Advances in natural compound-based nanomedicine and the interaction with gut microbiota in ulcerative colitis therapy

Jinlan Zhang; Shuhui Sun; Huan Chen; Yifan Feng; Ying Li; Zhengqi Dong

doi:10.3389/fphar.2023.1197144

Advances in natural compound-based nanomedicine and the interaction with gut microbiota in ulcerative colitis therapy

Front Pharmacol. 2023 Jul 13:14:1197144. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2023.1197144. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Jinlan Zhang^{1

2

3

4}, Shuhui Sun^{1

2

3

4}, Huan Chen^{1

2

3

4}, Yifan Feng^{1

2

3

4}, Ying Li^{1

2

3

4}, Zhengqi Dong^{1

2

3

4}

Affiliations

¹ Drug Delivery Research Center, Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.
² Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Resources Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.
³ Key Laboratory of New Drug Discovery Based on Classic Chinese Medicine Prescription, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
⁴ Beijing Key Laboratory of Innovative Drug Discovery of Traditional Chinese Medicine (Natural Medicine) and Translational Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.

Abstract

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory bowel disorder of the large intestine. Previous studies have indicated that the gut microbiota plays an important role in the triggers, development, and treatment response of UC. Natural active molecules and their nanoformulations show huge potential for treating UC. The nanoparticles can regulate the gut microbiota and metabolites, whereas gut microbiota-mediated effects on nanomedicines can also bring additional therapeutic benefits. Therefore, this review aims to integrate current research on natural active molecule-based nanomedicines for UC therapy and their interaction with the gut microbiota. Here, this discussion focuses on the effects and functions of gut microbiota and metabolites in UC. The use of active molecules and the nanoformulation from natural compounds for UC therapy have been provided. The interactions between the gut microbiota and nanomedicines are derived from natural products and elucidate the possible biological mechanisms involved. Finally, the challenges and future directions for enhancing the therapeutic efficacy of nanomedicine in treating UC are proposed.

Keywords: gut microbiota; interactions; nanomedicines; natural compounds; ulcerative colitis.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the CAMS Innovation Fund for Medical Science (CIFMS) (nos 2022-I2M-2-002, 2022-I2M-2-001, 2021-I2M-1-022, and 2021-I2M-1-031).