Xylan microparticles for controlled release of mesalamine: Production and physicochemical characterization

Evaluation of the stability of the β-carotene and xylan complexes under different environmental and long-term conditions

The present study aimed to investigate the stability of a novel complex formed from β-carotene and xylan. The stability of the CX complex was analyzed in various environments, including long-term exposure to darkness at 4 °C and 25 °C across different pH ranges, colour changes, UV irradiation and temperature. The antioxidant activity of the complex was evaluated using DPPH and FRAP methods. The results showed that the complex maintained over 80 % relative stability under long-term conditions. After one month of storage, its relative stability remained above 70 %. The temperature stability demonstrated excellent results up to 60 °C. The colour index of the complex at 4 °C showed a colour change of 77 %, while at 25 °C, it decreased to 44 %. The antioxidant activity of the complex after 120 days of storage was over 60 %. Therefore, the complex has potential as a β-carotene delivery system in water-based functional foods.

Structural characterization of pure xylan from corncob and its effect on xylooligosaccharides yield after enzymatic hydrolysis

The structure of xylan plays a significant role in the degradation rate by xylanase to product xylooligosaccharides (XOS). In this study, xylan was extracted and purified from corncob, yielding two xylan fractions (WUAX-2, WUAX-3) with purities exceeding 90 %. The structures of WUAX-2 and WUAX-3 were characterized and hydrolysis efficiency was studied in relation to their structures. FT-IR results indicated that although xylan fractions had the same types of functional groups, WUAX-3 exhibited a higher level of -OH, CH, and CO groups compared to WUAX-2. NMR, the vibration signal of WUAX-2 and WUAX-3 was β-(1 → 4) -linked D-lignin unit β-D-xylopyran. X-ray diffraction results confirmed that WUAX-2 was a stable single-crystal structure. Meanwhile, the number of side-chains of WUAX-2 in the liquid was smaller than that of WUAX-3. WUAX-2 and WUAX-3 were hydrolyzed by a high-temperature-resistant xylanase (XynA) and yielded primarily xylohexaose (X6), xylotriose (X3), and xylobiose (X2). The XOS yield of WUAX-2 was 4.25 times higher than that of WUAX-3. These results indicate that the fewer xylan side-chains and substituent groups of xylan, the higher the enzymatic hydrolysis efficiency. The findings provide a deep understanding of the effect of xylan structure on the enzymatic behavior.

5-Fluorouracil Loaded Prebiotic-Probiotic Liposomes Modulating Gut Microbiota for Improving Colorectal Cancer Chemotherapy

The gut microbiota exerts inhibitory effects on the occurrence and progression of colorectal cancer (CRC) through various mechanisms. Compared to traditional microbiota regulation methods, prebiotics and probiotics demonstrate significant advantages in terms of safety and patient adaptability. Their synergy not only improves the intestinal environment but also enhances the host's anti-tumor immune response. 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) is a first-line chemotherapy drug that has a short half-life and low bioavailability. However, if administered in an untargeted manner, 5-FU also causes adverse reactions. Liposomes can improve the pharmacokinetic profile of drugs and provide targeted delivery to the tumor site, thereby reducing side effects. In this work, a 5-FU-loaded liposome is modified with the prebiotic xylan derivative Sxy and the probiotic Akkermansia muciniphila active phospholipid homolog 1,2-dipalmitoylphosphatidy-lethanolamine (DPPE) to construct FLSK. The latter effectively prolongs the intestinal transport and release of 5-FU, maintaining high drug concentrations at the tumor site. FLSK is found to inhibit tumor growth and significantly extends the survival period of mice. In addition, FLSK promotes anti-tumor immunity and regulation of the gut microbiota. Combining the merits of prebiotics and probiotics, FLSK provides a potential strategy for integrating chemotherapy with gut microbiota regulation therapy for the treatment of CRC.

Recent Advances in Biomedical Applications of Mannans and Xylans

Plant-based phytochemicals, including flavonoids, alkaloids, tannins, saponins, and other metabolites, have attracted considerable attention due to their central role in synthesizing nanomaterials with various biomedical applications. Hemicelluloses are the second most abundant among naturally occurring heteropolymers, accounting for one-third of all plant constituents. In particular, xylans, mannans, and arabinoxylans are structured polysaccharides derived from hemicellulose. Mannans and xylans are characterized by their linear configuration of β-1,4-linked mannose and xylose units, respectively. At the same time, arabinoxylan is a copolymer of arabinose and xylose found predominantly in secondary cell walls of seeds, dicotyledons, grasses, and cereal tissues. Their widespread use in tissue engineering, drug delivery, and gene delivery is based on their properties, such as cell adhesiveness, cost-effectiveness, high biocompatibility, biodegradability, and low immunogenicity. Moreover, it can be easily functionalized, which expands their potential applications and provides them with structural diversity. This review comprehensively addresses recent advances in the field of biomedical applications. It explores the potential prospects for exploiting the capabilities of mannans and xylans in drug delivery, gene delivery, and tissue engineering.

Encapsulation of Polyphenolic Compounds Based on Hemicelluloses to Enhance Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases and Colorectal Cancer

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) and colorectal cancer (CRC) are difficult to cure, and available treatment is associated with troubling side effects. In addition, current therapies have limited efficacy and are characterized by high costs, and a large segment of the IBD and CRC patients are refractive to the treatment. Moreover, presently used anti-IBD therapies in the clinics are primarily aimed on the symptomatic control. That is why new agents with therapeutic potential against IBD and CRC are required. Currently, polyphenols have received great attention in the pharmaceutical industry and in medicine due to their health-promoting properties. They may exert anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative, and anti-cancer activity, via inhibiting production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and enzymes or factors associated with carcinogenesis (e.g., matrix metalloproteinases, vascular endothelial growth factor), suggesting they may have therapeutic potential against IBD and CRC. However, their use is limited under both processing conditions or gastrointestinal interactions, reducing their stability and hence their bioaccessibility and bioavailability. Therefore, there is a need for more effective carriers that could be used for encapsulation of polyphenolic compounds. In recent years, natural polysaccharides have been proposed for creating carriers used in the synthesis of polyphenol encapsulates. Among these, hemicelluloses are particularly noteworthy, being characterized by good biocompatibility, biodegradation, low immunogenicity, and pro-health activity. They may also demonstrate synergy with the polyphenol payload. This review discusses the utility and potential of hemicellulose-based encapsulations of polyphenols as support for treatment of IBD and CRC.

Xylans extracted from branches and leaves of Protium puncticulatum: antioxidant, cytotoxic, immunomodulatory, anticoagulant, antitumor, prebiotic activities and their structural characterization

This work aimed to isolate and characterize xylans from branches and leaves of Protium puncticulatum, in addition to evaluating its in vitro biological and prebiotic potential. The results showed that the chemical structure of the obtained polysaccharides is similar being classified as homoxylans. The xylans presented an amorphous structure, in addition to being thermally stable and presenting a molecular weight close to 36 g/mol. With regard to biological activities, it was observed that xylans were able to promote low antioxidant activity (< 50%) in the different assays evaluated. The xylans also showed no toxicity against normal cells, in addition to being able to stimulate cells of the immune system and showing promise as anticoagulant agents. In addition to presenting promising antitumor activity in vitro. In assays of emulsifying activity, xylans were able to emulsify lipids in percentages below 50%. Regarding in vitro prebiotic activity, xylans were able to stimulate and promote the growth of different probiotics. Therefore, this study, in addition to being a pioneer, contributes to the application of these polysaccharides in the biomedical and food areas.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13205-023-03506-1.

Preparation, physicochemical and pharmacological study of 10-hydroxycamptothecin solid dispersion with complexation agent - xylan-nonanoic acid amphiphilic conjugates

An amphiphilic conjugate of carboxymethyl xylan-nonanoic acid (CX-NA) was synthesized with molecular weight of 38.35 kDa, HLB value of 13.59, and critical micelle concentration of 23.17 μg/ml. CX-NA could efficiently encapsulate the model drug of 10-hydroxycamptothecin (HCPT). The drug loaded amphiphilic conjugate could self-assembled to micelles with an average diameter of 110 nm, zeta potential of -42.88 mV, and drug encapsulation efficiency of 79.8%. In vitro experiments confirmed that the drug-loaded micelles exhibited excellent stability and permeability in the intestinal environment. Transport pathway demonstrated that HCPT was uptake by cells through clathrin-mediated endocytosis. Intestinal in situ absorption study further confirmed CX-NA vehicle could enhance HPCT to transport across intestinal epithelial cells in colonic tissues. Furthermore, the formulation showed excellent anti-tumor activity in vitro and improved bioavailability of 3.4 times in vivo as comparing with free HCPT. These findings imply that this amphiphilic conjugate is a potential and promising vehicle for delivery anticancer drug.

Development and In Vivo Evaluation of Pectin Based Enteric Coated Microparticles Loaded with Mesalamine and Saccharomyces boulardii for Management of Ulcerative Colitis

Mesalamine is the first-line choice of drug for ulcerative colitis management. However, due to the nontargeted delivery of mesalamine, it shows side effects. The possible impact of mesalamine can be improved by coated microparticles in combination with S. boulardii for targeted delivery to the colon with the prevention of unwanted side effects. In this work, pectin-based mesalamine and S. boulardii loaded microparticles were prepared by dehydration technique and coated by an oil-in-oil solvent evaporation method and characterized by Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction, and zeta analysis. 2, 4, 6-Trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid was used for the induction of colitis. The anti-inflammatory effects of coated microparticles on Caco-2 cells were assessed by the determination of interleukin (IL)-8 concentration. In addition, the impact of coated microparticles on the concentration of colonic enzymes, including myeloperoxidase (MPO), lipid peroxides, and glutathione (GSH), were also evaluated. Moreover, hematological parameters, including white blood cell (WBC), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and C-reactive protein (CRP), were assessed. SEM data revealed that all the prepared coated microparticles had an almost spherical shape. The X-ray powder diffraction analysis of uncoated and coated microparticles showed maximum stability without any interaction. The particle size of uncoated and coated microparticles was 9.14 and 15.61 μm, respectively. The zeta potential of uncoated and coated microparticles was observed to be -26.78 and -29.36 mV, respectively. The prepared coated microparticles decreased the levels of lipid peroxides, MPO, and GSH significantly in colitis. In the Caco-2 cell culture model, the concentration of IL-8 is decreased significantly. The hematological observations confirmed that the prepared formulation showed a promising decrease in the levels of WBC, CRP, and ESR in diseased animals. Animal experiments revealed that cellulose acetate phthalate coated microparticles of mesalamine and S. boulardii significantly improved the colitis disease conditions of Wistar rats. Hence, cellulose acetate phthalate-coated microparticles of mesalamine and S. boulardii could be recommended as adjuvant therapy to achieve a synergistic effect in the management of UC. Lay summary Mesalamine is the drug of choice for the management of ulcerative colitis (UC), which inhibits mediators responsible for inflammation. We investigated the in vivo effects of cellulose acetate phthalate-coated microparticles of mesalamine with Saccharomyces boulardii (probiotic) for their efficacy against UC. Our findings evidenced that the combination of mesalamine with S. boulardii showed a synergistic effect in the 2,4,6- trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid-induced colitis model by reducing the inflammation and maintains the macroscopic features. From the observed results, it can be concluded that S. boulardii can be used to enhance the individual drug's effect in the therapeutic management of UC.

Characteristics, Properties and Analytical/Bioanalytical Methods of 5-Aminosalicylic Acid: A Review

Five-aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA) is an anti-inflammatory drug indicated in the treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. Among the analytical methods of quantification of 5-ASA described in the literature, the High Efficiency Liquid Chromatography stands out, a sensitive technique but with a high cost. In recent years, alternative methods have been developed, presenting efficiency and reduced cost, such as UV/visible spectrophotometric, spectrofluorescent, and electrochemical methods, techniques recommended for the application in quality control and quantification of 5-ASA in pharmaceutical forms and biological fluids. This article aims to review the physicochemical characteristics, pharmacokinetics, mechanisms of action, controlled release systems, and the different analytical and bioanalytical methods for the quantification of 5-ASA.