A dual stimuli-responsive nanocarrier was developed from smart biocompatible chitosan and soluplus graft copolymers. The copolymerization was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR). The optimized chitosan-soluplus nanoparticles (CS-SP NPs) were further used for the encapsulation of a poorly water-soluble anticancer drug. Tamoxifen citrate (TC) was used as the model drug and it was loaded in CS-SP NPs. TC CS-SP NPs were characterized in terms of particle size, zeta potential, polydispersity, morphology, encapsulation efficiency, and physical stability. The nanoparticles showed homogenous spherical features with a size around 94 nm, a slightly positive zeta potential, and an encapsulation efficiency around 96.66%. Dynamic light scattering (DLS), in vitro drug release, and cytotoxicity confirmed that the created nano-system is smart and exhibits pH and temperature-responsive behavior. In vitro cellular uptake was evaluated by flow cytometry and confocal microscopy. The nanoparticles revealed a triggered increase in size upon reaching the lower critical solution temperature of SP, with 70% of drug release at acidic pH and 40 °C within the first hour and a 3.5-fold increase in cytotoxicity against MCF7 cells incubated at 40 °C. The cellular uptake study manifested that the prepared nanoparticles succeeded in delivering drug molecules to MCF7 and MDA-MB-231 cells. In summary, the distinctive characteristics provided by these novel CS-SP NPs result in a promising nano-platform for effective drug delivery in cancer treatment.

Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) have emerged as sustainable and tunable alternatives to conventional solvents for the extraction of polysaccharides. This review presents a structure-informed framework linking DES composition to polysaccharide solubility, emphasizing the differential responsiveness of amorphous, interfacial, and crystalline domains. Amorphous polysaccharides are efficiently extracted under mild DES conditions, while crystalline polymers often require stronger hydrogen bond acceptors or thermal/mechanical activation. Beyond dissolution, DESs modulate key properties of the extracted polysaccharides, including molecular weight, monomer composition, and bioactivity. Comparative analysis highlights how acidic, basic, or metal-coordinating DESs selectively target distinct polymer classes. Emerging innovations, such as in situ DES formation, mechanochemical systems, and switchable solvents, enhance efficiency and reduce downstream processing demands. Furthermore, the integration of machine learning and COSMO-RS modeling enables predictive solvent design, reducing reliance on empirical screening. By combining mechanistic insight, compositional tailoring, and computational tools, this review provides a scientifically grounded perspective for advancing DES-mediated extraction processes and enabling structure-preserving, application-oriented recovery of polysaccharides in food, pharmaceutical, and biorefinery domains.

Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) and ionic liquids (ILs) offer novel opportunities for several pharmaceutical applications. Their tunable properties offer control over their design and applications. Choline chloride (CC)-based DESs (referred to as Type III eutectics) offer superior advantages for various pharmaceutical and therapeutic applications. Here, CC-based DESs of tadalafil (TDF), a selective phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE-5) enzyme inhibitor, were designed for implementation in wound healing. The adopted approach provides formulations for the topical application of TDF, hence avoiding systemic exposure. To this end, the DESs were chosen based on their suitability for topical application. Then, DES formulations of TDF were prepared, yielding a tremendous increase in the equilibrium solubility of TDF. Lidocaine (LDC) was included in the formulation with TDF to provide a local anaesthetic effect, forming F01. The addition of propylene glycol (PG) to the formulation was attempted to reduce the viscosity, forming F02. The formulations were fully characterised using NMR, FTIR and DCS techniques. According to the obtained characterisation results, the drugs were soluble in the DES with no detectable degradation. Our results demonstrated the utility of F01 in wound healing in vivo using cut wound and burn wound models. Significant retraction of the cut wound area was observed within three weeks of the application of F01 when compared with DES. Furthermore, the utilisation of F01 resulted in less scarring of the burn wounds than any other group including the positive control, thus rendering it a candidate formula for burn dressing formulations. We demonstrated that the slower healing process associated with F01 resulted in less scarring potential. Lastly, the antimicrobial activity of the DES formulations was demonstrated against a panel of fungi and bacterial strains, thus providing a unique wound healing process via simultaneous prevention of wound infection. In conclusion, this work presents the design and application of a topical vehicle for TDF with novel biomedical applications.

Microemulsions are thermodynamically stable, transparent, isotropic mixtures of oil, water and surfactant (and sometimes a co-surfactant), which have shown potential for widespread application in disinfection and self-preservation. This is thought to be due to an innate antimicrobial effect. It is suggested that the antimicrobial nature of microemulsions is the result of a combination of their inherent kinetic energy and their containing surfactants, which are known to aid the disruption of bacterial membranes. This review examines the contemporary evidence in support of this theory.