Role of Chitosan Characteristics on the Properties of Curcumin-Loaded Carriers and Their Potential Application in Ophthalmologic Infection Therapy

This study is a comparative investigation of the activity of unloaded and curcumin-loaded oil-in-water emulsion or chitosan-based capsules on rabbit retinal cells (RRC), coronavirus HCoV-OC43, and virus HSV-1 virus in relation to their potential ophthalmologic applications. The carriers are develope...

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Main Authors: Viktoria Milkova, Petar Martinov, Neli Vilhelmova-Ilieva, Ivan Iliev
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-03-01
Series:Polysaccharides
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4176/6/1/22
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author Viktoria Milkova
Petar Martinov
Neli Vilhelmova-Ilieva
Ivan Iliev
author_facet Viktoria Milkova
Petar Martinov
Neli Vilhelmova-Ilieva
Ivan Iliev
author_sort Viktoria Milkova
collection DOAJ
description This study is a comparative investigation of the activity of unloaded and curcumin-loaded oil-in-water emulsion or chitosan-based capsules on rabbit retinal cells (RRC), coronavirus HCoV-OC43, and virus HSV-1 virus in relation to their potential ophthalmologic applications. The carriers are developed by using well-established experimental procedures. The characterization of their surface properties and stability in simulated ocular fluids (tear fluid, aqueous humor, and vitreous humor) is performed using the dynamic light scattering method and UV–vis spectrophotometry. In vitro tests are performed to determine the cytotoxicity and phototoxicity of pure curcumin (CR) and selected CR-containing carriers on RRC. The effect of the unloaded and CR-loaded carriers on the antiviral activity, the behavior of the extracellular virions, and the influence on viral adsorption is evaluated against coronavirus HCoV-OC43 and HSV-1 virus by using suitable microbiological assays. In accordance with the obtained experimental results, the toxicity of carriers containing CR is significantly reduced compared to pure compound and unloaded carriers. Moreover, the activity of the unloaded carriers can be increased several times by incorporating CR. The experimental results demonstrate that the variation in the properties of even one component of the structural composition can provoke the different activity of the carriers.
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series Polysaccharides
spelling doaj-art-d9ccbaaf4027415a918c37d5982be47e2025-08-20T02:10:24ZengMDPI AGPolysaccharides2673-41762025-03-01612210.3390/polysaccharides6010022Role of Chitosan Characteristics on the Properties of Curcumin-Loaded Carriers and Their Potential Application in Ophthalmologic Infection TherapyViktoria Milkova0Petar Martinov1Neli Vilhelmova-Ilieva2Ivan Iliev3Rostislaw Kaischew Institute of Physical Chemistry, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 1113 Sofia, BulgariaRostislaw Kaischew Institute of Physical Chemistry, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 1113 Sofia, BulgariaStephan Angeloff Institute of Microbiology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 1113 Sofia, BulgariaInstitute of Experimental Morphology, Pathology and Anthropology with Museum, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 1113 Sofia, BulgariaThis study is a comparative investigation of the activity of unloaded and curcumin-loaded oil-in-water emulsion or chitosan-based capsules on rabbit retinal cells (RRC), coronavirus HCoV-OC43, and virus HSV-1 virus in relation to their potential ophthalmologic applications. The carriers are developed by using well-established experimental procedures. The characterization of their surface properties and stability in simulated ocular fluids (tear fluid, aqueous humor, and vitreous humor) is performed using the dynamic light scattering method and UV–vis spectrophotometry. In vitro tests are performed to determine the cytotoxicity and phototoxicity of pure curcumin (CR) and selected CR-containing carriers on RRC. The effect of the unloaded and CR-loaded carriers on the antiviral activity, the behavior of the extracellular virions, and the influence on viral adsorption is evaluated against coronavirus HCoV-OC43 and HSV-1 virus by using suitable microbiological assays. In accordance with the obtained experimental results, the toxicity of carriers containing CR is significantly reduced compared to pure compound and unloaded carriers. Moreover, the activity of the unloaded carriers can be increased several times by incorporating CR. The experimental results demonstrate that the variation in the properties of even one component of the structural composition can provoke the different activity of the carriers.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4176/6/1/22curcuminencapsulationantiviral activityrabbit retinal cellscoronavirus HCoV-OC43HSV-1 virus
spellingShingle Viktoria Milkova
Petar Martinov
Neli Vilhelmova-Ilieva
Ivan Iliev
Role of Chitosan Characteristics on the Properties of Curcumin-Loaded Carriers and Their Potential Application in Ophthalmologic Infection Therapy
Polysaccharides
curcumin
encapsulation
antiviral activity
rabbit retinal cells
coronavirus HCoV-OC43
HSV-1 virus
title Role of Chitosan Characteristics on the Properties of Curcumin-Loaded Carriers and Their Potential Application in Ophthalmologic Infection Therapy
title_full Role of Chitosan Characteristics on the Properties of Curcumin-Loaded Carriers and Their Potential Application in Ophthalmologic Infection Therapy
title_fullStr Role of Chitosan Characteristics on the Properties of Curcumin-Loaded Carriers and Their Potential Application in Ophthalmologic Infection Therapy
title_full_unstemmed Role of Chitosan Characteristics on the Properties of Curcumin-Loaded Carriers and Their Potential Application in Ophthalmologic Infection Therapy
title_short Role of Chitosan Characteristics on the Properties of Curcumin-Loaded Carriers and Their Potential Application in Ophthalmologic Infection Therapy
title_sort role of chitosan characteristics on the properties of curcumin loaded carriers and their potential application in ophthalmologic infection therapy
topic curcumin
encapsulation
antiviral activity
rabbit retinal cells
coronavirus HCoV-OC43
HSV-1 virus
url https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4176/6/1/22
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