The environmental impact of drug manufacturing raises concerns about sustainability in healthcare. To address this, exploring alternative approaches to drug production is crucial. This review focuses on seaweed as a sustainable resource for greening drug manufacturing processes. Seaweed offers advantages such as renewability, abundance, and a positive environmental footprint. The review begins by providing an overview of sustainable drug manufacturing practices and the challenges faced in achieving sustainability. It then discusses seaweed as a sustainable resource, including cultivation techniques and environmental benefits. Seaweed has various applications in drug manufacturing, including extracting and purifying bioactive compounds with potential therapeutic properties. Seaweed’s role in developing green technologies, such as seaweed-based excipients, biodegradable packaging materials, and as a source of sustainable energy for drug manufacturing processes, is highlighted. The environmental and economic implications of incorporating seaweed-based solutions are discussed, emphasizing reduced carbon footprint and cost-effectiveness. Regulatory and industrial perspectives are addressed, examining challenges, and opportunities for implementing seaweed-based drug manufacturing. Collaboration between academia, industry, and regulatory bodies is crucial for successful integration. The review presents future directions and opportunities, including emerging trends and innovations in seaweed-based drug manufacturing, areas for further research, policy development, and industry engagement recommendations. Incorporating seaweed into drug production facilitates a reduction in environmental impact, promotes resource efficiency, and contributes to sustainable healthcare. This review showcases seaweed-based solutions as a means to foster a greener future for drug manufacturing, addressing environmental concerns, and promoting sustainability.

In recent times, there has been a revolutionary surge in antioxidant research, with a focus on harnessing microalgae to enhance wellness and extend human longevity. Microalgae, a diverse group of unicellular photosynthetic organisms, have emerged as promising sources of natural antioxidants due to their ability to synthesize various bioactive compounds, including carotenoids, polyphenols, and tocopherols. These antioxidants play a pivotal role in scavenging free radicals and reducing oxidative stress, known contributors to aging and chronic diseases. This review provides an over-view of recent advancements in understanding microalgae’s antioxidant potential, covering their biochemical composition, extraction techniques, and purification methods. Moreover, it delves into compelling in vitro and in vivo studies showcasing microalgae-derived antioxidants’ protective effects against oxidative damage, inflammation, cardiovascular diseases, and neurodegenerative disorders. The sustainable cultivation of microalgae in controlled environments further supports the potential for large-scale production and commercialization of their antioxidant compounds. As microalgae continue to revolutionize antioxidant research, they hold immense promise in developing novel preventive and therapeutic strategies to promote human health and wellbeing.

The presence of high-quality water is essential not only for human survival but also for the well-being of plants and animals. This research aimed to examine studies investigating the occurrence of antibiotics, endocrine disruptors, and other pharmaceutical products in water, sediments, and organisms within aquatic ecosystems. These substances have been linked to numerous adverse health effects on both humans and aquatic life, including reproductive issues and neurotoxic effects. The pervasive utilization of antibiotics in medical and agricultural domains has precipitated their ascension as formidable environmental contaminants. Effluents discharged from pharmaceutical industries constitute significant contributors to aquatic ecosystems’ contamination with antibiotics. These pharmacological agents permeate diverse environmental niches, spanning groundwater, surface water, soils, and wastewater treatment facilities, exhibiting concentrations ranging from nanograms to grams per liter. Concurrently, the indiscriminate and excessive application of antibiotics worldwide has engendered escalating apprehensions pertaining to antimicrobial resistance—a formidable global health exigency. This review also delves into the impact of pharmaceutical pollutants on aquatic environments, particularly as endocrine-disrupting compounds. Analysis of surface water in River Taff and River Ely reveals a consistent discharge of approximately 6 kilograms of pharmaceuticals per day. The study examines particular pharmaceuticals, such as diethylstilbestrol (DES), chlorotriazines, chloroquine, and antineoplastic drugs, elucidating their varied effects on reproductive cycles. Pharmaceutical pollutants in aquatic ecosystems, originating from sources like wastewater, agriculture, and improper disposal, persist and adversely affect organisms through bioaccumulation and biomagnification. These contaminants pose significant ecological and health risks, necessitating effective mitigation strategies.

Seaweeds, also known as marine algae, have gained attention as a promising source of bioactive compounds with potential applications in drug discovery. This review explores the emerging field of seaweed-based drug discovery and highlights the diverse range of bioactive compounds found in seaweeds, including polysaccharides, phlorotannins, pigments, and peptides. These compounds exhibit various pharmacological activities such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antiviral, and anticancer effects. Seaweeds have demonstrated particular promise in the areas of cancer research, with certain species showing potent antitumor properties. Additionally, their anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and neuroprotective potential has captured scientific interest in the treatment of chronic diseases and neurodegenerative disorders. However, challenges related to compound identification, extraction methods, scalability of seaweed cultivation, and understanding the mechanisms of action still need to be addressed. As researchers employ advanced technologies and dive deeper into the chemical composition of seaweeds, the untapped potential of these marine organisms in drug discovery awaits further exploration and holds significant promise for future therapeutic advancements.

Peptides constitute an important component of Nature’s pharmacy and they play a significant role in several signaling pathways acting as natural biological messengers. While nature has mastered the cycle of creation, application, and destruction of large and short peptides to the benefit of the host organism, organic and medicinal chemists have in their capacity and small steps, made big developments in the field of peptide synthesis as well as in developing them as therapeutics. In comparison to their big counterparts, i.e. proteins, short peptides encompass several advantages, from the ease of synthesis to their physico-chemical properties. However, the real challenge for in vivo application of therapeutic peptides is to overcome their low plasma availability and their fast enzymatic degradation. This review briefly covers the relevant areas of medicinally important short peptides and the recent developments made to turn these peptides into therapeutics. Also presented in this article are important efforts and strategies used to overcome some of the inherent limitations of peptidic molecules and thereby facilitate their progression in the clinical phases towards approved drugs.

The outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in December 2019 quickly escalated to pandemic levels and had a severe impact on public health. There are 761 million confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases, with over 6.88 million deaths worldwide till March 2023. Severe cases of the disease caused critical respiratory failure followed by multiorgan involvement. Clinical escalation of COVID-19 has been correlated with markedly increased plasma inflammatory markers [e.g., C-reactive protein (CRP)] and pro-inflammatory cytokine levels [e.g., interleukin (IL)-6, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α)]. Therapeutic options have mostly utilized corticosteroids, antivirals (e.g., remdesivir), and monoclonal antibody-based immunomodulation (e.g., tocilizumab). These existing treatments have adverse side effects, inadequate efficacy, and limitations in administering to patients with comorbidities and other underlying diseases. Monoclonal antibody-based therapies and some of the antivirals are very costly. Many phytochemicals have previously reported anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and antioxidant properties. Studying the effectiveness of such phytochemicals against COVID-19 and identifying new plant-derived molecules with antiviral properties have been a focus since the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak. This review article has documented in vitro, in vivo, and clinical studies encompassing 28 different phytochemicals belonging to various chemical groups (e.g., polyphenols, alkaloids, terpenes) that show anti-COVID-19 activity. These findings suggest that multiple phytochemicals can interfere with virus entry and replication inside the host cell. Many of them can protect from cytokine storm by acting on intracellular signalling pathways in addition to inhibiting virus multiplication. Phytochemicals may prove useful in alleviating post-COVID complications associated with kidney injury, and central nervous system complications, as well. Plant-derived compounds are usually cheaper and have fewer side effects. But, developing new formulations with better absorption and bioavailability remains a priority. This review informs the readers of the current status and indicates the ongoing research in this highly relevant field.

Malignant brain tumors are the leading cause of cancer-related death in children and remain a significant cause of morbidity and mortality throughout all demographics. Central nervous system (CNS) tumors are classically treated with surgical resection and radiotherapy in addition to adjuvant chemotherapy. However, the therapeutic efficacy of chemotherapeutic agents is limited due to the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Magnetic resonance guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) is a new and promising intervention for CNS tumors, which has shown success in preclinical trials. High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) has the capacity to serve as a direct therapeutic agent in the form of thermoablation and mechanical destruction of the tumor. Low-intensity focused ultrasound (LIFU) has been shown to disrupt the BBB and enhance the uptake of therapeutic agents in the brain and CNS. The authors present a review of MRgFUS in the treatment of CNS tumors. This treatment method has shown promising results in preclinical trials including minimal adverse effects, increased infiltration of the therapeutic agents into the CNS, decreased tumor progression, and improved survival rates.

Despite recent advancements in the field of neuro-ophthalmology, the rising rates of neurological and ophthalmological conditions, mismatches between supply and demand of clinicians, and an aging population underscore the urgent need to explore new therapeutic approaches within the field. Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs), traditionally used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes, are becoming increasingly appreciated for their diverse applications. Recently, GLP-1RAs have been approved for the treatment of obesity and recognized for their cardioprotective effects. Emerging evidence indicates some GLP-1RAs can cross the blood-brain barrier and may have neuroprotective effects. Therefore, this article aims to review the literature on the neurologic and neuro-ophthalmic role of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1). This article describes GLP-1 peptide characteristics and the mechanisms mediating its known role in increasing insulin, decreasing glucagon, delaying gastric emptying, and promoting satiety. This article identifies the sources and targets of GLP-1 in the brain and review the mechanisms which mediate its neuroprotective effects, as well as implications for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD). Furthermore, the preclinical works which unravel the effects of GLP-1 in ocular dynamics and the preclinical literature regarding GLP-1RA use in the management of several neuro-ophthalmic conditions, including diabetic retinopathy (DR), glaucoma, and idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) are discussed.

Protein therapeutics are extensively used in the treatment of autoimmune diseases, but a subset of patients appears to be refractory to these treatments, mainly due to the development of an immune response to the drug. A better understanding of the mechanism underlying the therapeutic drug’s failure becomes fundamental for the development of new and more effective treatments. Unfortunately, there are few cases where the exact mechanisms through which drugs bypass immunological tolerance and provoke immunogenicity have been studied. In this context, peptide epitope identification gained increasing importance in investigating the molecular mechanism of therapeutic drug’s immune responses. Despite peptide identification and use to monitor anti-drug antibody (ADA) profiles is a promising research field, their use is far away from a wide application both at the research and at the commercial level. Herein it is reported a compilation of studies in which peptides are directly involved in anti-drug immune responses, becoming the molecular key step for a better understanding of refractory reactions in therapeutic drugs. An overview on T-cell and B-cell peptide recognition is given, showing the growing potential and advantages of peptides when used in the field of refractoriness to drugs. This review includes studies describing antigenic peptides that enable enhanced ADA detection directly in patients’ sera, as well as the proof of concept that asses the use of peptides instead of proteins, to facilitate the identification of neutralizing ADA.

Bacterial infections constitute one of the major cases of primary medical incidences worldwide. Historically, the fight against bacterial infections in humans has been an ongoing battle, due to the ability of bacteria to adapt and to survive. Indeed, bacteria have developed various mechanisms of resistance against several therapeutic agents. Consequently, the scientific community is always interested in search of new therapeutic agents, which are able to efficiently kill resistant-bacterial strains. This article covers the most recent antibacterial molecules approved by the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) and European Medicines Agency (EMA) from 2012 to 2022 and intends to focus on synthetic derivatives to give a pedagogical view, with the goal of highlighting the importance of organic synthesis to obtain greater efficacy. A focus will be made on studies describing the structure and activity of the organic molecules and their interactions with their respective biological targets.

The search for novel therapeutic agents to combat the crisis of antimicrobial resistance has spanned from terrestrial to unique, marine environments. Currently, most of the drugs available for usage are derived from microbial metabolites, especially those belonging to the bacterial group, actinobacteria. Actinobacteria are hotspot organisms that exist in all habitats with a myriad of unique biosynthetic metabolites. Seagrasses appear to be a key ecosystem within the coastal environment worth bioprospecting for novel natural products. Unfortunately, literature about the bioactive potential of their associated prokaryotes, including actinobacteria remains limited. In this context, this review focused on actinobacteria with antibiotic-producing capabilities derived from different parts of seagrass plants (i.e. roots, rhizomes, and leaves). To date, there were no purified molecules derived from seagrass-associated actinobacteria that were subjected to structure elucidation. From the underpinning of numerous biological profiles such as antibacterial, antifungal, and algicidal activities of seagrass-derived actinobacteria reported in this review during the period from 2012–2020, it provides a continual growth of knowledge accruing overtime, providing a foundation for future research.

The influenza virus glycoprotein hemagglutinin (HA) participates in critical steps of the attachment of viral particles to the host cell membrane receptor and membrane fusion. Due to its crucial involvement in the initial phases of influenza A infections, HA emerges as a promising target in the search of novel drug-like candidates. Given its pivotal role in the early stages of influenza A infections, intense drug discovery efforts have been undertaken to target HA in the past decades. Drug discovery studies mainly rely on preventing the recognition of sialic acid units by the receptor binding site in the globular head (GH) domain, or the conformational rearrangement required for the fusion of viral and cell membranes. In this work, the aim is to summarize the progress made in HA-targeted development of small molecule fusion inhibitors. To this end, attention will primarily be focused on the analysis of the X-ray crystallographic structures of HA bound to fusion inhibitors. Furthermore, this study also aims to highlight the efforts made in exploiting the structural information in conjunction with molecular modeling techniques to discern the mechanism of action of the fusion inhibitors and to assist the design and interpretation of structure-activity relationships of novel lead compounds will be highlighted. The final section will be dedicated to elucidating novel and promising antiviral strategies proceeding from the transformation of known small molecule antivirals in proteolysis targeting chimera (PROTAC)-based targeted protein degradation. This knowledge will be valuable to assist the exploitation of classical and novel antiviral structure-based strategies, together with a deeper understanding of the mechanism of action and minimization of the impact of drug resistance.

With the surge of antibiotic resistance in bacteria, the need for a larger arsenal of effective antibiotics and vaccines has drastically increased in the past decades. Antibiotics like vaccines can benefit from significant potentiation when used in combination with adjuvants. Antibiotic adjuvants can allow for gram-positive bacteria (GPB) specific treatments to be used against gram-negative bacteria (GNB) infections, with minimal antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In the case of vaccines, they allow for modulation and increase of the immune response. Lipopeptides are molecules of choice because of their ability to activate specific cell surface receptors, penetrate the outer membrane of GNB, safety and ease of synthesis. This review explores the recent developments in lipopeptide adjuvants for antibiotics and vaccines, providing a roadmap on how to develop adjuvants to efficiently combat AMR. After a brief overview of bacterial resistance, lipopeptide adjuvants for antibiotics and vaccines are discussed, providing insights into stability, sources, and delivery methods. Findings discussed in this review could be applied to the development of safer, more effective adjuvants, that could expand the use or repurpose current antibiotics or improve vaccination results in future clinical trials.

With the continuous development of nanomaterials, nanofibers prepared by electrospinning have gradually occupied people’s vision because of their unique advantages, such as crisscross network and extracellular matrix-mimicking structure, high drug loading efficiency, and sustained release kinetics. Traditionally, electrospun fibers are mainly used as filter materials, wound dressings, and tissue engineering scaffolds, while their wide applications are limited to cancer nanomedicine applications due to their dense network structure. In recent years, two-dimensional fiber membranes have been transformed into short fibers that can be reconstructed to form fibrous rings or microspheres for cancer theranostics. Herein, this paper provides an overview of the recent advances in the design of electrospun short fibers that retain the advantages of nanofibers with good dispersibility for different nanomedicine applications, including cancer cell capture, cancer treatments, and cancer theranostics. The rational preparation of electrospun short fibers that are available to boost the development of nanomedicine is also discussed.

Nucleic acid therapeutics are emerging as a promising class of medicines, offering unique therapeutic options for cancer at the gene level. However, the druggability of nucleic acid therapeutics is fundamentally restricted by their low stability, poor membrane permeability, and low bioavailability, necessitating the use of delivery vectors. Various delivery vectors have been developed for nucleic acid therapeutics. The fate of established nucleic acid delivery systems (NADS) in vivo substantially affects the delivery efficiency and therapeutic efficacy. The physicochemical properties of NADS (such as size, charge, shape, etc) are crucial for the interaction of NADS with various biological barriers in the body, thereby determining the fate of NADS in the body. Nanoparticle (NP) size is an important parameter defining the blood circulation, distribution, tumor accumulation, and cellular uptake of NADS. This mini-review briefly introduces the various biological barriers of NADS in cancer treatment and focuses on the influence of the particle size of delivery vectors on the in vivo fate of NADS and their therapeutic efficacy, which provides new insights into the rational design of NADS.

Flavonoids present a large group of natural polyphenols with numerous important health benefits for preventing and treating a diverse variety of pathological conditions. However, the actual therapeutic use of these phytochemicals is impeded by their low oral bioavailability. In this commentary article, an interesting paradox is presented: while the ingested flavonoid glycosides can be absorbed by means of sodium-dependent glucose transporters (SGLTs; SGLT1) located in the brush border membrane facing the lumen of the small intestine, certain flavonoid aglycones are able to inhibit these shuttle proteins. It is expected that avoiding the co-intake of such SGLT1 inhibitors concomitantly with flavonoid-rich foods might provide a new option for enhancing the oral bioavailability of flavonoids, thereby preventing the transport of unabsorbed compounds to the large intestine and conversion into catabolites by the colonic microbiota. Altogether, the administration of flavonoids in appropriate combinations is highlighted for getting the maximal health benefits from consuming these bioactive compounds.

It is widely acknowledged that sialyl Lewis X (sLeX), the composition and linkage of which are N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac) α2-3 galactose (Gal) β1-4 [fucose (Fuc) α1-3] N-acetylglucosamine, is usually attached to the cell surface. It presents as a terminal structure on either glycoproteins or glycolipids and has been demonstrated to be related to various biological processes, such as fertilization and selectin binding. Due to the vital role of sLeX, its synthesis as well as its determination approaches have attracted considerable attention from many researchers. In this review, the focus is sLeX on glycoproteins. The biological importance of sLeX in fertilization and development, immunity, cancers, and other aspects will be first introduced. Then the chemical and enzymatic synthesis of sLeX including the contributions from more than 15 international research groups will be described, followed by a brief view of the sLeX detection focusing on monosaccharides and linkages. This review is valuable for those readers who are interested in the chemistry and biology of sLeX.

Pharmaceutical interventions play a vital role in managing various conditions, including weight-related issues such as obesity. In this context, lifestyle changes are often challenging to maintain, especially for individuals struggling with this condition. Obesity is strongly linked to serious health conditions like cardiovascular disease and insulin resistance, leading to a cascade of health risks. Importantly, the development of effective and safe weight loss medications has been challenging. Diabetes mellitus (DM), the incidence of which is also rising, is closely related to obesity. The annual rate of DM cases has increased significantly, mirroring trends in obesity. Pharmaceutical companies have made significant progress in developing drugs that address both diabetes and obesity. Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) have emerged as a promising class of medications with dual benefits in managing diabetes and aiding weight loss such as semaglutide, liraglutide, dulaglutide, exenatide, among others. However, despite their effectiveness, they can be expensive. The availability of various GLP-1RAs offers flexibility in diabetes management, but the surge in their prescription has led to a global shortage. Health authorities are working to address this issue, while pharmaceutical companies are exploring new paths to improve the quality of these drugs. In this context, tirzepatide stands out as a medication targeting key hormones involved in obesity and DM. Another potential breakthrough, retatrutide, is also being developed for these two conditions, but it requires further research. In this paper, the authors address all the GLP-1RA options developed to date, covering their mechanisms of action, efficacy, and chemical structures, among other aspects.