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Simple Summary: Oral cancer represents a main public health issue around the world due to the mortality rates associated with it, the lack of effective and potent drugs, the multitude of side effects and the expensive treatments. Until now, no natural alternative therapeutic methods have been found beneficial enough to replace conventional drugs. Thus, bioactive compounds with anticancer properties can represent a necessary alternative through a targeted molecular approach to the multiple pathways involved in carcinogenesis. This review explores how the therapeutic potential of natural compounds can be harnessed and how they can be used as adjuvant therapies for oral cancer treatment. The collected results focused only on plant extracts and biologically active metabolites known for their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antitumor potential, which can be described as future chemopreventive agents against oral cancer, alone or in therapeutic combinations. Background: With a significant increase in both incidence and mortality, oral cancer—particularly oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC)—is one of the main causes of death in developing countries. Even though there is evidence of advances in surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, the overall survival rate for patients with OSCC has improved, but by a small percentage. This may be due, on the one hand, to the fact that the disease is diagnosed when it is at a too-advanced stage, when metastases are already present. Methods: This review explores the therapeutic potential of natural herbal products and their use as adjuvant therapies in the treatment of oral cancer from online sources in databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar, Research Gate, Scopus, Elsevier). Results: Even if classic therapies are known to be effective, they often produce many serious side effects and can create resistance. Certain natural plant compounds may offer a complementary approach by inducing apoptosis, suppressing tumor growth, and improving chemotherapy effectiveness. The integration of these compounds with conventional treatments to obtain remarkable synergistic effects represents a major point of interest to many authors. This review highlights the study of molecular mechanisms and their efficiency in in vitro and in vivo models, as well as the strategic ways in which drugs can be administered to optimize their use in real contexts. Conclusions: This review may have a significant impact on the oncology community, creating new inspirations for the development of more effective, safer cancer therapies with less toxic potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The degree of deacetylation, DDA is the most important characteristic for a specific chitosan sample as it mainly influences its chemical and biological properties. Several natural wastes may be used as sources for chitin as for example crabs' and shrimps' exoskeletons, and the yield of chitosan extraction is generally small and depends on the chitin extraction and the deacetylation step. The simultaneous maximization of yield and deacetylation degree DDA pointed out some optimal operating conditions of the deacetylation procedure. The maximum yield and maximum DDA can be obtained working with higher NaOH concentrations and longer duration of this step. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chitosan is a natural polymer with numerous biomedical applications. The cellular activity of chitosan has been studied in various types of cancer, including melanoma, and indicates that these molecules can open new perspectives on antiproliferative action and anticancer therapy. This study analyzes how different chitosan conformations, such as α-chitosan (CH) or β-oligochitosan (CO), with various degrees of deacetylation (DDA) and molar mass (MM), both in different concentrations and in CH–CO mixtures, influence the cellular processes of SK-MEL-28 melanocytes, to estimate the reactivity of these cells to the applied treatments. The in vitro evaluation was carried out, aiming at the cellular metabolism (MTT assay), cellular morphology, and chitinase-like glycoprotein YKL-40 expression. The in vitro effect of the CH–CO mixture application on melanocytes is obvious at low concentrations of α-chitosan/β-oligochitosan (1:2 ratio), with the cell's response supporting the hypothesis that β-oligo-chitosan amplifies the effect. This oligochitosan mixture, favored by the β conformation and its small size, penetrates faster into the cells, being more reactive when interacting with some cellular components. Morphological effects expressed by the loss of cell adhesion and the depletion of YKL-40 synthesis are significant responses of melanocytes. β-oligochitosan (1.5 kDa) induces an extension of cytophysiological effects and limits the cell viability compared to α-chitosan (400–900 kDa). Statistical analysis using multivariate techniques showed differences between the CH samples and CH–CO mixtures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a result of the evolution of information and communication technologies, medicines, like other goods, are now increasingly marketed on the EU internal market through these channels. When examining the compatibility of the conditions for the supply of retail medicinal products with European Union law, the Court of Justice has recognized the specific nature of medicinal products, whose therapeutic effect significantly distinguishes them from other goods. Taking into account all these aspects, this article aims to analyse the centralized regulation of online pharmacies in relation to European Union law, the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union, as well as the legislative measures taken at national level to provide medicinal products to the population through the Internet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current context of concern for the improvement and protection of environmental conditions, emphasis is placed on the provision of non-toxic, eco-friendly, renewable biomaterials to replace established chemical substances. Lythri herba is the aerial part of the plant species Lythrum salicaria L., known in the scientific literature especially for its content of tannins and total polyphenols, which highlight its antioxidant, hemostatic, antibacterial and antidiarrheal properties. Chitosan is a biopolymer widely used in industry and medicine due to its abundance in nature, its biodegradability, lack of toxicity and the ease with which it can be transformed into several basic forms (hydrogel, membrane, sponge). The aqueous solutions and membranes obtained in this study by merging these two natural resources were biologically tested in terms of genotoxicity (SOS-Chromo assay), hemolytic activity, thrombin generation activity and bacterial adhesion to reveal outwardly the lack of these properties and their use for medical purposes. The results of the current study attest to the absence of mutagenic and slight hemolyzing properties, thus supporting the possibility of using this extract and membrane in medical and pharmaceutical therapeutic practice. The surface parameters of membranes were examined and important influences at thrombin activity were found. Also, bacterial adhesion results showed a correlation between Lythri herba and chitosan concentrations and membranes' appearances (swelling, stability). The results show that the membranes could be a promising material for biomedical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marine biofouling is an old problem, known and studied for centuries, since the beginning of navigation. The accumulation of marine biofouling begins on the submerged portion of an ocean-going vessel or on any installation (equipments, pipes, platforms, etc.) within minutes of contact with seawater. Over time, this accumulation increases the ship's resistance, leading to increases in the physical resistance of the ship in the water, with negative consequences on fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, high maintenance costs (due to corrosion), and a negative impact on the marine environment (due to the release of toxic bioactive compounds into the environment and the transfer of invasive species). These environmental issues were identified and recognized by the IMO, which in the early 1990s, through the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC), adopted a resolution recommending that member governments adopt measures to eliminate TBT-based antifouling paints. These recommendations have led to the identification, development, and application of new antifouling technologies that could provide the maritime industry with a significant potential opportunity with an innovative, cost-effective, and efficient approach to the effects of marine biofouling. Our study aimed to make a small incursion in time, through the specialized literature on methods used to combat marine fouling, to highlight new research approaches to the identification and use of natural biocides to replace chemical ones. The targeting of research directions towards the identification of the most environmentally friendly antifouling compounds, in particular natural marine compounds, has been a focus of international researchers in recent years. To achieve this goal, going back to nature is currently the best option, as it could provide us with very effective models for research and development of antifouling coatings. In the development and modeling of new antifouling paints, the influence of the physical-chemical parameters of seawater (pH, salinity, temperature) on the chemical components (active groups) of the biocides used should not be ignored. The aim of this study is to highlight the importance of developing new antifouling paint technologies using biodegradable, non-toxic, and environmentally friendly compounds according to international legislation. In recent years there has been an increasing emphasis in research studies on the combination of natural biocides (obtained through the valorization of marine wastes) with natural or synthetic hydrogels whose action is to minimize the attachment of marine fouling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Chitosan, one of the most interesting and intriguing biopolymer, can be extracted from different marine waste. The present paper focuses on the chitosan extraction procedure from Macropipus holsatus crab waste. Because the deacetylation degree is the most important characteristic of chitosan, the influence of specific operating parameters during deacetylation treatment was analyzed by statistical analysis and mathematical modelling using artificial neural networks (ANN). The ANN simulation put into evidence the manner that the deacetylation degree is influenced by the considered operating conditions and enabled the identification of optimal operating conditions in order to obtain a chitosan with a relatively high deacetylation degree. The obtained chitosan was characterized by various methods, including physical-chemical analysis, structure identification and crystallinity index. The main effects as well as the interaction effects for some physical-chemical properties were studied to establish if and how the chitosan properties are affected by the extraction procedure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Morphogenesis and cellular differentiation present a remarkable interest in studies of cellular regeneration, cellular responses to xenobiotics or the evaluation of tumorigeneses and cytotoxicity induced by substances with therapeutic potential. The study of the process of cellular differentiation and its modifications under the influence of natural extracts was made on the larvae (naupliar stages) of Artemia salina. As a result of high sensitivity and accessibility in laboratory manipulation, the larvae of Artemia are used as animal models in the aquaculture, the assessment of acute cytotoxicity and brine shrimp lethality assay (BSLA). The larvae in the growth period pass through a lot of moulting processes which are associated with epithelium cell divisions and the rearrangement of these in tissues structures within a period of several hours. The assessment of cellular differentiation was followed after the exposure of freshly hatched larvae to natural extracts. The effects of the compounds were measured by determining the survival rate of larvae and microscopically observing visible changes. Natural extracts from Taraxacum officinale F.H. Wigg, Chelidonium majus L., Tragopogon dubius Scop, Usnea barbata L., Galanthus elwesii Hook. were analyzed. A cytological study performed on these biotesters indicates a significant correlation between cell differentiation and metabolism. Some potentially cytotoxic compounds induce changes in organogenesis. The results highlight shape changes of the epithelial cells, alteration at intercellular connections, rearranging and reorganizing the primordium appendices cells and altering membrane and blocking cellular differentiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chitosan is a well known biopolymer with applications in various areas, and especially in pharmaceutical and medical fields. The main source of chitosan is represented by the marine waste. The present study was focused on chitosan extraction from shrimp waste using a classical chemical procedure. The obtained chitosan was characterized regarding its physical-chemical properties, and also the antioxidant activity and hemolytic activity were evaluated. In this study, the chitosan samples were dissolved in diluted solutions of acetic acid and lactic acid. The results showed that the best antioxidant activity was obtained for the chitosan dissolved in acetic acid. Also, the chitosan samples produced significant effects on the red blood cells activity. All these results suggest that new potential applications could be envisaged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The chlorhexidine complexes with metallic ions of copper are newly synthesized in order to obtain topical pharmaceutical preparations with antiseptic and anti-inflammatory activities, but without adverse effects or allergic reactions on the mucous membranes or epithelia. The testing of the cytological activities on the radix meristem of Allium cepa completes the previous tests accomplished on microorganism. Bulbs (2 cm in diameter), with 5-10 mm radices, were introduced into solutions of the complexes. The used complexes have ethanol (10-3) as solvent, therefore the control samples were: water, ethanol (250 μL, 500 μL) in order to record possible influences of the solvent volume that could cover the real effects of the compound. The radices were measured and then the meristems were harvested at 24 hours and 96 hours respectively. The microscope preparations were fixed in acetic acid 45% and then colored with Schiff reagent. The results emphasized that all the compounds have a cytostatic effect, but do not manifest genotoxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to complete our research on Usnea barbata (L.) Weber ex F.H. Wigg (U. barbata) from the Călimani Mountains, Romania, with an elemental analysis and to explore its antibacterial and antifungal potential. Thus, we analyzed twenty-three metals (Ca, Fe, Mg, Mn, Zn, Al, Ag, Ba, Co, Cr, Cu, Li, Ni, Tl, V, Mo, Pd, Pt, Sb, As, Pb, Cd, and Hg) in dried U. barbata lichen (dUB) by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). For the second study, we performed dried lichen extraction with five different solvents (ethyl acetate, acetone, ethanol, methanol, and water), obtaining five U. barbata dry extracts (UBDE). Then, using an adapted disc diffusion method (DDM), we examined their antimicrobial activity against seven bacterial species—four Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus casseliflavus, Streptococcus pyogenes, and Streptococcus pneumoniae) and three Gram-negative (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa)—and two fungi species (Candida albicans and Candida parapsilosis). Usnic acid (UA) was used as a positive control. The ICP-MS data showed a considerable Ca content (979.766 µg/g), followed by, in decreasing order, Mg, Mn, Al, Fe, and Zn. Other elements had low levels: Ba, Cu, Pb, and Cr (3.782–1.002 µg/g); insignificant amounts (<1 µg/g) of Hg and V were also found in dUB. The trace elements Ag, As, Cd, Co, Li, Tl, Mo, Pd, Pt, and Sb were below detection limits (<0.1 µg/g). The DDM results—expressed as the size (mm) of the inhibition zone diameter (IZs)—proved that the water extract did not have any inhibitory activity on any pathogens (IZs = 0 mm). Gram-positive bacteria displayed the most significant susceptibility to all other UBDE, with Enterococcus casseliflavus showing the highest level (IZs = 20–22 mm). The most susceptible Gram-negative bacterium was Pseudomonas aeruginosa (IZs = 16–20 mm); the others were insensitive to all U. barbata dry extracts (IZs = 0 mm). The inhibitory activity of UBDE and UA on Candida albicans was slightly higher than on Candida parapsilosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]