Microneedle-mediated treatment for superficial tumors by combining multiple strategies.

Superficial tumors are still challenging to overcome due to the high risk and toxicity of surgery and conventional chemotherapy. Microneedles (MNs) are widely used in the treatment of superficial skin tumors (SST) due to the high penetration rate of the stratum corneum (SC), excellent biocompatibility, simple preparation process, high patient compliance, and minimal invasion. Most importantly, MNs can provide not only efficient and rarely painful delivery carriers, but also combine multi-model strategies with photothermal therapy (PTT), immunotherapy, and gene therapy for synergistic efficacy. To promote an in-depth understanding of their superiorities, this paper systematically summarized the latest application progress of MNs in the treatment of SST by delivering various types of photosensitizers, immune signal molecules, genes, and chemotherapy drugs. Just as important, the advantages, limitations, and drug release mechanisms of MNs based on different materials are introduced in the paper. In addition, the application of MN technology to clinical practice is the ultimate goal of all the work. The obstacles and possible difficulties in expanding the production of MNs and achieving clinical transformation are briefly discussed in this paper. To be anticipated, our work will provide new insights into the precise and rarely painful treatment of SST in the future.

Chemical constituents from the stems and leaves of Amomum villosum Lour. and their anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities.

Amomum villosum Lour. is a medicinal and edible plant, whose medicinal parts are dried and mature fruits, and its stems and leaves are always treated as waste. HPLC-MS/MS analysis showed that the chemical components contained in the stems/leaves of A. villosum and those in fruits are quite different. To discover potential active ingredients from the stems/leaves of A. villosum, phytochemical evaluation of the stems/leaves of A. villosum was conducted to isolate and identify-four undescribed compounds (1, 2a, 2b, and 3) along with 41 known ones (4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, and 6-42). All isolated compounds were assessed for their anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities. Among them, compounds 5b, 33, 34, and 38 exhibited anti-inflammatory activity, and compounds 1, 4a, 4b, 6, 7, 15, 33, 35, 37, and 41 showed antioxidant effects. Among them, the new compound 1 showed a significant antioxidant effect via activation of NRF2/HO-1 pathways. Therefore, the leaves and stems of A. villosum may be served as a potential medicine or dietary supplement for preventing and treating diseases resulting from inflammation and oxidative stress.

One new cinnamic imide dervative from the fruits of Tribulus terrestris.

One new cinnamic imide derivative, named tribulusimide C (1), was isolated from the fruits of Tribulus terrestris, together with three known compounds, N-p-coumaroyltyramine (2), terrestriamide (3), N-trans-caffeoyltyramine (4). The structure of 1 was elucidated based on chemical analysis and spectral methods (IR, 1D and 2D NMR, HR-FAB-MS, EI-MS).