Enhancement of the Topical Bioavailability and Skin Whitening Effect of Genistein by Using Microemulsions as Drug Delivery Carriers

Flavonoids and Flavonoid-Based Nanopharmaceuticals as Promising Therapeutic Strategies for Colorectal Cancer-An Updated Literature Review

Colorectal cancer (CRC) represents one of the most serious health issues and the third most commonly diagnosed cancer worldwide. However, the treatment options for CRC are associated with adverse reactions, and in some cases, resistance can develop. Flavonoids have emerged as promising alternatives for CRC prevention and therapy due to their multitude of biological properties and ability to target distinct processes involved in CRC pathogenesis. Their innate disadvantageous properties (e.g., low solubility and stability, reduced bioavailability, and lack of tumor specificity) have delayed the potential inclusion of flavonoids in CRC treatment regimens but have hastened the design of nanopharmaceuticals comprising a flavonoid agent entrapped in a nanosized delivery platform that not only counteract these inconveniences but also provide an augmented therapeutic effect and an elevated safety profile by conferring a targeted action. Starting with a brief presentation of the pathological features of CRC and an overview of flavonoid classes, the present study comprehensively reviews the anti-CRC activity of different flavonoids from a mechanistic perspective while also portraying the latest discoveries made in the area of flavonoid-containing nanocarriers that have proved efficient in CRC management. This review concludes by showcasing future perspectives for the advancement of flavonoids and flavonoid-based nanopharmaceuticals in CRC research.

Genistein inhibited endocytosis and fibrogenesis in keloid via CTGF signaling pathways

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to evaluate soy isoflavones' effect and potential use-specifically genistein-in treating human keloid fibroblast cells (KFs) and in a keloid tissue culture model.

METHODS

To investigate the effects of genistein on keloid, a wound-healing assay was performed to detect cell migration. Flow cytometry was used to measure apoptosis. Western blotting and immunofluorescence staining were performed to detect the expression of target proteins. KF tissues were isolated, cultured, and divided into the control, silenced connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) proteins, and shNC (negative control) groups.

RESULTS

Genistein suppressed cell proliferation and migration, triggering the cell cycle at the G2/M phase and increasing the expression of p53 dose-dependent in keloids. Genistein inhibited the expression of COL1A1, FN, and CTGF mRNA and protein. Knockdown CTGF reduced the migrated ability in KFs. Genistein also abated TGF-β1-induced keloid fibrosis through the endocytosis model. Separated and cultured the keloid patient's tissues decreased the cell migration ability by genistein treatment and was time-dose dependent.

CONCLUSIONS

This study indicated that genistein-induced p53 undergoes cell cycle arrest via the CTGF pathway-inhibited keloid cultured cells, and genistein suppressed the primary keloid cell migration, suggesting that our research provides a new strategy for developing drugs for treating keloids.

Molecular Pathways of Genistein Activity in Breast Cancer Cells

The most common malignancy in women is breast cancer. During the development of cancer, oncogenic transcription factors facilitate the overproduction of inflammatory cytokines and cell adhesion molecules. Antiapoptotic proteins are markedly upregulated in cancer cells, which promotes tumor development, metastasis, and cell survival. Promising findings have been found in studies on the cell cycle-mediated apoptosis pathway for medication development and treatment. Dietary phytoconstituents have been studied in great detail for their potential to prevent cancer by triggering the body's defense mechanisms. The underlying mechanisms of action may be clarified by considering the role of polyphenols in important cancer signaling pathways. Phenolic acids, flavonoids, tannins, coumarins, lignans, lignins, naphthoquinones, anthraquinones, xanthones, and stilbenes are examples of natural chemicals that are being studied for potential anticancer drugs. These substances are also vital for signaling pathways. This review focuses on innovations in the study of polyphenol genistein's effects on breast cancer cells and presents integrated chemical biology methods to harness mechanisms of action for important therapeutic advances.

Small molecule conjugates with selective estrogen receptor β agonism promote anti-aging benefits in metabolism and skin recovery

Estrogen is imperative to mammalian reproductivity, metabolism, and aging. However, the hormone activating estrogen receptor (ERs) α can cause major safety concerns due to the enrichment of ERα in female tissues and certain malignancies. In contrast, ERβ is more broadly expressed in metabolic tissues and the skin. Thus, it is desirable to generate selective ERβ agonist conjugates for maximizing the therapeutic effects of ERs while minimizing the risks of ERα activation. Here, we report the design and production of small molecule conjugates containing selective non-steroid ERβ agonists Gtx878 or genistein. Treatment of aged mice with our synthesized conjugates improved aging-associated declines in insulin sensitivity, visceral adipose integrity, skeletal muscle function, and skin health, with validation in vitro. We further uncovered the benefits of ERβ conjugates in the skin using two inducible skin injury mouse models, showing increased skin basal cell proliferation, epidermal thickness, and wound healing. Therefore, our ERβ-selective agonist conjugates offer novel therapeutic potential to improve aging-associated conditions and aid in rejuvenating skin health.

Development of phospholipon®90H complex nanocarrier with enhanced oral bioavailability and anti-inflammatory potential of genistein

Genistein (GEN), an isoflavonoid, offers multifunctional biological activities. However, its poor oral bioavailability, aqueous solubility, extensive metabolism, and short half-life restricted its clinical use. Therefore, the Phospholipon®90H complex of genistein (GPLC) was prepared to enhance its biopharmaceutical properties and anti-inflammatory activity. GPLC was characterized by employing particle size and zeta potential, Fourier transforms infrared spectrophotometry, differential scanning calorimetry, powder x-ray diffractometry, proton nuclear magnetic resonance, aqueous solubility, in vitro dissolution, ex vivo permeation, oral bioavailability and in vivo anti-inflammatory activity. The complex showed high entrapment of GEN (∼97.88% w/w) within the Phospholipon®90H matrix. Particle size and zeta potential studies confirmed the small particle size with the modest stability of GPLC. The characterization analysis supported the formation of GPLC through the participation of hydrogen bonding between GEN and Phospholipon®90H. GPLC significantly enhanced the aqueous solubility (∼2-fold) compared to GEN. Dissolution studies revealed that GPLC drastically improved the GEN dissolution rate compared to GEN. Likewise, the complex improved the permeation rate across the membrane compared to GEN. GPLC formulation significantly enhanced the oral bioavailability of GEN via improving its Cmax, tmax, AUC, half-life and mean residence time within the blood circulation compared to GEN. The GPLC (∼20 mg/kg, p.o.) remarkably inhibited the increase in paw edema up to 5 h, compared to GEN and diclofenac. Results suggest that the Phospholipon®90 complex is a superior and promising carrier for enhancing the biopharmaceutical parameters of GEN and other bioactive with similar properties.

From Plants to Wound Dressing and Transdermal Delivery of Bioactive Compounds

Transdermal delivery devices and wound dressing materials are constantly improved and upgraded with the aim of enhancing their beneficial effects, biocompatibility, biodegradability, and cost effectiveness. Therefore, researchers in the field have shown an increasing interest in using natural compounds as constituents for such systems. Plants, as an important source of so-called "natural products" with an enormous variety and structural diversity that still exceeds the capacity of present-day sciences to define or even discover them, have been part of medicine since ancient times. However, their benefits are just at the beginning of being fully exploited in modern dermal and transdermal delivery systems. Thus, plant-based primary compounds, with or without biological activity, contained in gums and mucilages, traditionally used as gelling and texturing agents in the food industry, are now being explored as valuable and cost-effective natural components in the biomedical field. Their biodegradability, biocompatibility, and non-toxicity compensate for local availability and compositional variations. Also, secondary metabolites, classified based on their chemical structure, are being intensively investigated for their wide pharmacological and toxicological effects. Their impact on medicine is highlighted in detail through the most recent reported studies. Innovative isolation and purification techniques, new drug delivery devices and systems, and advanced evaluation procedures are presented.

New Insights in Topical Drug Delivery for Skin Disorders: From a Nanotechnological Perspective

Skin, the largest organ in humans, is an efficient route for the delivery of drugs as it circumvents several disadvantages of the oral and parenteral routes. These advantages of skin have fascinated researchers in recent decades. Drug delivery via a topical route includes moving the drug from a topical product to a locally targeted region with dermal circulation throughout the body and deeper tissues. Still, due to the skin's barrier function, delivery through the skin can be difficult. Drug delivery to the skin using conventional formulations with micronized active components, for instance, lotions, gels, ointments, and creams, results in poor penetration. The use of nanoparticulate carriers is one of the promising strategies, as it provides efficient delivery of drugs through the skin and overcomes the disadvantage of traditional formulations. Nanoformulations with smaller particle sizes contribute to improved permeability of therapeutic agents, targeting, stability, and retention, making nanoformulations ideal for drug delivery through a topical route. Achieving sustained release and preserving a localized effect utilizing nanocarriers can result in the effective treatment of numerous infections or skin disorders. This article aims to evaluate and discuss the most recent developments of nanocarriers as therapeutic agent vehicles for skin conditions with patent technology and a market overview that will give future directions for research. As topical drug delivery systems have shown great preclinical results for skin problems, for future research directions, we anticipate including in-depth studies of nanocarrier behavior in various customized treatments to take into account the phenotypic variability of the disease.

Improvement in Skin Penetration Capacity of Linalool by Using Microemulsion as a Delivery Carrier: Formulation Optimization and In Vitro Evaluation

Linalool is an aromatic oil with analgesic, anti-inflammatory and anti-UVB-induced skin damage effects. The aim of this study was to develop a linalool-loaded microemulsion formulation for topical application. In order to quickly obtain an optimal drug-loaded formulation, statistical tools of the response surface methodology and a mixed experimental design with four independent variables of oil (X₁), mixed surfactant (X₂), cosurfactant (X₃) and water (X₄) were used to design a series of model formulations in order to analyze the effect of the composition on the characteristics and permeation capacity of linalool-loaded microemulsion formulations and to obtain an appropriate drug-loaded formulation. The results showed that the droplet size, viscosity and penetration capacity of linalool-loaded formulations were significantly affected by formulation component proportions. The skin deposition amount of the drug and flux of such formulations expressively increased about 6.1-fold and 6.5-fold, respectively, when compared to the control group (5% linalool dissolved in ethanol). After 3 months of storage, the physicochemical characteristics and drug level did not show a significant change. The linalool formulation-treated rat skin showed non-significant irritation compared to skin treatments in the distilled-water-treated group. The results showed that specific microemulsion applications might be considered as potential drug delivery carriers for essential oil topical application.

Therapeutic potentials of genistein: New insights and perspectives

Genistein, a polyphenolic isoflavone compound found abundantly in soy or soy-based products, is widely consumed in the Asian population. Genistein has poor bioavailability, to overcome this problem many advanced nano-drug delivery carrier systems are designed to enhance its water solubility and stability. However, further research is required to develop more efficient bioavailability improvement strategies. Genistein is a phytoestrogen which has been associated with reducing the risk of cancer, cardiovascular disorders, and diabetes mellitus. This plant-based bioactive compound possesses numerous biological activities such as anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-obesity, anti-cancer, cardioprotective, and anti-diabetic activities to treat various disease states. Genistein has been used as an active therapeutic agent in many medications. Moreover, several clinical trials are in the ongoing stage to develop more efficient treatment therapies, especially for cancer treatment. This article highlights the protective and therapeutic benefits of genistein in the treatment of different ailments, and more specifically elaborates on the anti-cancer potential of genistein regarding various types of cancers. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Genistein possesses versatile biological activities, including anti-diabetic, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-obesity, and anti-angiogenic. The most studied activity is anti-cancer. Currently, a number of pre-clinical and clinical trials are being carried out on anti-neoplastic and cytotoxic activities of genistein to develop novel therapeutic agents with excellent anti-cancer potential for the treatment of various kinds of cancer. Moreover, many bioavailability enhancement strategies have been developed to improve the bioavailability of genistein. Genistein shows significant hypoglycemic effects alone or in combination with other anti-diabetic agents. Genistein in combination with other chemotherapeutic agents is used for the treatment of prostate, bone, colorectal, glioma, breast, and bladder cancer.