Global warming and sea level rise
are serious threats to agriculture.
The negative effects caused by severe salinity include discoloration
and reduced surface of the leaves, as well as wilting due to an impaired
uptake of water from the soil by roots. Nanotechnology is emerging
as a valuable ally in agriculture: several studies have indeed already
proven the role of silicon nanoparticles in ameliorating the conditions
of plants subjected to (a) biotic stressors. Here, we introduce the
concept of phyto-courier: hydrolyzable nanoparticles of porous silicon,
stabilized with the nonreducing saccharide trehalose and containing
different combinations of lipids and/or amino acids, were used as
vehicle for the delivery of the bioactive compound quercetin to the
leaves of salt-stressed hemp (Cannabis sativa L., Santhica 27). Hemp was used as a representative model of an
economically important crop with multiple uses. Quercetin is an antioxidant
known to scavenge reactive oxygen species in cells. Four different
silicon-based formulations were administered via spraying
in order to investigate their ability to improve the plant’s
stress response, thereby acting as nano-biostimulants. We show that
two formulations proved to be effective at decreasing stress symptoms
by modulating the amount of soluble sugars and the expression of genes
that are markers of stress-response in hemp. The study proves the
suitability of the phyto-courier technology for agricultural applications
aimed at crop protection.
Although physical methods are very promising to promote drug delivery through keratinized epithelial tissues, they are not extensively used on the oral cavity mucosae. The authors feel that, in the near future, these methods could be further developed to provide noninvasive and convenient means for locoregional/systemic delivery of drugs with poor bioavailability profile, short half-life and multiple doses scheduling. This review will help the readers in the selection of a suitable physical method for improving drug delivery in the oral cavity for future chances. The authors imagine that new formulations or devices will be marketed in the coming years.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.