Exosomes act as emerging transdermal drug delivery vehicles with high deformability and excellent permeability, which can be used to deliver various small-molecule drugs and macromolecular drugs and increase the transdermal and dermal retention of drugs, improving the local efficacy and drug delivery compliance. At present, there are many studies on the use of plant exosome-like nanoparticles (PELNVs) as drug carriers. In this review, the source, extraction, isolation, and chemical composition of plant exosomes are reviewed, and the research progress on PELNVs as drug delivery systems in transdermal drug delivery systems in recent years has elucidated the broad application prospect of PELNVs.

Background: Slow healing of skin wounds is a major health problem affecting millions of people each year, and traditional dressings have limited effectiveness in treating them. Gallic acid has anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antioxidant properties, and combined with nanotechnology can improve its solubility and provide new directions for wound treatment. Methods: In this study, Gallic acid nanocrystals (GC-NCs) were prepared by a “top-down” method, and GC-NCs were combined with a polyacrylic acid matrix to form Gallic acid nanocrystal hydrogel (GC-NCs-Gel) by co-gelation. The micromorphology, mechanical properties, adhesion properties and bioactivity of GC-NCs-Gel were tested. Finally, the ability of GC-NCs-Gel to promote wound healing and inhibit scar formation was evaluated in a rat whole skin defect model. Results: The average particle size of GC-NCs was 348.20 ± 1.42 nm, and GC-NCs-Gel had a honeycomb porous structure with excellent swelling properties (963%), water vapor transmission rate (2400 g/m²/h), tensile stress (28,000 Pa), and adhesive strength (9.6 kPa). GC-NCs-Gel also demonstrated a sustained and controlled drug release property after 48 h of release, the cumulative release was about 57%, and GC-NCs-Gel reached the highest cumulative permeability of 127.2 μg/cm² within 6 h. In vitro experiments showed that the inhibition circle diameter of GC-NCs-Gel was 39.75 ± 0.61 mm for S. aureus and 21.52 ± 0.06 mm for E. coli. The free radical scavenging efficiency of GC-NCs-Gel reached 77.7% in the DPPH assay and up to 98.6% in ABTS. In vivo experiments showed that GC-NCs-Gel accelerated wound healing by promoting neovascularization, epidermal regeneration and collagen deposition. Conclusion: In this study, a GC-NCs-Gel with anti-inflammatory, antibacterial as well as antioxidant and wound tissue adhesion was prepared. This multi-functional hydrogel has significant advantages in wound healing, and is expected to provide a new and effective means of wound treatment in the clinic.

Today, about 50% of men and 15–30% of women are estimated to face hair-related problems, which create a significant psychological burden. Conventional treatments, including drug therapy and transplantation, remain the main strategies for the clinical management of these problems. However, these treatments are hindered by challenges such as drug-induced adverse effects and poor drug penetration due to the skin’s barrier. Therefore, various efforts have been undertaken to enhance drug permeation based on the mechanisms of hair regrowth. Notably, understanding the delivery and diffusion of topically administered drugs is essential in hair loss research. This review focuses on the advancement of transdermal strategies for hair regrowth, particularly those involving external stimulation and regeneration (topical administration) as well as microneedles (transdermal delivery). Furthermore, it also describes the natural products that have become alternative agents to prevent hair loss. In addition, given that skin visualization is necessary for hair regrowth as it provides information on drug localization within the skin’s structure, this review also discusses skin visualization strategies. Finally, it details the relevant patents and clinical trials in these areas. Together, this review highlights the innovative strategies for skin visualization and hair regrowth, aiming to provide novel ideas to researchers studying hair regrowth in the future.

The 17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 3 (17β-HSD3) enzyme is a potential therapeutic target for hormone-dependent prostate cancer, as it is the key enzyme in the last step of testosterone (T) biosynthesis. A curcumin analog, H10, was optimized for inhibiting T production in LC540 cells that stably overexpressed 17β-HSD3 enzyme (LC540 (17β-HSD3)) (P0.05). This indicated that H10 only inhibited the enzymatic activity of 17β-HSD3 in vitro. Furthermore, H10 inhibited the adione-stimulated growth of xenografts established from LNCaP cells in nude mice in vivo. We conclude that H10 could serve as an effective inhibitor of 17β-HSD3, which in turn would inhibit the biosynthesis of androgens and progression of prostate cancer.