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Topic Review
Active Substances in Cannabis, Endocannabinoid System, and Metabolism
Since legalization, cannabis/marijuana has been gaining considerable attention as a functional ingredient in food. ∆-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cannabidiol (CBD), and other cannabinoids are key bioactive compounds with health benefits. Endocannabinoids have been shown to regulate a variety of different receptors and channels, including TRP channels and the G-protein-coupled receptors GPR55, GPR18, GPR119, γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), and glycine receptors.
  • 293
  • 06 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Applications of Solid Lipid Nanoparticles in Cancer
Cancer is recognized as one of the world’s most deadly diseases in its different forms. In the field of nanotechnology, solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) play a vital role with a wide range of diverse applications, namely drug delivery, clinical medicine, and cancer therapeutics. SLNs establish a significant role owing to their ability to encapsulate hydrophilic and hydrophobic compounds, biocompatibility, ease of surface modification, scale-up feasibility, and possibilities of both active and passive targeting to various organs. In cancer therapy, SLNs have emerged as imminent nanocarriers for overcoming physiological barriers and multidrug resistance pathways.
  • 322
  • 03 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Antibiotic Use and Resistance in Agriculture Sector
Possible new ways for the development of novel classes of antibiotics are discussed here, for which there is no pre-existing resistance in human bacterial pathogens. By utilizing research and technology such as nanotechnology and computational methods (such as in silico and Fragment-based drug design (FBDD)), there has been an improvement in antimicrobial actions and selectivity with target sites. Moreover, there are antibiotic alternatives, such as antimicrobial peptides, essential oils, anti-Quorum sensing agents, darobactins, vitamin B6, bacteriophages, odilorhabdins, 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid, and cannabinoids. Additionally, drug repurposing (such as with ticagrelor, mitomycin C, auranofin, pentamidine, and zidovudine) and synthesis of novel antibacterial agents (including lactones, piperidinol, sugar-based bactericides, isoxazole, carbazole, pyrimidine, and pyrazole derivatives) represent novel approaches to treating infectious diseases. Nonetheless, prodrugs (e.g., siderophores) have shown to be an excellent platform to design a new generation of antimicrobial agents with better efficacy against multidrug-resistant bacteria.
  • 334
  • 03 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Chronic Oral Methylphenidate Behavioral, Neurochemical and Developmental Effects
The majority of animal studies on methylphenidate (MP) use intraperitoneal (IP) injections, subcutaneous (SC) injections, or the oral gavage route of administration. While all these methods allow for delivery of MP, it is the oral route that is clinically relevant. IP injections commonly deliver an immediate and maximum dose of MP due to their quick absorption. This quick-localized effect can give timely results but will only display a small window of the psychostimulant’s effects on the animal model. On the opposite side of the spectrum, a SC injection does not accurately represent the pathophysiology of an oral exposure because the metabolic rate of the drug would be much slower. The oral-gavage method, while providing an oral route, possesses some adverse effects such as potential animal injury and can be stressful to the animal compared to voluntary drinking. It is thus important to allow the animal to have free consumption of MP, and drinking it to more accurately mirror human treatment. The use of a two-bottle drinking method allows for this. Rodents typically have a faster metabolism than humans, which means this needs to be considered when administering MP orally while reaching target pharmacokinetic levels in plasma.
  • 256
  • 31 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Enhancing Brain Drug Bioavailability in Depression and Anxiety
Depression and anxiety are high incidence and debilitating psychiatric disorders, usually treated by antidepressant or anxiolytic drug administration, respectively. Three main strategies have been used to improve brain drug targeting: the intranasal route of administration, which allows the drug to be directly transported to the brain by neuronal pathways, bypassing the blood–brain barrier and avoiding the hepatic and gastrointestinal metabolism; the use of nanosystems for drug encapsulation, including polymeric and lipidic nanoparticles, nanometric emulsions, and nanogels; and drug molecule functionalization by ligand attachment, such as peptides and polymers. Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic in vivo studies’ results have shown that intranasal administration can be more efficient in brain targeting than other administration routes, and that the use of nanoformulations and drug functionalization can be quite advantageous in increasing brain–drug bioavailability. These strategies could be the key to future improved therapies for depressive and anxiety disorders.
  • 373
  • 31 Mar 2023
Topic Review
The Bright Side of Psychedelics
Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (PAP) has emerged as an alternative strategy, one that arose in response to the crisis of new psychiatric drugs, there have been promising clinical trials of PAP with lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), psilocybin and ibogaine to combat drug, alcohol and nicotine addiction. Potential applications have been found in the treatment of anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorders, major depression, autism spectrum disorders, and, finally, in delaying cognitive decline.
  • 337
  • 27 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Thermosensitive Liposomal Doxorubicin
Thermo-sensitive liposomes (TSLs) offer the most promising approach for more efficient doxorubicin (DOX) delivery to the tumor at mild hyperthermic temperatures (39-42 ̊C)
  • 477
  • 24 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Inhibiting Angiogenesis by Anti-Cancer Saponins
Saponins are one of the broadest classes of high-molecular-weight natural compounds, consisting mainly of a non-polar moiety with 27 to 30 carbons and a polar moiety containing sugars attached to the sapogenin structure. Saponins are found in more than 100 plant families as well as found in marine organisms. Saponins have several therapeutic effects, including their administration in the treatment of various cancers. These compounds also reveal noteworthy anti-angiogenesis effects as one of the critical strategies for inhibiting cancer growth and metastasis.
  • 497
  • 24 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Therapeutic Potential of Serotonin Type 7 Receptor Modulation
Although a number of mood-stabilising atypical antipsychotics and antidepressants modulate serotonin type 7 receptor (5-HT7), the detailed contributions of 5-HT7 function to clinical efficacy and pathophysiology have not been fully understood. The mood-stabilising antipsychotic agent, lurasidone, and the serotonin partial agonist reuptake inhibitor, vortioxetine, exhibit higher binding affinity to 5-HT7 than other conventional antipsychotics and antidepressants. The initially expected rapid onset of antidepressant effects—in comparison with conventional antidepressants or mood-stabilising antipsychotics—due to 5-HT7 inhibition has not been observed with lurasidone and vortioxetine; however, several clinical studies suggest that 5-HT7 inhibition likely contributes to quality of life of patients with schizophrenia and mood disorders via the improvement of cognition. Furthermore, it reported that 5-HT7 inhibition might mitigate antipsychotic-induced weight gain and metabolic complication by blocking other monoamine receptors. Further preclinical studies for the development of 5-HT7 modulation against neurodevelopmental disorders and neurodegenerative diseases have been ongoing. Various findings from various preclinical studies indicate the possibility that 5-HT7 modifications can provide two independent strategies. The first is that 5-HT7 inhibition ameliorates the dysfunction of inter-neuronal transmission in mature networks. The other is that activation of 5-HT7 can improve transmission dysfunction due to microstructure abnormality in the neurotransmission network—which could be unaffected by conventional therapeutic agents—via modulating intracellular signalling during the neurodevelopmental stage or via loss of neural networks with aging.
  • 355
  • 24 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Microbial Biosurfactants
Surface-active molecules also known as surfactants are chemicals that have key impacts on several aspects of our daily products and life. Most of these chemical surfactants originate from petrochemical of oleochemical sources and are ingredients of household laundry cleaning agents, cosmetics, pharmaceutical, environmental cleaning products, petroleum, and agro-food processing industry. Worldwide use of these compounds has been steadily increasing during the past few decades and will be further increasing in the future.  Most such chemical surfactants  however, have negative effects on the environment, a fact that led to the search for alternatives with less impact and the shift towards a more sustainable environmental friendly biological surfactants (biosurfactants) which was mainly driven by the sustainability agenda by many international players in the field. Most these biosurfactants are produced by microorganisms (bacteria and fungi) and the advantages they bring include much lower toxicity, relative stability at high temperature and in adverse environments in addition to being readily biodegradable when, discharged into the environment. Many chemical surfactants included in cosmetic and pharmaceutical compounds have been reported to have the potential to cause detrimental effects such as allergic reactions and skin irritations to the human skin which encouraged the search for a more suitable replacements  with less or no negative effects on skin health. As biosurfactants were known to exhibit skin compatibility, protection and surface moisturizing effects which are key components for an effective skincare routine in addition to lower toxicity. Interest therefore in biosurfactants that have antimicrobial, skin surface moisturizing and low toxicity properties which would make them suitable substitutes for chemical surfactants in current cosmetic and personal skincare and pharmaceutical formulations has been steadily increasing. 
  • 799
  • 24 Mar 2023
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