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Glycyrrhizin functionalized CuS Nanoprobes for NIR Light-based therapeutic mitigation of acne vulgaris

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Abstract

Acne Vulgaris or Acne is a multifactorial bacterial infection caused by Propionibacterium acne, leading to inflammation and decreased quality of life, especially in adolescence. Currently, antibiotics and retinoids are preferred for treating acne. However, their continuous usage may lead to anti-microbial resistance and other side effects. Therefore, research on developing effective strategies to reduce antimicrobial resistance and improve acne healing is ongoing. The current work reports the synthesis and evaluation of near-infrared light-absorbing copper sulfide (CuS) nanoparticles loaded with a biomolecule, Glycyrrhizin (Ga). The photothermal efficacy studies, and in-vitro and in-vivo experiments indicated that the Ga-CuS NPs generated localized hyperthermia in acne-causing bacteria, leading to their complete growth inhibition. The results indicated that the Ga-Cus NPs possess excellent antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties in the acne and inflammatory models. This could be from the synergistic effect of CuS NPs mediated mild Photothermal effect and inherent pharmacological properties of Ga. Further detailed studies of the formulations can pave the way for application in cosmetic clinics for the effective and minimally invasive management of Acne-like conditions.

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Data availability

Supporting data associated with this work, such as synthetic procedures, and protocols of the spectroscopic, in vitro and in vivo studies, are available and included in the supporting information file.

Availability of data and materials

All data generated or analysed during this study are included in this published article or the Supporting information file.

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Funding and acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank and acknowledge the Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers, Department of Biotechnology (BIRAC), Govt. of India, Ministry of development of Northeast Region (DoNER) and DST-TIFAC, Govt. of India for research funding and support. SG & NP would also like to acknowledge the Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers, Govt. India for the research fellowship.

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Author notes

  1. Srivathsan Ganeshan and Nidhi Parihar contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Guwahati, 781101, Assam, India

    Srivathsan Ganeshan, Nidhi Parihar, Donker Chonzom, Dinesh Mohanakrishnan, Suryanarayana Murty Upadhayula & Deepak Bharadwaj Pemmaraju

  2. Department of Zoology, Gauhati University, Guwahati, 781014, Assam, India

    Rajdeep Das & Dandadhar Sarma

  3. Materials Sciences, and Technology Division, CSIR-North East Institute of Science and Technology, Jorhat, 785006, Assam, India

    Devipriya Gogoi & Manash Ranjan Das

  4. Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, Ghaziabad, 201002, India

    Manash Ranjan Das

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  1. Srivathsan Ganeshan
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Contributions

SG, NP, and DC were involved in performing experiments, analysing and drafting of the manuscript. DM & SS guided and supported for the antimicrobial studies. DG and MRD supported for the XPS analysis. RD & DS supported for the in-vivo experiments. USNM was involved in the research and administrative support and DBP was involved in ideation, execution and drafting of the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Deepak Bharadwaj Pemmaraju.

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“All institutional and national guidelines for the care and use of laboratory animals were followed.” The details are provided in the methods section.

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Ganeshan, S., Parihar, N., Chonzom, D. et al. Glycyrrhizin functionalized CuS Nanoprobes for NIR Light-based therapeutic mitigation of acne vulgaris. Drug Deliv. and Transl. Res. (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13346-024-01594-x

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