Ulcerative colitis (UC) results in inflammation and ulceration of the colon and the rectum’s inner lining. The application of herbal therapy in UC is increasing worldwide. As natural macromolecular compounds, polysaccharides have a significant role in the treatment of UC due to advantages of better biodegradation, good biocompatibility, immunomodulatory activity, and low reactogenicity. Therefore, polysaccharide drug formulation is becoming a potential candidate for UC treatment. In this review, we summarize the etiology and pathogenesis of UC and the therapeutic effects of polysaccharides on UC, such as regulating the expression of cytokines and tight junction proteins and modulating the balance of immune cells and intestinal microbiota. Polysaccharides can also serve as drug delivery carriers to enhance drug targeting and reduce side effects. This review provides a theoretical basis for applying natural plant polysaccharides in the prevention and treatment of UC.

Clinical drug administration aims to deliver drugs efficiently and safely to target tissues, organs, and cells, with the objective of enabling their therapeutic effects. Currently, the main approach to enhance a drug’s effectiveness is ensuring its efficient delivery to the intended site. Due to the fact that there are still various drawbacks of traditional drug delivery methods, such as high toxicity and side effects, insufficient drug specificity, poor targeting, and poor pharmacokinetic performance, nanocarriers have emerged as a promising alternative. Nanocarriers possess significant advantages in drug delivery due to their size tunability and surface modifiability. Moreover, nano-drug delivery systems have demonstrated strong potential in terms of prolonging drug circulation time, improving bioavailability, increasing drug retention at the tumor site, decreasing drug resistance, as well as reducing the undesirable side effects of anticancer drugs. Numerous studies have focused on utilizing polysaccharides as nanodelivery carriers, developing delivery systems based on polysaccharides, or exploiting polysaccharides as tumor-targeting ligands to enhance the precision of nanoparticle delivery. These types of investigations have become commonplace in the academic literature. This review aims to elucidate the preparation methods and principles of polysaccharide gold nanocarriers. It also provides an overview of the factors that affect the loading of polysaccharide gold nanocarriers with different kinds of drugs. Additionally, it outlines the strategies employed by polysaccharide gold nanocarriers to improve the delivery efficiency of various drugs. The objective is to provide a reference for further development of research on polysaccharide gold nanodelivery systems.

Background: Cervical cancer is the fourth leading cause of death among women worldwide, with human papillomavirus (HPV) identified as a major contributing factor. This study investigates the immunostimulatory activity and antigen delivery efficiency of Glycyrrhiza uralensis polysaccharide gold nanoparticles (GUPS-AuNPs) and assesses the antitumor efficacy of an HPV dendritic cell (DC) vaccine using GUPS-AuNPs as a delivery system. Methods: GUPS-AuNPs were synthesized via a green reduction method and characterized using advanced techniques, including SEM, EDS, TEM, UV, and FT-IR spectroscopy. DCs served as the primary experimental model, with flow cytometry employed to evaluate the immunostimulatory activity and antigen delivery effectiveness of GUPS-AuNPs. Additionally, a TC-1 tumor-bearing mouse model was established to assess the immunostimulatory and antitumor effects of the HPV-DC vaccine facilitated by GUPS-AuNPs. Results: The synthesized GUPS-AuNPs exhibited a particle size of 120.77 ± 3.13 nm, a surface charge of −11.9 ± 2.1 mV, and excellent stability. Flow cytometry analysis demonstrated that GUPS-AuNPs significantly enhanced DC maturation and promoted T cell proliferation. Furthermore, antigen delivery experiments revealed that GUPS-AuNPs improved the antigen capture capabilities of DCs. Confocal imaging confirmed that GUPS-AuNPs extended the intracellular retention time of antigens. In vivo studies showed that the HPV-DC vaccine formulated with GUPS-AuNPs as carriers effectively suppressed tumor growth, elevated the populations of CD4⁺ T and CD8⁺ T cells in the spleen, and induced a robust antigen-specific immune response. Conclusions: GUPS-AuNPs effectively enhance DC maturation and antigen delivery, significantly boosting the adaptive immune response triggered by HPV vaccines and leading to the inhibition of tumor progression. This research introduces GUPS-AuNPs as a novel, safe, and efficient antigen delivery platform with promising potential for vaccine development.