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Frusciante L, Geminiani M, Shabab B, Olmastroni T, Roncucci N, Mastroeni P, Salvini L, Lamponi S, Trezza A, Santucci A. Enhancing Industrial Hemp ( Cannabis sativa) Leaf By-Products: Bioactive Compounds, Anti-Inflammatory Properties, and Potential Health Applications. Int J Mol Sci 2025; 26:548. [PMID: 39859264 PMCID: PMC11765263 DOI: 10.3390/ijms26020548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2024] [Revised: 12/21/2024] [Accepted: 01/08/2025] [Indexed: 01/27/2025] Open
Abstract
The sustainable utilization of biomass-derived bioactives addresses the growing demand for natural health products and supports sustainable development goals by reducing reliance on synthetic chemicals in healthcare. Cannabis sativa biomass, in particular, has emerged as a valuable resource within this context. This study focuses on the hydroethanolic extract of C. sativa leaves (CSE), which exhibited significant levels of phenolic compounds contributing to robust antioxidant activity. Evaluation using potassium ferricyanide, ABTS, and DPPH methods revealed potent radical scavenging activity comparable to the Trolox standard. UPLC-MS/MS profiling identified cannabinoids as the predominant secondary metabolites in CSE, with flavonoids also present in substantial quantities. This study investigated the anti-inflammatory potential of CSE on RAW 264.7 macrophages and IL-1β-stimulated C-20/A4 immortalized human chondrocytes, demonstrating protective effects without cytotoxic or mutagenic effects. Mechanistically, CSE reduced inflammation by inhibiting the MAPK and NF-κB signaling pathways. In silico approaches showed the ability of CSE's main metabolites to bind and influence MAPK and NF-κB activity, confirming in vitro evidence. Incorporating C. sativa leaf extract into a hyaluronic acid-based formulation showed biotechnological promise for treating joint inflammation. Future research should aim to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying these effects and explore the potential of CSE-derived compounds in mitigating osteoarthritis progression. This approach highlights the significance of utilizing annually increasing biomass waste for sustainable bioactivity and environmental impact reduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luisa Frusciante
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy; (L.F.); (B.S.); (T.O.); (P.M.); (S.L.); (A.T.); (A.S.)
| | - Michela Geminiani
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy; (L.F.); (B.S.); (T.O.); (P.M.); (S.L.); (A.T.); (A.S.)
- SienabioACTIVE, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Behnaz Shabab
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy; (L.F.); (B.S.); (T.O.); (P.M.); (S.L.); (A.T.); (A.S.)
| | - Tommaso Olmastroni
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy; (L.F.); (B.S.); (T.O.); (P.M.); (S.L.); (A.T.); (A.S.)
| | - Neri Roncucci
- Tenuta di Mensanello, Località Mensanello, 34, 53034 Colle di Val d’Elsa, Italy;
| | - Pierfrancesco Mastroeni
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy; (L.F.); (B.S.); (T.O.); (P.M.); (S.L.); (A.T.); (A.S.)
| | - Laura Salvini
- Fondazione Toscana Life Sciences, Strada del Petriccio e Belriguardo, 53100 Siena, Italy;
| | - Stefania Lamponi
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy; (L.F.); (B.S.); (T.O.); (P.M.); (S.L.); (A.T.); (A.S.)
- SienabioACTIVE, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Alfonso Trezza
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy; (L.F.); (B.S.); (T.O.); (P.M.); (S.L.); (A.T.); (A.S.)
| | - Annalisa Santucci
- Department of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy; (L.F.); (B.S.); (T.O.); (P.M.); (S.L.); (A.T.); (A.S.)
- SienabioACTIVE, University of Siena, Via Aldo Moro, 53100 Siena, Italy
- ARTES 4.0, Viale Rinaldo Piaggio, 34, 56025 Pontedera, Italy
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Takagi Y, Kage M. Hyaluronan Tetrasaccharides Penetrate into the Skin by Passive Diffusion and Contribute to Skin Health. Chem Pharm Bull (Tokyo) 2025; 73:284-290. [PMID: 40175107 DOI: 10.1248/cpb.c23-00909] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2025]
Abstract
Hyaluronan (HA) is a commonly used material in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals because of its various pharmacological activities. However, because of its large molecular weight, HA penetrates the skin very poorly and most of it remains on the skin surface. Thus, topically applied HA could not be expected to function biologically in the skin. However, we have confirmed that HA tetrasaccharides (HA4), which is the smallest unit of HA, penetrate into the skin by passive diffusion and affect epidermal metabolism. Topical treatment of HA4 rescues the epidermal damage caused by long-term UVA irradiation. Furthermore, various biological functions of HA4 to maintain healthy skin was observed in cell culture studies. This review describes the skin permeability of HA4 and how it contributes to healthy skin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yutaka Takagi
- Laboratory of Dermatological Physiology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Josai University
| | - Madoka Kage
- Laboratory of Dermatological Physiology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Josai University
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Walvekar P, Lulinski P, Kumar P, Aminabhavi TM, Choonara YE. A review of hyaluronic acid-based therapeutics for the treatment and management of arthritis. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 264:130645. [PMID: 38460633 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.130645] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2023] [Revised: 02/25/2024] [Accepted: 03/04/2024] [Indexed: 03/11/2024]
Abstract
Hyaluronic acid (HA), a biodegradable, biocompatible and non-immunogenic therapeutic polymer is a key component of the cartilage extracellular matrix (ECM) and has been widely used to manage two major types of arthritis, osteoarthritis (OA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). OA joints are characterized by lower concentrations of depolymerized (low molecular weight) HA, resulting in reduced physiological viscoelasticity, while in RA, the associated immune cells are over-expressed with various cell surface receptors such as CD44. Due to HA's inherent viscoelastic property and its ability to target CD44, there has been a surge of interest in developing HA-based systems to deliver various bioactives (drugs and biologics) and manage arthritis. Considering therapeutic benefits of HA in arthritis management and potential advantages of novel delivery systems, bioactive delivery through HA-based systems is beginning to display improved outcomes over bioactive only treatment. The benefits include enhanced bioactive uptake due to receptor-mediated targeting, prolonged retention of bioactives in the synovium, reduced expressions of proinflammatory mediators, enhanced cartilage regeneration, reduced drug toxicity due to sustained release, and improved and cost-effective treatment. This review provides an underlying rationale to prepare and use HA-based bioactive delivery systems for arthritis applications. With special emphasis given to preclinical/clinical results, this article reviews various bioactive-loaded HA-based particulate carriers (organic and inorganic), gels, scaffolds and polymer-drug conjugates that have been reported to treat and manage OA and RA. Furthermore, the review identifies several key challenges and provides valuable suggestions to address them. Various developments, strategies and suggestions described in this review may guide the formulation scientists to optimize HA-based bioactive delivery systems as an effective approach to manage and treat arthritis effectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pavan Walvekar
- Wits Advanced Drug Delivery Platform Research Unit, Department of Pharmacy and Pharmacology, School of Therapeutic Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 7 York Road, Parktown 2193, South Africa; Department of Pharmaceutics, SET's College of Pharmacy, Dharwad 580 002, Karnataka, India
| | - Piotr Lulinski
- Department of Organic and Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical University of Warsaw, Banacha 1, 02-097 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Pradeep Kumar
- Wits Advanced Drug Delivery Platform Research Unit, Department of Pharmacy and Pharmacology, School of Therapeutic Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 7 York Road, Parktown 2193, South Africa
| | - Tejraj M Aminabhavi
- School of Advanced Sciences, KLE Technological University, Hubballi 580031, Karnataka, India.
| | - Yahya E Choonara
- Wits Advanced Drug Delivery Platform Research Unit, Department of Pharmacy and Pharmacology, School of Therapeutic Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 7 York Road, Parktown 2193, South Africa.
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Chen J, Chen L, She Z, Zeng F, Wu S. A multifunctional nanoaggregate‐based system for detection of rheumatoid arthritis via Optoacoustic/NIR‐II fluorescent imaging and therapy via inhibiting JAK‐STAT/NF‐κB/NLRP3 pathways. AGGREGATE 2024; 5. [DOI: 10.1002/agt2.419] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2024]
Abstract
AbstractRheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a debilitating autoimmune disease that causes chronic pain and serious complications, presenting a significant challenge to treat. Promising approaches for treating RA involve signaling pathways modulation and targeted therapy. To this end, a multifunctional nanosystem, TPC‐U@HAT, has been designed for RA therapy, featuring multitargeting, dual‐stimuli response, and on‐demand drug release capabilities. TPC‐U@HAT is composed of a probe/prodrug TPC, a JAK1 kinase inhibitor upadacitinib, and the drug carrier HAT. TPC is composed of an aggregation‐induced emission (AIE)‐active NIR‐II chromophore TPY and an NF‐κB/NLRP3 inhibitor caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE), connected via boronic ester bond which serves as the reactive‐oxygen‐species‐responsive linker. The carrier, HAT, is created by grafting bone‐targeting alendronate and hydrophobic tocopheryl succinate onto hyaluronic acid chains, which can encapsulate TPC and upadacitinib to form TPC‐U@HAT. Upon intravenous injection into mice, TPC‐U@HAT accumulates at inflamed lesions of RA through both active and passive targeting, and the overexpressed hyaluronidase and H2O2 therein cleave the hyaluronic acid polymer chains and boronate bonds, respectively. This generates an AIE‐active chromophore for detection and therapeutic evaluation of RA via both optoacoustic imaging and NIR‐II fluorescent imaging and concomitantly releases CAPE and upadacitinib to exert efficacious therapy by inhibiting NF‐κB/NLRP3 and JAK‐STAT pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junjie Chen
- Biomedical Division, State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials and Devices, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Luminescence from Molecular Aggregates, College of Materials Science and Engineering South China University of Technology Guangzhou China
| | - Longqi Chen
- Biomedical Division, State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials and Devices, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Luminescence from Molecular Aggregates, College of Materials Science and Engineering South China University of Technology Guangzhou China
| | - Zunpan She
- Biomedical Division, State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials and Devices, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Luminescence from Molecular Aggregates, College of Materials Science and Engineering South China University of Technology Guangzhou China
| | - Fang Zeng
- Biomedical Division, State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials and Devices, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Luminescence from Molecular Aggregates, College of Materials Science and Engineering South China University of Technology Guangzhou China
| | - Shuizhu Wu
- Biomedical Division, State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials and Devices, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Luminescence from Molecular Aggregates, College of Materials Science and Engineering South China University of Technology Guangzhou China
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Scanu A, Luisetto R, Pavan M, Guarise C, Beninatto R, Giraudo C, Galuppini F, Lazzarin V, Guzzardo V, Pennelli G, Galesso D, Masiero S. Effect of intra-articular injection of a hyaluronic acid-alendronate conjugate on post-traumatic osteoarthritis induced by destabilization of the medial meniscus in rats. Sci Rep 2023; 13:20692. [PMID: 38001135 PMCID: PMC10673944 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-46965-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 11/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic degenerative joint disease characterized by pain and cartilage damage. Intra-articular (i.a) viscosupplementation with hyaluronic acid (HA) is frequently used for the management of OA. Preclinical studies have reported that bisphosphonates (BPs) may have a therapeutic potential to slow down or reverse the progression of OA. Among these, alendronate (ALN) has demonstrated chondroprotective effects in both in vitro and vivo experiments. This study evaluated the effects of a novel alendronate-hyaluronic acid (ALN-HA) conjugate on an OA in vivo model induced by medial meniscus destabilization (DMM). DMM surgery was performed on the knees of Sprague Dawley rats that received, after four weeks, one intra-articular (i.a.) injection of: (1) ALN-HA; (2) HA; (3) sodium chloride (NaCl). Sham-operated rats were used as control. Allodynia was assessed by Von Frey test. Joint degeneration was evaluated eight weeks after treatment by micro-computed tomography (micro-CT), histology, and immunohistochemistry. Collagen cross-linked C-telopeptides (CTX-I and CTX-II) serum levels were determined by ELISA. Paw withdrawal threshold increased in ALN-HA group when compared to rats treated with NaCl or HA. Micro-CT did not show differences between ALN-HA, HA and NaCl groups. ALN-HA injection produced significant improvements in articular cartilage degeneration showing an OARSI score lower than those of HA and NaCl, and reduced matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-13, MMP-3, interleukin-6, vascular endothelial growth factor and Caspase-3 expression. CTX-I was reduced after ALN-HA treatment when compared to NaCl. Our results indicate that i.a. use of ALN after conjugation with HA limits OA development and progression in the rat DMM model, and may lead to the development of novel therapeutic strategies in OA management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Scanu
- Rehabilitation Unit, Department of Neuroscience-DNS, University of Padova, 35128, Padua, Italy
| | - Roberto Luisetto
- Department of Surgery, Oncology and Gastroenterology-DISCOG, University of Padova, 35128, Padua, Italy
| | - Mauro Pavan
- R&D-Discovery, Fidia Farmaceutici SpA, Via Ponte della Fabbrica, 3/a, 35031, Abano Terme, Italy.
| | - Cristian Guarise
- R&D-Discovery, Fidia Farmaceutici SpA, Via Ponte della Fabbrica, 3/a, 35031, Abano Terme, Italy
| | - Riccardo Beninatto
- R&D-Discovery, Fidia Farmaceutici SpA, Via Ponte della Fabbrica, 3/a, 35031, Abano Terme, Italy
| | - Chiara Giraudo
- Nuclear Medicine Unit, Department of Medicine-DIMED, Padova University Hospital, 35128, Padua, Italy
| | - Francesca Galuppini
- Surgical Pathology Unit, Department of Medicine-DIMED, University of Padova, 35128, Padua, Italy
| | - Vanni Lazzarin
- Surgical Pathology Unit, Department of Medicine-DIMED, University of Padova, 35128, Padua, Italy
| | - Vincenza Guzzardo
- Surgical Pathology Unit, Department of Medicine-DIMED, University of Padova, 35128, Padua, Italy
| | - Gianmaria Pennelli
- Surgical Pathology Unit, Department of Medicine-DIMED, University of Padova, 35128, Padua, Italy
| | - Devis Galesso
- R&D-Discovery, Fidia Farmaceutici SpA, Via Ponte della Fabbrica, 3/a, 35031, Abano Terme, Italy
| | - Stefano Masiero
- Rehabilitation Unit, Department of Neuroscience-DNS, University of Padova, 35128, Padua, Italy
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Liu W, Ding L, Xu J, Shang Y, Wang Z, Liu H. Synthesis of sinapic acid modified sodium hyaluronate particles and the one-step processing of multiple Pickering emulsion. Colloids Surf A Physicochem Eng Asp 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfa.2022.128785] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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