glucose units were designed and synthesized from naturally produced curdlan. The amphoteric polysaccharides showed the isoelectric point and the pH responsive interconversion between the original triple helix and single-stranded random structures. Since the pH dependences are comparable to the typical properties of proteins, the polysaccharides can be considered as a new class of giant amino acids.

Therapeutic effects of hybrid liposomes on gastric carcinoma involve apoptosis.

Hybrid liposomes (HLs) composed of 90 mol% dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC) and 10 mol% polyoxyethylene(23)dodecyl ether (C(12)(EO)(23)), having a hydrodynamic diameter under 100 nm, were preserved for a period of one month. The inhibitory effects of HLs on the growth of gastric carcinoma (CoRa 622 G6) cells in vitro were investigated. Decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential and activation of caspase-8, caspase-9 and caspase-3 were observed, indicating that apoptotic signals induced by HLs should pass through mitochondria and these caspases.