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Amphotericin B (AmB) is a very efficient drug against serious diseases such as leishmaniasis and systemic fungal infections. However, its oral bioavailability is limited due to its poor solubility in water. Nevertheless, it is marketed as high-cost lipid parenteral formulations that may induce serious infusion-related side effects. In this study, oil-in-water (O/W) microemulsions (MEs) were developed and characterized with a view to their use as solubility enhancers and oral delivery systems for AmB. Therefore, different nonionic surfactants from the Tween(®) and Span(®) series were tested for their solubilization capacity in combination with several oils. Based on pseudoternary phase diagrams, AmB-loaded MEs with mean droplet sizes about 120 nm were successfully produced. They were able to improve the drug solubility up to 1000-fold. Rheological studies showed the MEs to be low-viscosity formulations with Newtonian behavior. Circular dichroism and absorption spectra revealed that part of the AmB in the MEs was aggregated as an AmB reservoir carrier. Cytotoxicity studies revealed limited toxicity to macrophage-like cells that may allow the formulations to be considered as suitable carriers for AmB.

We report a simple and low cost methodology to synthesize sodium oleate coated magnetite nanoparticles for hyperthermia applications. The system consists of oleate coated magnetite nanoparticles with large susceptibility (1065 emu/gT), induced by the dipolar inter-particle interaction, with a magnetic core diameter in the 6 nm-12 nm size range. In aqueous medium, the nanoparticles agglomerate to form a monodisperse system, exhibiting a mean hydrodynamic diameter of 60.6 nm74.1 nm, with a low average polydispersity index of 0.12870.003, as required for intravenous applications. The system exhibits promising efficiency for magnetic hyperthermia, with a specific absorption rate of 14 W/g at a low field amplitude of 15.9 kA/m and frequency of 62 kHz. In a 50 mg/mL density in 1 mL, the temperature rises to 42.5 1C in 1.9 min.

The COVID-19 has become of striking interest since the number of deaths is constantly rising all over the globe, and the search for an efficient treatment is more urgent. In light of this worrisome scenario, this opinion review aimed to discuss the current knowledge about the potential role of curcumin and its nanostructured systems on the SARS-CoV-2 targets. From this perspective, this work demonstrated that curcumin urges as a potential antiviral key for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 based on its relation to the infection pathways. Moreover, the use of curcumin-loaded nanocarriers for increasing its bioavailability and therapeutic efficiency was highlighted. Additionally, the potential of the nanostructured systems by themselves and their synergic action with curcumin on molecular targets for viral infections have been explored. Finally, a viewpoint of the studies that need to be carried out to implant curcumin as a treatment for COVID-19 was addressed.