Preparation and in vivo Distribution of Essential Oil from Alpinia zerumbet Fructus Encapsulated Nanoemulsions / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveTo prepare oral nanoemulsions encapsulating essential oil from Alpinia zerumbet fructus（EOFAZ） and to investigate its pro-absorption effect in vitro and distribution in vivo. MethodThe proteoglycan conjugate polysaccharides of vinegar-processed Bupleuri Radix-bovine serum albumin（VBCP-BSA） was prepared by Maillard reaction of VBCP and BSA. Taking VBCP-BSA as emulsifier， vitamin B12（VB12） as absorption enhancer， and medium chain triglycerides mixed with EOFAZ as oil phase， the nanoemulsions loaded with EOFAZ was prepared by high energy emulsification method. The particle size， particle size distribution， surface Zeta potential， EOFAZ content and appearance and morphology of the nanoemulsions were characterized， and fluorescein tracer method was used to investigate the absorption effect of fluorescein-labeled EOFAZ nanoemulsions in vitro and their distribution in vivo. ResultVBCP-BSA was formed by Maillard reaction for 48 h with high grafting rate. Using VBCP-BSA as emulsifier， the homogeneous pink nanoemulsions was prepared and denoted as EOFAZ@VBCP-BSA/VB12. The particle size of the nanoemulsions was less than 100 nm and the particle size distribution was uniform. The surface of the nanoemulsions was a weak negative charge， and the shape was spherical. The encapsulation rate of the nanoemulsions for EOFAZ was greater than 80%， which had a good absorption effect in vitro and could enhance liver accumulation after oral administration. ConclusionThe designed proteoglycan nanoemulsions can effectively load EOFAZ， promote oral absorption and enhance liver distribution， which can provide experimental basis for the development of oral EOFAZ liver protection preparations.

Progress of PARP inhibitors in targeted therapy of small cell lung cancer / 国际肿瘤学杂志

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a rapidly developing malignant tumor, which is highly heterogeneous and prone to drug resistance, and the prognosis is usually poor. Poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitors target the DNA damage response pathway, preventing DNA repair, thereby exerting anti-tumor effects. Currently, PARP inhibitors are used as monotherapy or in combination with DNA-damaging agents or immune checkpoint inhibitors in the treatment of SCLC. Although the current research results are limited, it can be seen that PARP inhibitors may be a breakthrough in the targeted therapy of SCLC.

Progress of targeted drugs for treatment of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma / 白血病·淋巴瘤

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common subtype of aggressive lymphoma. The relapsed/refractory DLBCL patients have poor outcomes and DLBCL is still lack of effective treatment standard regimens. How to effectively treat relapsed/refractory DLBCL patients has become a research hotspot, and the current treatment methods include bispecific antibody therapy, chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapy, antibody-drug conjugates (ADC) therapy. This paper reviews the progress of targeted drugs/cell treatment for DLBCL at the 64th American Society of Hematology annual meeting.

Research progress of enzyme-instructed self-assembly molecules for tumor therapy and imaging / 中国药科大学学报

@#Self-assembly is the basis of the formation of biological macromolecular structure. Enzyme-instructed self-assembly (EISA) with the help of tool enzymes, realizing the conversion of small molecular compounds to supramolecular nanostructures at specific sites, become a new strategy for drug discovery.In recent years, the exploration of EISA for developing malignant cancer therapy and imaging has made considerable progress, achieving the precise regulation and tumor targeting of nanostructures. This paper reviews the latest progress of EISA in the field of tumor diagnosis and treatment, the functions and characteristics of tool enzymes such as alkaline phosphatase, sirtuin, tyrosinase, γ-glutamyltranspeptidase and caspase-3,summarizes the research status of EISA targeting multiple organelles in tumor therapy, and introduces the application of EISA in tumor imaging, aiming to provide reference forthe research of EISA strategy in tumor diagnosis and treatment.

Research Progress of Targeting uPA-uPAR System in Tumor Therapy / 肿瘤防治研究

The uPA-uPAR system is highly expressed in various tumor tissues. This system can promote the degradation of extracellular matrix proteins, as well as combine with vitronectin and integrin to transmit intracellular signal transduction. Subsequently, it mediates the occurrence and development of tumors. In recent years, a series of therapeutic programs that target this system has achieved notable results in tumor treatment, and some of them have been under the clinical trial stage, thus providing new ideas for tumor targeted therapy. Therefore, this paper intends to provide a review of research progress on the gene therapy, drug therapy, and immunotherapy targeting uPA-uPAR system.

Research progress on multi-target regulation strategies of tumor microenvironment based on nano-drug delivery system / 药学学报

Tumor microenvironment (TME) is composed of endothelial cells, pericytes, immune cells, cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), cancer stem cells (CSCs), extracellular matrix (ECM) and other components of the complex biological environment. TME interacts with the tumor cells through a large amount of signaling pathways, participates in the process of tumor progression, invasion, and metastasis. Hence, TME has become a potential therapeutic target for cancer treatment, exhibiting excellent therapeutic potential and research value in the field of cancer treatment. Currently, the novel nanotechnology has been widely applied in anticancer therapy, and nanotechnology-mediated drug delivery system is being explored to apply in TME modulation to inhibit tumor progression. Nanotechnology-mediated drug delivery has many advantages over traditional therapeutic modalities, including longer circulation times, improved bioavailability, and reduced toxicity. This review summarized the research of targeted nano-drug delivery based on TME regulation, including regulation strategies based on CSCs, CAFs, immune cells, ECM, tumor vascularization, exosomes, and microbiota. In addition, we summarized the advantages, opportunities, and challenges of TME regulation strategy compared with traditional treatment strategy, which provides a reference for the application of nano-drug delivery system based on TME regulation strategy in tumor precision therapy.

Recent progress in application of nanovaccines for enhancing mucosal immune responses

Mucosal vaccines that stimulate both mucosal and systemic immune responses are desirable, as they could prevent the invading pathogens at their initial infection sites in a convenient and user-friendly way. Nanovaccines are receiving increasing attention for mucosal vaccination due to their merits in overcoming mucosal immune barriers and in enhancing immunogenicity of the encapsulated antigens. Herein, we summarized several nanovaccine strategies that have been reported for enhancing mucosal immune responses, including designing nanovaccines that have superior mucoadhesion and mucus penetration capacity, designing nanovaccines with better targeting efficiency to M cells or antigen-presenting cells, and co-delivering adjuvants by using nanovaccines. The reported applications of mucosal nanovaccines were also briefly discussed, including prevention of infectious diseases, and treatment of tumors and autoimmune diseases. Future research progresses in mucosal nanovaccines may promote the clinical translation and application of mucosal vaccines.

Discovery of novel exceptionally potent and orally active c-MET PROTACs for the treatment of tumors with MET alterations

Various c-mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition (c-MET) inhibitors are effective in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer; however, the inevitable drug resistance remains a challenge, limiting their clinical efficacy. Therefore, novel strategies targeting c-MET are urgently required. Herein, through rational structure optimization, we obtained novel exceptionally potent and orally active c-MET proteolysis targeting chimeras (PROTACs) namely D10 and D15 based on thalidomide and tepotinib. D10 and D15 inhibited cell growth with low nanomolar IC50 values and achieved picomolar DC50 values and >99% of maximum degradation (Dmax) in EBC-1 and Hs746T cells. Mechanistically, D10 and D15 dramatically induced cell apoptosis, G1 cell cycle arrest and inhibited cell migration and invasion. Notably, intraperitoneal administration of D10 and D15 significantly inhibited tumor growth in the EBC-1 xenograft model and oral administration of D15 induced approximately complete tumor suppression in the Hs746T xenograft model with well-tolerated dose-schedules. Furthermore, D10 and D15 exerted significant anti-tumor effect in cells with c-METY1230H and c-METD1228N mutations, which are resistant to tepotinib in clinic. These findings demonstrated that D10 and D15 could serve as candidates for the treatment of tumors with MET alterations.

Sequential delivery of PD-1/PD-L1 blockade peptide and IDO inhibitor for immunosuppressive microenvironment remodeling via an MMP-2 responsive dual-targeting liposome

Intelligent responsive drug delivery system opens up new avenues for realizing safer and more effective combination immunotherapy. Herein, a kind of tumor cascade-targeted responsive liposome (NLG919@Lip-pep1) is developed by conjugating polypeptide inhibitor of PD-1 signal pathway (AUNP-12), which is also a targeted peptide that conjugated with liposome carrier through matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) cleavable peptide (GPLGVRGD). This targeted liposome is prepared through a mature preparation process, and indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) inhibitor NLG919 was encapsulated into it. Moreover, mediated by the enhanced permeability and retention effect (EPR effect) and AUNP-12, NLG919@Lip-pep1 first targets the cells that highly express PD-L1 in tumor tissues. At the same time, the over-expressed MMP-2 in the tumor site triggers the dissociation of AUNP-12, thus realizing the precise block of PD-1 signal pathway, and restoring the activity of T cells. The exposure of secondary targeting module II VRGDC-NLG919@Lip mediated tumor cells targeting, and further relieved the immunosuppressive microenvironment. Overall, this study offers a potentially appealing paradigm of a high efficiency, low toxicity, and simple intelligent responsive drug delivery system for targeted drug delivery in breast cancer, which can effectively rescue and activate the body's anti-tumor immune response and furthermore achieve effective treatment of metastatic breast cancer.

On-demand integrated nano-engager converting cold tumors to hot via increased DNA damage and dual immune checkpoint inhibition

Cancer immunotherapy has become a promising strategy. However, the effectiveness of immunotherapy is restricted in "cold tumors" characterized with insufficient T cells intratumoral infiltration and failed T cells priming. Herein, an on-demand integrated nano-engager (JOT-Lip) was developed to convert cold tumors to hot via "increased DNA damage and dual immune checkpoint inhibition" strategy. JOT-Lip was engineered by co-loading oxaliplatin (Oxa) and JQ1 into liposomes with T-cell immunoglobulin mucin-3 antibodies (Tim-3 mAb) coupled on the liposomal surface by metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2)-sensitive linker. JQ1 inhibited DNA repair to increase DNA damage and immunogenic cell death (ICD) of Oxa, thus promoting T cells intratumoral infiltration. In addition, JQ1 inhibited PD-1/PD-L1 pathway, achieving dual immune checkpoint inhibition combining with Tim-3 mAb, thus effectively promoting T cells priming. It is demonstrated that JOT-Lip not only increased DNA damage and promoted the release of damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), but also enhanced T cells intratumoral infiltration and promoted T cell priming, which successfully converted cold tumors to hot and showed significant anti-tumor and anti-metastasis effects. Collectively, our study provides a rational design of an effective combination regimen and an ideal co-delivery system to convert cold tumors to hot, which holds great potential in clinical cancer chemoimmunotherapy.

Research progress on vesicles from Chinese medicinal herbs / 浙江大学学报·医学版

Vesicles derived from Chinese medicinal herbs (VCMH) are nano-vesicular entities released by the cells of Chinese medicinal herbs. VCMHs have various biological effects and targeting characteristics, and their component chemicals and functional activities are closely related to the parent plant. VCMH differs from animal-derived vesicles in three ways: stability, specificity, and safety. There are a number of extraction and isolation techniques for VCMH, each with their own benefits and drawbacks, and there is no unified standard. When two or more approaches are used, high quantities of intact vesicles can be obtained more quickly and efficiently. The obtained VCMHs were systematically examined and evaluated. Firstly, they are generally saucer-shaped, cup-shaped or sphere, with particle size of 10-300 nm. Secondly, they contain lipids, proteins, nucleic acids and other active substances, and these components are an important part for intercellular information transfer. Finally, they mostly have good biocompatibility and low toxicity, with anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-tumor and anti-fibrotic effects. As a new drug carrier, VCMHs have outstanding active targeting capabilities, and the capsule form can effectively preserve the drugs, considerably enhancing drug delivery efficiency and stability in vitro and in vivo. The modification of its vesicular structure by suitable physical or chemical means can further create more stable and precise drug carriers. This article reviews the extraction and purification techniques, activity evaluation and application of VCMH to provide information for further research and application of new active substances and targeted drug carriers.

Surface modification of multifunctional ferrite magnetic nanoparticles and progress in biomedicine / 生物医学工程学杂志

Magnetic ferrite nanoparticles (MFNPs) have great application potential in biomedical fields such as magnetic resonance imaging, targeted drugs, magnetothermal therapy and gene delivery. MFNPs can migrate under the action of a magnetic field and target specific cells or tissues. However, to apply MFNPs to organisms, further modifications on the surface of MFNPs are required. In this paper, the common modification methods of MFNPs are reviewed, their applications in medical fields such as bioimaging, medical detection, and biotherapy are summarized, and the future application directions of MFNPs are further prospected.

Ginsenoside Rg_3 based liposomes target delivery of dihydroartemisinin and paclitaxel for treatment of triple-negative breast cancer / 中国中药杂志

Ginsenoside Rg_3, an active component of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM), was used as the substitute for cholesterol as the membrane material to prepare the ginsenoside Rg_3-based liposomes loaded with dihydroartemisinin and paclitaxel. The effect of the prepared drug-loading liposomes on triple-negative breast cancer in vitro was evaluated. Liposomes were prepared with the thin film hydration method, and the preparation process was optimized by single factor experiments. The physicochemical properties(e.g., particle size, Zeta potential, and stability) of the liposomes were characterized. The release behaviors of drugs in different media(pH 5.0 and pH 7.4) were evaluated. The antitumor activities of the liposomes were determined by CCK-8 on MDA-MB-231 and 4T1 cells. The cell scratch test was carried out to evaluate the effect of the liposomes on the migration of MDA-MB-231 and 4T1 cells. Further, the targeting ability of liposomes and the mechanism of lysosome escape were investigated. Finally, H9c2 cells were used to evaluate the potential cardiotoxicity of the preparation. The liposomes prepared were spheroid, with uniform particle size distribution, the ave-rage particle size of(107.81±0.01) nm, and the Zeta potential of(2.78±0.66) mV. The encapsulation efficiency of dihydroartemisinin and paclitaxel was 57.76%±1.38% and 99.66%±0.07%, respectively, and the total drug loading was 4.46%±0.71%. The accumulated release of dihydroartemisinin and paclitaxel from the liposomes at pH 5.0 was better than that at pH 7.4, and the liposomes could be stored at low temperature for seven days with good stability. Twenty-four hours after administration, the inhibition rates of the ginsenoside Rg_3-based liposomes loaded with dihydroartemisinin(70 μmol·L~(-1)) and paclitaxel on MDA-MB-231 and 4T1 cells were higher than those of the positive control(adriamycin) and free drugs(P<0.01). Compared with free drugs, liposomes inhibited the migration of MDA-MB-231 and 4T1 cells(P<0.05). Liposomes demonstrated active targeting and lysosome escape. In particular, liposomes showed lower toxicity to H9c2 cells than free drugs(P<0.05), which indicated that the preparation had the potential to reduce cardiotoxicity. The findings prove that ginsenoside Rg_3 characterized by the combination of drug and excipient is an ideal substitute for lipids in liposomes and promoted the development of innovative TCM drugs for treating cancer.

Research progress of active probes targeting specific aminoacids / 药学学报

Activity-based protein (proteomic) profiling (ABPP) has emerged as a key component of the broad field of chemical techniques capable of directly analyzing enzyme activity in living systems. With the deepening of research on electrophilic warheads and nucleophilic amino acids, and the continuous proposal and improvement of effective development strategies, the application of amino acid-targeting active probes in various biological systems has facilitated the identification, development of new targets in various disease contexts and discovery of inhibitors. The purpose of this review is to summarize the latest progress in the design and application of active probes targeting specific amino acids, in order to provide support for the further development of amino acid-targeted covalent inhibitordrugs.

Global progress in peptide radiopharmaceutical research and China's opportunities / 药学学报

Radiopharmaceutical is an essential component of nuclear medicine and molecular imaging, as well as a key component of precision medicine. The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently approved the marketing of several peptide-based radiopharmaceuticals, sparking a global trend of research in this area and propelling nuclear medicine into the precision theranostic era. This has created a new wave of technological competition in the field of nuclear medicine. It is the responsibility of Chinese scientists in the radiopharmaceutical field to capitalize on this opportunity, leverage the momentum, and strengthen their independent innovation capability in order to stay ahead in the future global nuclear science and technology competition. This review provides an overview of the remarkable progress made in the research, development, and translation of global peptide-based radiopharmaceuticals. It examines the advantages of peptide-based radiopharmaceuticals and outlines the current hot targets and progress in drug development in this field. Additionally, it proposes six opportunities for China to overtake others in the field of peptide-based radiopharmaceuticals and achieve technological self-reliance, based on interdisciplinary collaboration and independent innovation. Lastly, the future prospect of peptide-based radiopharmaceuticals is discussed.

Research progress in controllable proteolysis targeting chimeras / 药学学报

Proteolysis targeting chimeras (PROTACs) is an innovative technique in targeted protein degradation. PROTACs is a heterobifunctional molecule which can bind to the E3 ligase and target protein to form a ubiquitination complex, resulting in the ubiquitin-proteasome system dependent degradation of target protein. PROTACs has been regarded as the promising method in drug discovery campaign, for its high commonality, potent degradation activity and unique selectivity profile. However, the catalytic mechanism also induces the uncontrollable protein degradation risk. Controllable PROTACs contain the responsive element in the molecular entity. In certain conditions, the element can be triggered to activate or terminate the degradation event. In this review, we will briefly summarize the strategies in controllable PROTACs and describe the representative examples according to the responsive mechanism. We hope this review could provide some insight into the further development of controllable PROTACs.

Peptide-drug conjugates for tumor targeted diagnosis and treatment / 药学学报

Cancer is still one of the major diseases threatening human life and health. At present, how to achieve precise diagnosis and treatment of tumors is the biggest challenge in cancer treatment. Prodrugs use the tumor specificity of targeting molecules to deliver anticancer drugs to tumor sites, which can effectively improve drug bioavailability, therapeutic efficacy and safety, and are currently a hot spot in the research and development of anticancer drugs. The targeting molecules of prodrugs mainly include nucleic acid aptamers, polymers, antibodies, polypeptides, etc. Among them, polypeptides have the advantages of good biocompatibility, controllable degradation performance, high in vivo responsiveness, and simple and easy preparation methods, and are widely used. It is used to construct peptide-drug conjugates (PDC) prodrugs to achieve targeted therapy of tumors. In recent years, with the development of phage peptide library technology and peptide standard solid-phase synthesis technology, more and more targeted peptides have been discovered and effectively synthesized and modified, providing strong support for the development of PDC. This review briefly introduces the types and functions of functional peptides and linkers in PDC, and discusses the application of PDC in chemotherapy, immunotherapy and photodynamic therapy in tumor targeted diagnosis and treatment, and finally summarizes the difficulties faced by PDC drug development.

Progress of the mechanism of energy metabolism reprogramming regulated by long non-coding RNA in cancer / 肿瘤研究与临床

Although it is widely believed that abnormal energy metabolism exists in cancer cells and affects the biological behavior of cancers, the exact mechanism of energy metabolic reprogramming and specific mechanism of its effect on proliferation, invasion and metastasis of cancer cells have not been clarified. In recent years, studies have shown that long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) can affect energy metabolism, development and progression of cancer cells through binding to specific nucleic acids and proteins at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional stages, and specifically through transcriptional interference, epigenetic regulation of genes, changes in protein activity, competitive binding to microRNA (miRNA) and other related mechanisms. The further study on the mechanism of lncRNA regulating energy metabolism reprogramming of cancer cells is expected to find new markers and targets for diagnosis and treatment of cancer. This paper reviews the current research progress of the mechanism of lncRNA regulating metabolic reprogramming of glucose, fatty acid, protein and nucleotide in cancer, and provides a new idea of lncRNA's regulation of energy metabolism pathways for targeted anticancer therapy.

Research on technological innovation of PROTAC in China from the perspective of patent / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE To provide information service support for research on proteolysis targeting chimera （PROTAC） in China and provide reference for technical development and patent layout of relevant drug research and development institutions. METHODS The patent analysis method was used to search the patent applications related to PROTAC technology that had been applied to China National Intellectual Property Administration and had been issued before Feb. 2022， using the HimmPat patent database as the search platform. The patent application trend， technology life cycle， main applicants， technology source countries， technology themes， improvement routes and other patent data were analyzed. RESULTS & CONCLUSIONS A total of 133 patents were included in this study. The patent application for PROTAC technology started relatively late in China， with the number of applicants increasing from 2 in 2015 to 30 in 2020， and the number of applications increasing from 2 in 2015 to 38 in 2020. Both the annual patent application volume and the number of applicants were in a period of rapid growth， but the average annual application volume of a single applicant was still less than 2， indicating that research in this field was still in the early stage of technology development； the number of applications from Arvinas， Hisco， and Hinova Pharmaceutical Inc. ranked among the top. Although the number of domestic applications led that of foreign applications in China， the average number of simple peer applications and the average number of simple peer countries in domestic patent applications was only 1.5， which was far lower than that of foreign applications in China， reflecting that there was still room for improvement in the “quality” level of domestic applications. The initial improvements in PROTAC technology mainly focused on the selection of E3 ligands， targets and ligands， and then new improvements such as new PROTAC development， linker design and matching methods emerged， indicating that the patent applicant had started a multi-track layout in the early stages of the development of PROTAC technology. It is suggested that the research and development of PROTAC drugs in China should focus on improving the oral bioavailability and biosafety of PROTAC drugs， overcoming potential drug resistance， and exploring rational design and evaluation methods.

Real-time SERS monitoring anticancer drug release along with SERS/MR imaging for pH-sensitive chemo-phototherapy

In situ and real-time monitoring of responsive drug release is critical for the assessment of pharmacodynamics in chemotherapy. In this study, a novel pH-responsive nanosystem is proposed for real-time monitoring of drug release and chemo-phototherapy by surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). The Fe3O4@Au@Ag nanoparticles (NPs) deposited graphene oxide (GO) nanocomposites with a high SERS activity and stability are synthesized and labeled with a Raman reporter 4-mercaptophenylboronic acid (4-MPBA) to form SERS probes (GO-Fe3O4@Au@Ag-MPBA). Furthermore, doxorubicin (DOX) is attached to SERS probes through a pH-responsive linker boronic ester (GO-Fe3O4@Au@Ag-MPBA-DOX), accompanying the 4-MPBA signal change in SERS. After the entry into tumor, the breakage of boronic ester in the acidic environment gives rise to the release of DOX and the recovery of 4-MPBA SERS signal. Thus, the DOX dynamic release can be monitored by the real-time changes of 4-MPBA SERS spectra. Additionally, the strong T2 magnetic resonance (MR) signal and NIR photothermal transduction efficiency of the nanocomposites make it available for MR imaging and photothermal therapy (PTT). Altogether, this GO-Fe3O4@Au@Ag-MPBA-DOX can simultaneously fulfill the synergistic combination of cancer cell targeting, pH-sensitive drug release, SERS-traceable detection and MR imaging, endowing it great potential for SERS/MR imaging-guided efficient chemo-phototherapy on cancer treatment.