Lycium barbarum polysaccharides (LBPs), as bioactive compounds extracted from L. barbarum L. fruit, have been widely explored for their potential health properties. The extraction and structural characterization methods of LBPs were reviewed to accurately understand the extraction method and structural and biological functions of LBPs. An overview of the biological functions of LBPs, such as antioxidant function, antitumor activity, neuroprotective effects, immune regulating function, and other functions, were summarized. This review provides an overview of LBPs and a theoretical basis for further studying and extending the applications of LBPs in the fields of medicine and food.

We aimed to optimize the formulation of C3G nanoliposomes using response surface methodology. Additionally, we evaluated the stability, particle change, and encapsulation efficiency (EE) of C3G nanoliposomes under different temperatures and storage durations, as well as in simulated gastrointestinal juice (SGF) and simulated intestinal fluid. The morphology of C3G nanoliposomes was observed by transmission electron microscope. The ability of C3G nanoliposomes to affect cancer cell morphology and inhibit cancer cell proliferation was studied with Caco-2 cells. Reverse-phase evaporation method is a simple and efficient method for liposome preparation. The optimal preparation conditions for this method were as follows: C3G concentration of 0.17 mg/mL, phosphatidylcholine/cholesterol ratio of 2.87, and rotary evaporation temperature of 41.41 °C. At optimal conditions, the particle size and EE of the C3G nanoliposomes were 165.78 ± 4.3 nm and 70.43% ± 1.95%, respectively. The C3G nanoliposomes showed an acceptable stability in SGF at 37 °C for 4 h, but were unstable under extended storage durations and high temperatures. Moreover, our results showed that different concentrations of C3G nanoliposomes affected the morphology and inhibited the proliferation of Caco-2 cells.

In this study, we compared the antioxidant activities of cyanidin-3-O-glucoside (C3G) and C3G liposomes. We also compared the anticancer activities of C3G and C3G liposomes in Caco-2 cells. The radical scavenging activity of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and the scavenging activity of 2,2′-azinobis-3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid were used to evaluate the antioxidant activity of C3G and C3G liposomes. In addition, cell morphology, Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay, the microscopic structure of cells, and flow cytometry analysis were used to evaluate their anticancer activities. The CCK-8 assay results demonstrated that C3G and C3G liposomes reduced the mitochondrial activity of cells through dose effect, and the viabilities of Caco-2 cells were significantly decreased in vitro following exposure to C3G liposomes at 0.20 and 0.25 mg mL⁻¹ concentrations. The microscopic structure of cells exhibited the changes in the numbers and structures of mitochondria and fat droplet and the appearance of physalides, there by indicating that C3G liposomes affects the microscopic structure of cells. The CCK-8 evaluation of cell proliferation and the FCM analysis supported the anti-proliferative effects of C3G liposomes. Results demonstrated that the presence of C3G liposomes was more significant than that of C3G in inhibiting the proliferation of human tumor cells. Therefore, C3G liposomes have a potential therapeutic modality in tumor management.