Background: Efficient delivery systems of Calophyllum inophyllum seed oil (CSO) in the form of nanoemulsion were optimised to enhance its stability and ensure its therapeutic efficiency as a potential agent for various biomedical applications. Method: Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was used to determine the effects of independent variables (oil, surfactant, water percentage and homogenisation time) on physicochemical characteristics, including droplet size, polydispersity index and turbidity. Results: The optimised CSO nanoemulsion (CSONE) has a 46.68 nm particle size, 0.15 Polydispersity index value and 1.16 turbidity. After 4 weeks of storage at 5 ± 1 °C and 25 ± 1 °C, the CSONE was physically stable. The optimised CSO nanoemulsion showed enhancement in cell viability and wound healing in baby hamster kidney a clone BHK-21 (BSR) cells as compared to the CSO. The wound healing property of CSONE was higher than CSO. Conclusion: Thus, our in vitro wound healing results demonstrated that CSO in the nanoemulsion form can promote wound healing by enhancing the proliferation and migration of epidermal cells. Graphical The coarse emulsion of Calophyllum inophyllum seed oil nano emulsion was prepared using high shear homogeniser techniques. The optimised CSONE with the droplet size of 46.68 nm was prepared from a mixture of CSO, Tween 80, and high pure water (HPW), then used for the biological investigation. The in vitro cell monolayer scratch assay revealed that CSONE in the lowest concentration of CSO resulted in 100% wound closure after 48 hrs. The optimised CSO nanoemulsion was found to be a promising and effective approach in the treatment of wounds by boosting the proliferation and migration of epidermal cells.
Chemoprevention has become an important area in cancer research due to low success rate of current therapeutic modalities. Diet plays a vital role in the etiology of cancer. This research was carried out to study the chemopreventive properties of germinated rough rice (GRR) crude extract in Sprague-Dawley rats induced with azoxymethane. Germination of rough rice causes significant changes in several chemical compositions of presently bioactive compounds. These compounds may prevent or postpone the inception of cancer. Fifty male Sprague-Dawley rats (6 weeks of age) were randomly divided into 5 groups which were (G1) induced with azoxymethane (AOM) and not given GRR (positive control), (G2) induced with AOM and given 2000 mg/kg GRR, (G3) induced with AOM and given 1000 mg/kg GRR, (G4) induced with AOM and given 500 mg/kg GRR, and (G5) not induced with AOM and not given GRR crude extract (negative control). To induce colon cancer, rats received two IP injections of AOM in saline (15 mg/kg) for two subsequent weeks. Organs were removed and weighed. Aberrant crypt foci (ACF) were evaluated histopathologically. -Catenin expressions were determined by Western blot. Treatment with 2000 mg/kg GRR crude extract not only resulted in the greatest reduction in the size and number of ACF but also displayed the highest percentage of nondysplastic ACF. Treatment with 2000 mg/kg GRR also gave the lowest level of expression in β-catenin. Thus, GRR could be a promising dietary supplement for prevention of CRC.
1 May 2023 in Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology
Introduction:Tinospora smilacina is a native plant used in traditional medicine by First Nations peoples in Australia to treat inflammation. In our previous study, an optimised Calophyllum inophyllum seed oil (CSO) nanoemulsion (NE) showed improved biomedical activities such as antimicrobial, antioxidant activity, cell viability and in vitro wound healing efficacy compared to CSO. Methods: In this study, a stable NE formulation combining T. smilacina water extract (TSWE) and CSO in a nanoemulsion (CTNE) was prepared to integrate the bioactive compounds in both native plants and improve wound healing efficacy. D-optimal mixture design was used to optimise the physicochemical characteristics of the CTNE, including droplet size and polydispersity index (PDI). Cell viability and in vitro wound healing studies were done in the presence of CTNE, TSWE and CSO against a clone of baby hamster kidney fibroblasts (BHK-21 cell clone BSR-T7/5). Results: The optimised CTNE had a 24 ± 5 nm particle size and 0.21± 0.02 PDI value and was stable after four weeks each at 4 °C and room temperature. According to the results, incorporating TSWE into CTNE improved its antioxidant activity, cell viability, and ability to promote wound healing. The study also revealed that TSWE has > 6% higher antioxidant activity than CSO. While CTNE did not significantly impact mammalian cell viability, it exhibited wound-healing properties in the BSR cell line during in vitro testing. These findings suggest that adding TSWE may enhance CTNE’s potential as a wound-healing treatment. Conclusion: This is the first study demonstrating NE formulation in which two different plant extracts were used in the aqueous and oil phases with improved biomedical activities.
Understanding microbial community composition and the factors influencing it is essential for effective ecological surveillance and biomonitoring. Advancements in non‐invasive sampling and metabarcoding have improved the understanding of soil fungal distribution and composition; however, seasonal variations in fungal composition across climate zones and the influence of environmental factors on community composition remain underexplored. We utilized environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding to assess fungal diversity across equatorial, tropical, arid, and savanna climate zones along a 12‐degree latitudinal gradient, at four time points from 2023 to 2024 in the Northern Territory, Australia. On 88 soil samples, we applied two DNA extraction methods (kit‐based and non‐kit based) and two sequence clustering approaches (Operational Taxonomic Units (OTUs) and Amplicon Sequence Variants (ASVs)) to determine the influence of methodology in soil fungal microbiome assessment. ASVs from the kit‐based extraction method showed a higher alpha‐diversity. Fungal diversity was greater in the tropical climate zone than in savanna, arid, and equatorial zones. Across all climate zones, diversity peaked in August–September, coinciding with the high humidity “build‐up” season. Fungal communities in tropical and equatorial zones were more similar to each other than to those in savanna and arid zones. Temperature, precipitation, and climate zones were the primary drivers of fungal composition change, while vegetation type and soil type had smaller effects. The most abundant fungal families were Aspergillaceae, Ascomycota (family Incertae sedis ), Herpotrichiellaceae, Malasseziaceae, and Chaetomiaceae. Significant temporal change was observed in the relative abundance of Aspergillaceae, Ascomycota (family Incertae sedis ), and Chaetomiaceae, with the highest levels recorded in the monsoon season. Differences across extraction and sequence grouping methods suggest that using multiple approaches improves the assessment of fungal diversity and composition. Our study provides insights into soil fungal composition and abundance across diverse ecosystems, generating baseline data to support biosecurity surveillance and monitoring.