The present study focused on the development of Cur-loaded SOHA nanogels (Cur-SHNGs) to enhance the topical administration of Cur. The physiochemical properties of Cur-SHNGs were characterized. Results showed that the morphology of the Cur-SHNGs was spherical, the average size was 171.37 nm with a zeta potential of −13.23 mV. Skin permeation experiments were carried out using the diffusion cell systems. It was found that the skin retention of Cur-SHNGs was significantly improved since it showed the best retention value (0.66 ± 0.17 μg/cm2). In addition, the hematoxylin and eosin staining showed that the Cur-SHNGs improved transdermal drug delivery by altering the skin microstructure. Fluorescence imaging indicated that Cur-SHNGs could effectively deliver the drug to the deeper layers of the skin. Additionally, Cur-SHNGs showed significant analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity with no skin irritation. Taken together, Cur-SHNGs could be effectively used for the topical delivery of therapeutic drugs.
Silk fibroin (SF) has excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability as a biomaterial. The purity and molecular weight distribution of silk fibroin peptide (SFP) make it more suitable for medical application. In this study, SFP nanofibers (molecular weight ∼30kD) were prepared through CaCl 2 /H 2 O/C 2 H 5 OH solution decomposition and dialysis, and adsorbed naringenin (NGN) to obtain SFP/NGN NFs. In vitro results showed that SFP/NGN NFs increased the antioxidant activity of NGN and protected HK-2 cells from cisplatin-induced damage. In vivo results also showed that SFP/NGN NFs protected mice from cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury (AKI). The mechanism results showed that cisplatin induced mitochondrial damage, as well as increased mitophagy and mtDNA release, which activated the cGAS-STING pathway and induced the expression of inflammatory factors such as IL-6 and TNF-α. Interestingly, SFP/NGN NFs further activated mitophagy and inhibited mtDNA release and cGAS-STING pathway. Demonstrated that mitophagy-mtDNA-cGAS-STING signal axis was involved in the kidney protection mechanism of SFP/NGN NFs. In conclusion, our study confirmed that SFP/NGN NFs are candidates for protection of cisplatin-induced AKI, which is worthy of further study.
Metal nanoparticles , particularly silver nanoparticles (AgNs), exhibit excellent antibacterial properties. However, their high mobility and Ag + release rate can damage normal tissues and cells. Therefore, their application in wound healing is limited. Reducing Ag + to AgNs using tannic acid (TA) and Fe complexes (TA/Fe) could effectively prevent the migration of AgNs and slow the release of Ag + to achieve effective inhibition of bacteria. Ag + was reduced to AgNs using TA/Fe coating on the surface of calcium alginate and silk fibroin peptide microspheres (CA/SP) to prepare novel litchi-like microspheres (CA/ [email protected] ). CA/ [email protected] showed good biocompatibility. The growth and reproduction of Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were completely inhibited at a CA/ [email protected] concentration of 20 mg/mL. The redox reaction of Ag + with TA/Fe resulted in the oxidation of Fe 2+ to Fe 3+ . The hemostatic ability of CA/ [email protected] was significantly enhanced owing to the good coagulation ability of TA/Fe 3 + in the blood, which reduced the bleeding time and hemostatic volume of the femoral artery to 109 s and 0.115 g, respectively. Therefore, TA/Fe-modified microspheres are good carriers of AgNs that can be used for efficient bacteriostasis, rapid hemostasis, and wound healing.