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Introduction: Multi-drug nanosystem has been employed in several therapeutic models due to the synergistic effect of the drugs and/or bioactive compounds, which help in tumor-targeting and limit usual side effects of chemotherapy. Methods: In this research, we developed the amphiphilic Heparin-Poloxamer P403 (HSP) nanogel that can load curcumin (CUR) and Paclitaxel (PTX) through the hydrophobic core of Poloxamer P403. The features of HSP nanogel are assessed through Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), differential light scattering (DLS), and critical micelle concentration (CMC). Nanogel and its duel-loaded platform show high stability and spherical morphology. Results: The drug release profile indicates fast release at pH 5.5, suggesting effective drug distribution at the tumor site. In vitro research confirms lower cytotoxicity of HSP@CUR@PTX compared with free PTX and higher inhibition effect with MCF-7 than HSP@PTX. These results support the synergism between PTX and CUR. Conclusion,: HSP@CUR@PTX suggests a prominent strategy for achieving the synergistic effect of PTX and CUR to circumvent undesirable effects in breast cancer treatment.

Few studies have been conducted on group B Streptococcus (GBS) in Vietnam. We determined the GBS colonization and antimicrobial resistance vaginal-rectal profile of 3863 Vietnamese pregnant women over 5 years. Maternal GBS colonization was characterized by antibiotic susceptibility. Overall, the GBS colonization rate was 8.02% (95% CI: 7.20–8.94%). Compared to sampling ≥ 35 weeks of gestation, the GBS colonization rate was statistically higher (p = 0.004) with sampling < 35 weeks. Among 272 antimicrobial susceptibility testing isolates, all were susceptible to ampicillin, penicillin, ceftriaxone, cefotaxime, vancomycin, and quinupristin/dalfopristin. Resistance was highest for tetracycline (89.66%), followed by erythromycin (76.23%) and clindamycin (58.21%). Multidrug resistance and resistance to ≥ 6 different antibiotics were 60.66% and 8.82%, respectively. Resistance to clindamycin but not erythromycin (L phenotype) was 2.2%. The clindamycin resistance rate was significantly increased (p = 0.005) during the study period. These data demonstrate a low rate of maternal GBS colonization. The high rate of erythromycin, clindamycin, and multidrug resistance to GBS that can be transmitted to neonates is an important risk factor to consider. β-lactams continue to be appropriate for first-line treatment and prophylaxis in the study area. Ongoing monitoring should be considered in the future.

Liposomal encapsulation is a drug delivery strategy with many advantages, such as improved bioavailability, ability to carry large drug loads, as well as controllability and specificity towards various targeted diseased tissues. Currently, most preparation techniques require an additional extrusion or filtering step to obtain monodisperse liposomes with the size of less than 100 nm. In this study, a compact liposome extruder was designed at a cost of $4.00 and used to synthesize liposome suspensions with defined particle size and high homogeneity for Murrayafoline A (Mu-A) loading and release. The synthesized MuA-loaded liposomes displayed a biphasic drug release and remained stable under the storage condition of 4°C. They also significantly reduced the viability of HepG2 cells in the cancer spheroids by 25%. The low-cost, flexible liposome extruder would allow the researchers to study liposomes and their applications in a cost-effective manner.

The clinical outcome of dengue is due to a complex interplay between dengue virus (DENV) and host immune factors, including complement and cytokine systems. Proinflammatory cytokines are mainly produced by monocytes in response to infectious pathogens. This study investigated the levels of proinflammatory cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor-a (TNF-a), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1b), and IL-12 in Vietnamese patients with dengue, and their correlations with the clinical outcome of dengue infection in 156 patients clinically classified as dengue without warning signs (DWS-, n = 87), dengue with warning signs (DWS+, n = 62), and severe dengue (SD, n = 7) patients as well as in 60 healthy controls (HCs). Serum TNF-a, IL-1b, and IL-12 levels were quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The results showed that TNF-a, IL-1b, and IL-12 levels were significantly increased in dengue patients compared with HCs (p < 0.0001). TNF-a levels were significantly correlated with white blood cells and platelet counts (r s = 0.52, 0.2; p < 0.0001, p = 0.018, respectively). IL-1b levels were correlated with red blood cells counts and the levels of aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase (r s = 0.23, 0.21, 0.23; p = 0.004, 0.012, 0.005, respectively). The results suggest that these three proinflammatory cytokines are associated with the clinical outcome of dengue and could play roles in the pathogenesis of the disease.