Your browser does not fully support modern features. Please upgrade for a smoother experience.
Subject:
All Disciplines Arts & Humanities Biology & Life Sciences Business & Economics Chemistry & Materials Science Computer Science & Mathematics Engineering Environmental & Earth Sciences Medicine & Pharmacology Physical Sciences Public Health & Healthcare Social Sciences
Sort by:
Most Viewed Latest Alphabetical (A-Z) Alphabetical (Z-A)
Filter:
All Topic Review Biography Peer Reviewed Entry Video Entry
Topic Review
Gender Differences and NPS
Sex and gender deeply affect the subjective effects and the pharmaco-toxicological responses to drugs. Men are more likely than women to use almost all types of illicit drugs and to present to emergency departments for serious or fatal intoxications. However, women are just as likely as men to develop substance use disorders, and may be more susceptible to craving and relapse.
  • 1.4K
  • 26 Oct 2020
Topic Review
The Coming of Age of Biosimilars: Perspective
The first biosimilar, Sandoz’s Omnitrope (human growth hormone), was approved in 2006 by both the FDA and EMA; it was approved by the FDA under the 505(b)(2) generic product legislation and by the EU as a biosimilar. Later, Sandoz received the first licensing of Zarzio/Zarxio (filgrastim) in 2015; this was the first biosimilar product approved under the 351(k) BLA legislation in the US Many firsts were to follow in the US: the first mAb (bevacizumab), the first pegylated cytokine (pegfilgrastim), the first ophthalmic biosimilar (ranibizumab), and the first two interchangeable biosimilars (insulin glargine and adalimumab). The US also approved the first biosimilars without clinical efficacy testing (filgrastim, pegfilgrastim, and erythropoietin alfa).
  • 1.4K
  • 02 Jun 2022
Topic Review
Treatment Options of Helicobacter pylori
Helicobacter pylori is among the most common infections worldwide, and it can lead to burdensome sequela for the patient and the healthcare system, without appropriate treatment. Due to constantly fluctuating resistance rates, regimens must be constantly assessed to ensure effectiveness. 
  • 1.4K
  • 21 Dec 2022
Topic Review
The (Poly)Pharmacology of Cannabidiol
Cannabidiol (CBD), the major nonpsychoactive Cannabis constituent, has been proposed for the treatment of a wide panel of neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders, including anxiety, schizophrenia, epilepsy and drug addiction due to the ability of its versatile scaffold to interact with diverse molecular targets that are not restricted to the endocannabinoid system. 
  • 1.4K
  • 25 May 2021
Topic Review
Factors Affecting Vitamin C Pharmacokinetics
The pharmacokinetics of vitamin C (vitC) is highly complex. Regulated primarily by a family of saturable sodium dependent vitC transporters (SVCTs), both the absorption and elimination phases display high dose-dependency. Also, tissue specific expression of SVCT subtypes result in a diverse distribution pattern with organ concentrations of vitC at homeostasis ranging from about 0.2 mM up to 10 mM. Unfortunately, the complex pharmacokinetics of vitC has often been overlooked in the design of human intervention studies, giving rise to misinterpretations and erroneous conclusions.
  • 1.4K
  • 23 Sep 2022
Topic Review
Natural Peptides and Their Beneficial Effects on Skin
Peptides, functional nutrients with a size between those of large proteins and small amino acids, are easily absorbed by the human body. Therefore, they are seeing increasing use in clinical medicine and have revealed immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory properties which could make them effective in healing skin wounds.
  • 1.4K
  • 17 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Anthocyanin Bioactivity in Obesity
Obesity and type-2 diabetes trends continue to worsen in the United States. Dietary anthocyanins (typically provided by berries and other fruits) are reported to have protective effects against both conditions using a variety of experimental research models including animal and human feeding studies. This review highlights studies that explore the biochemical pathways in both tissue and rodent models which could explain clinical improvements noted with anthocyanin consumption. First, the primary mode of intestinal absorption of anthocyanins is through both sGLT1 and GLUT2 glucose transporters. Stronger binding affinities may allow anthocyanins to be more inhibitive to glucose absorption compared to the reverse, where GLUT2 expression may also be affected. Genetic or chemical inhibition of sGLT1 or GLUT2 demonstrate their essential function in anthocyanin absorption across the enterocyte, where the former interacts with a greater variety of anthocyanins but the latter is the major transporter for specific anthocyanin-glycosides. Once absorbed, anthocyanins positively modulate GLUT4 density and function in both skeletal muscle and adipose tissues via the upregulation of AMPK and restoration of insulin sensitivity. Antioxidant properties and phosphodiesterase inhibition by anthocyanins promote both mitochondrial function and density which could be novel targets for dietary management of obesity and its complications.
  • 1.4K
  • 01 Dec 2020
Topic Review
Engineering Drug Delivery Systems
Engineering drug delivery systems (DDS) aim to release bioactive cargo to a specific site within the human body safely and efficiently. Hydrogels have been used as delivery matrices in different studies due to their biocompatibility, biodegradability, and versatility in biomedical purposes. Microparticles have also been used as drug delivery systems for similar reasons. The combination of microparticles and hydrogels in a composite system has been the topic of many research works. These composite systems can be injected in loco as DDS. The hydrogel will serve as a barrier to protect the particles and retard the release of any bioactive cargo within the particles. Additionally, these systems allow different release profiles, where different loads can be released sequentially, thus allowing a synergistic treatment. The reported advantages from several studies of these systems can be of great use in biomedicine for the development of more effective DDS.
  • 1.4K
  • 04 Oct 2021
Topic Review
Ivermectin for the Treatment and/or Prophylaxis of COVID-19
The pathogenesis of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is initiated by viral entry through the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE-2) receptor in the host cell. After entry, RNA is translated into viral proteins upon its release in the cytoplasm. The resulting symptoms and clinical manifestations include fever, headache, myalgia, and respiratory symptoms. Several drugs have been and continue to be repurposed for the prophylaxis and treatment of COVID-19. Ivermectin (IVM) belongs to the naturally occurring family of avermectins produced by the bacterium Streptomyces avermitilis. Its broad antiparasitic spectrum is achieved through the hyperpolarization of the invertebrate’s cell membrane, with subsequent parasite paralysis. It was tested and confirmed for its in vitro antiviral activity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). Trials have put IVM to test for both the treatment and prophylaxis of COVID-19, as well as its potential role in combination therapy. Additionally, the targeted delivery of IVM was studied in animals and COVID-19 patients.
  • 1.4K
  • 31 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Ligands of Adrenergic Receptors
Adrenergic receptors are G protein-coupled receptors for epinephrine and norepinephrine. They are targets of many drugs for various conditions, including treatment of hypertension, hypotension, and asthma. Adrenergic receptors are intensively studied in structural biology, displayed for binding poses of different types of ligands.
  • 1.4K
  • 19 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Nanocarriers in Enhanced Antifungal Delivery
Fungal infections are an extremely serious health problem, particularly in patients with compromised immune systems. Most antifungal agents have low aqueous solubility, which may hamper their bioavailability. Their complexation with cyclodextrins (CDs) could increase the solubility of antifungals, facilitating their antifungal efficacy. Nanoparticulate systems are promising carriers for antifungal delivery due to their ability to overcome the drawbacks of conventional dosage forms. CD-based nanocarriers could form beneficial combinations of CDs and nanoparticulate platforms. These systems have synergistic or additive effects regarding improved drug loading, enhanced chemical stability, and enhanced drug permeation through membranes, thereby increasing the bioavailability of drugs. 
  • 1.4K
  • 08 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Fucoidans and Bowel Health
Fucoidans are cell wall polysaccharides found in various species of brown seaweeds. They are fucose-containing sulfated polysaccharides (FCSPs) and comprise 5–20% of the algal dry weight. Fucoidans possess multiple bioactivities, including antioxidant, anticoagulant, antithrombotic, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, anti-lipidemic, anti-metastatic, anti-diabetic and anti-cancer effects. Dietary fucoidans provide small but constant amounts of FCSPs to the intestinal tract, which can reorganize the composition of commensal microbiota altered by FCSPs, and consequently control inflammation symptoms in the intestine. Although the bioactivities of fucoidans have been well described, there is limited evidence to implicate their effect on gut microbiota and bowel health.
  • 1.4K
  • 27 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Curcumin-Loaded Silica Nanoparticles
Curcumin has multiple properties that are used to cure different diseases such as cancer, infections, inflammatory, arthritic disease, etc. Despite having many effects, the inherent physicochemical properties—such as poor water solubility, chemical instability, low bioavailability, photodegradation, fast metabolism, and short half-life—of curcumin’s derivatives have limited its medical importance. Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) are promising drug delivery systems for more effective and safer treatment of several diseases, such as infections, cancers, and osteoporosis. Achieving a high drug loading in MSNs is critical to the success of this type of treatment. Their notable inherent properties—such as adjustable size and porosity, high pore volume, large surface area, functionality of versatile surfaces, as well as biocompatibility—have prompted extraordinary research on MSNs as multi-purpose delivery platforms.
  • 1.4K
  • 08 Sep 2022
Topic Review
MSC-Secretome for Autoimmune and Immune-mediated Inflammatory Diseases
Immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) encompass several entities such as “classic” autoimmune disorders or immune-mediated diseases with autoinflammatory characteristics. Adult stem cells including mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are by far the most commonly used type in clinical practice. However, due to the possible side effects of MSC-based treatments, there is an increase in interest in the MSC-secretome (containing large extracellular vesicles, microvesicles, and exosomes) as an alternative therapeutic option in IMIDs. A wide spectrum of MSC-secretome-related biological activities has been proven including anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic, and immunomodulatory properties. In comparison with MSCs, the secretome is less immunogenic but exerts similar biological actions, so it can be considered as an ideal cell-free therapeutic alternative. 
  • 1.4K
  • 08 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Adiponectin System (Rescue Hormone)
The adipose tissue, regardless of its role in generating and storing energy, acts as a key player as an endocrine tissue, producing a wide scale of cytokines/hormones called adipokines. Adipokines such as leptin, resistin, visfatin and osteopontin own pro-inflammatory effects on the cardiovascular system in some cases. In contrast, some adipokines have cardioprotective and anti-inflammatory impacts including adiponectin, omentin, and apelin.
  • 1.4K
  • 12 Jul 2022
Topic Review
Toxin Genes of Bacillus cereus
Bacillus cereus is a ubiquitous soil bacterium responsible for two types of food-associated gastrointestinal diseases. While the emetic syndrome is caused by the cyclic depsipeptide cereulide, proteinaceous enterotoxins provoke the diarrheal disease. Here, an overview on the distribution of the main toxin genes/operons ces (encoding cereulide), hbl (encoding the tripartite hemolysin BL), nhe (encoding the tripartite non-hemolytic enterotoxin), and cytK (encoding the single protein cytotoxin K) within the B. cereus group is given.
  • 1.4K
  • 18 Feb 2021
Topic Review
FAK as Promising Cancer Therapy
FAK is an intracellular non-receptor tyrosine kinase that promotes tumor cell growth by controlling cell adhesion, migration, proliferation, and survival. Therefore, targeting FAK is considered to be a promising cancer therapy with small molecules.
  • 1.4K
  • 03 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Immunopotentiating Activity of Fucoidans
Fucoidans, discovered in 1913, are fucose-rich sulfated polysaccharides extracted mainly from brown seaweed. These versatile and nontoxic marine-origin heteropolysaccharides have a wide range of favorable biological activities, including antitumor, immunomodulatory, antiviral, antithrombotic, anticoagulant, antithrombotic, antioxidant, and lipid-lowering activities. In the early 1980s, fucoidans were first recognized for their role in supporting the immune response and later, in the 1990s, their effects on immune potentiation began to emerge. The understanding of the immunomodulatory effects of fucoidan has expanded significantly. The ability of fucoidan(s) to activate CTL-mediated cytotoxicity against cancer cells, strong antitumor property, and robust safety profile make fucoidans desirable for effective cancer immunotherapy.
  • 1.4K
  • 06 May 2023
Topic Review
Self-Assembling Nucleobase-Containing Peptides
The self-assembly of bio-inspired nanomaterials and biological nanostructures confers new properties and functions to conjugated biomaterials, such as the ability to respond to external stimuli. Nucleobase-containing peptides can be considered as aromatic peptides and, similar to these self-assembling structures, they can lead to interesting functional nanostructures as hereafter explained. Self-assembling nucleopeptides can form hydrogels based on supramolecular structures held by non-covalent molecular interactions occurring between the peptide segments, as well as π–π stacking and Watson–Crick interactions via complementary DNA bases.
  • 1.4K
  • 16 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Marine Carotenoids Astaxanthin
Photodamage is an umbrella term that includes general phototoxicity, photoaging, and cancer caused by UVR. All these phenomena are mediated by direct or indirect oxidative stress and inflammation and are strictly connected one to the other. Astaxanthin (ASX) is a peculiar marine carotenoids characterized by outstanding antioxidant properties. In particular, ASX has an exceptional efficacy in counteracting all categories of photodamages, in vitro and in vivo, thanks to both antioxidant potential and activation of different pathways.
  • 1.4K
  • 18 Feb 2021
  • Page
  • of
  • 54
Featured Entry Collections
>>

Featured Reprints

>>
Encyclopedia of Digital Society, Industry 5.0 and Smart City
Encyclopedia of Engineering
Encyclopedia of Social Sciences
Encyclopedia of Medieval Royal Iconography
Academic Video Service
Feedback