Collagenases are enzymes with broad biotechnological applications in medicine. This study describes the production and characterization of a collagenase from Aspergillus serratalhadensis URM 7866, isolated from the Caatinga biome. Solid-state fermentations were conducted using wheat bran under varying conditions of pH (6, 7, 8), moisture content (50%, 60%, 70%), and substrate concentration (2.5 g, 5 g, 10 g). The optimal condition—10 g of wheat bran at pH 8 and 70% moisture—yielded the highest collagenolytic activity (177.96 U/mL) and a specific activity of 50.55 U/mg. The enzyme was purified via multiple chromatography, with pre-purification and final purification factors of 18.09 and 20.21, respectively, reaching a specific activity of 1021.86 U/mg. The enzyme showed optimal activity at 50 °C and pH 8, with stability from 20 to 40 °C and pH 7–9. PMSF caused >80% inhibition; EDTA caused ~34% inhibition. Activity increased with Na⁺ and Ca²⁺ and was inhibited by Zn²⁺. The enzyme retained full activity in anionic and non-ionic surfactants (1–10%). FTIR confirmed characteristic amide bands, and kinetic analysis revealed a Km of 1.72 mg/mL and Vmax of 6.89 mg/mL/min. These findings support its potential for alkaline and surfactant-rich industrial processes.

Croton cajucara Benth and Copaifera reticulata Ducke are prominent species in the traditional medicine of the Amazon region of Brazil. Copaifera species produce oil resin rich in bioactive diterpenes, and C. cajucara is a prolific producer of the diterpene 19-nor-clerodane trans-dehydrocrotonin (t-DCTN). This research aimed to develop a self-nanoemulsion drug delivery system (SNEDDS) by using copaiba oil resin (C. reticulata) as a carrier for t-DCTN. A stable SNEDDS single-phase nanoemulsion comprising Tween 80 (7%, w/w) and copaiba oil (0.5%, w/w) afforded a fine oil-in-water carrier system (SNEDDS-CO). The dropwise solubilization of t-DCTN (1 mg) into SNEDDS-CO resulted in the nanoformulation called SNEDDS-CO-DCTN. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis revealed spherical nanodevices, while particle size, polydispersity index (PDI), and zeta potential measurements indicated small nanodroplets (about 10 nm), uniformly distributed (between 0.1 and 0.2) and negatively charged for both systems. The in vitro kinetic of t-DCTN-loaded (SNEDDS-CO-DCTN) analyzed by using simulated conditions of the gastrointestinal microenvironment, as perspective for oral drug delivery, showed a controlled release profile, and corresponded to the Fickian diffusion model. The in vitro antioxidant activity of the samples (t-DCTN, SNEDDS-CO, and SNEDDS-CO-DCTN) was confirmed through total antioxidant capacity (TAC), reducing power, copper ion chelation, and hydroxyl radical scavenging assays. The antioxidant activity of SNEDDS-CO-DCTN which contained 1 mg of t-DCTN per mL−1 of the carrier SNEDDS-CO was similar or even better when compared to the unload t-DCTN solubilized in DMSO (10 mg mL−1). The SNEDDS formulations herein described were successfully obtained under moderated and controlled conditions, exhibiting effective physicochemical data and release characteristics with huge bioaccessibility for co-loading copaiba oil and t-DCTN. The novel colloidal system SNEDDS-CO-DCTN is a potential antioxidant nanoproduct and, from now on, is available for further pharmacological investigations.

A alta incidência dos casos de câncer tornou-o evidente problema de saúde pública em todo o mundo. Os gestores da rede pública no Brasil alegam que os recursos repassados não são suficientes para cobrir os custos com os quimioterápicos. Este trabalho trouxe um panorama do serviço ofertado pelo SUS na rede de atenção oncológica em Pernambuco e avaliou a sustentabilidade financeira para garantir o acesso aos medicamentos quimioterápicos em um hospital referência. Tratou-se de um estudo observacional, analítico e retrospectivo, realizado no período de 2015 a 2020. Avaliou-se o custo dos quimioterápicos para o câncer de mama e foram analisadas as incorporações de novos tratamentos pela CONITEC durante o mesmo período. Foram realizados 343.585 procedimentos quimioterápicos nos estabelecimentos avaliados e observou-se que o câncer de mama foi a neoplasia mais onerosa. Observou-se ainda que o financiamento dos tratamentos oncológicos se manteve estável, apesar da evolução inflacionária e epidemiológica, havendo prejuízo na incorporação de tecnologias. Verificou-se que os custos com quimioterápicos para câncer de mama comprometeram 31,23% do valor pago pelo MS, e atualmente, com os reajustes do período, este passou a comprometer 100,75%. Ao projetar os reajustes para os próximos anos, verificou-se que o orçamento estaria comprometido em 121,6%, levando em conta o mesmo cenário inflacionário. Concluiu-se que a atual forma de financiamento do tratamento quimioterápico para o câncer de mama não se mostrou financeiramente sustentável no cenário avaliado e que se novos investimentos não forem aportados, os pacientes do SUS não serão beneficiados com as novas tecnologias de tratamento.

Oil cakes, valuable co-products of the oil industry, are rich in bioactive and nutritional compounds, making them suitable for biotechnological processes that lower costs and reduce environmental impact. These versatile materials are commonly used as substrates for microbial enzyme production, particularly in the context of sustainable, cost-effective protease synthesis. This review surveyed the application of oil cakes as substrates for microbial protease production, focusing on studies published between 2013 and 2023 from databases such as ScienceDirect, PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus. After screening, 30 studies were deemed eligible from an initial pool of 1602 articles. Nineteen different oil cake types were identified, with soybean cake being the most utilized. The studies highlighted the effectiveness of oil cakes in supporting microbial protease production, particularly with species from the Aspergillus (fungi) and Bacillus (bacteria) genera. Despite the diversity of microorganisms and substrates explored, only a limited number of studies provided detailed compositional analyses of the oil cakes. Nonetheless, the review underscores the growing trend of using oil cakes as an economical and sustainable nutrient source for microbial protease production. Oil cakes, valuable co-products of the oil industry, are rich in bioactive and nutritional compounds, making them suitable for biotechnological processes that lower costs and reduce environmental impact. These versatile materials are commonly used as substrates for microbial enzyme production, particularly in the context of sustainable, cost-effective protease synthesis. This review surveyed the application of oil cakes as substrates for microbial protease production, focusing on studies published between 2013 and 2023 from databases such as ScienceDirect, PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus. After screening, 30 studies were deemed eligible from an initial pool of 1602 articles. Nineteen different oil cake types were identified, with soybean cake being the most utilized. The studies highlighted the effectiveness of oil cakes in supporting microbial protease production, particularly with species from the Aspergillus (fungi) and Bacillus (bacteria) genera. Despite the diversity of microorganisms and substrates explored, only a limited number of studies provided detailed compositional analyses of the oil cakes. Nonetheless, the review underscores the growing trend of using oil cakes as an economical and sustainable nutrient source for microbial protease production.

Plants produce promising chemicals called secondary metabolites in response to stress, which protect against oxidative damage in both plants and humans. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels combined with an imbalance in the antioxidant responses can trigger oxidative stress that is related to many conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, and cancer. One way to counteract or avoid the stress excess is by flavonoid administration, a class of plant metabolites with a consistent antioxidant action and the ability to inactivate the free radical excess. The mechanisms, as well as the benefits and toxicity of antioxidant products, can be tested in alternative animal models. The mechanisms, as well as the benefits and toxicity of antioxidant products, can be tested in alternative animal models. In this review, we explored how Caenorhabditis elegans, a nematode with high genetic similarity to human genes and the antioxidant response pathway conserved, can be considered an attractive model organism for testing flavonoid compounds. Here, we emphasize the crucial results regarding C. elegans and the flavonoid quercetin, focusing on oxidative stress and aging investigations. Also, this review highlights the quercetin benefits in C. elegans lifespan, healthspan, neurodegeneration, and impacts on insulin/IGF-1 signaling (IIS).

The current treatment of lung diseases, such as tuberculosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, cancer and SARS-CoV-2, presents problems related to drug administration. Thus, nanotechnology, an innovative method that stands out in recent years, especially in nanomedicine, due to the development of materials on the nanometer scale (1-1000 nm). Among the various nanosystems, liposomes for their physicochemical properties, which make them a technology of interest to encapsulate hydrophilic or hydrophobic drugs, in addition to enabling controlled drug release. These techniques employed using an inhalation route have been considered as an alternative to deliver drugs encapsulated in site-specific liposomes. For this purpose, the literature describes several liposome aerosolization techniques in order to optimize an aerosolization system. The objective of this research was to carry out a bibliographic survey of the use of liposomes in the treatment of lung diseases as well as patents related to liposomes in aerosol dosage form. According to articles searched in Science Direct, Springer Nature, National Library of Medicine (PubMed) and Scientific Electronic Library Online (SCIELO) databases on the most used techniques such as Spray Drying, Spray Freeze Drying and Freeze Drying, specifically spray-drying is described in the literature as the solution base as the one that favors obtaining vesicles with low density, good fluidity and good dispersibility. In short, it was found that, linked to the use of spray-drying and nanotechnology, the inhalation route is a promising route for the administration of drugs aimed at the of lung diseases.