Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 Mar 17:13:1552298.
doi: 10.3389/fchem.2025.1552298. eCollection 2025.

Composite nanoparticle-based vesicles achieve enhanced delivery effects of the natural plant extract of the root, stem, and fruit

Xiaodong Zhuang  1 , Ting Ma  1 , Risheng Liu  1 , Xingyue Fang  2 , Liangjiu Huang  1
Affiliations

Composite nanoparticle-based vesicles achieve enhanced delivery effects of the natural plant extract of the root, stem, and fruit

Xiaodong Zhuang et al. Front Chem. .

Abstract

The extract of medicinal plants is increasingly popular around the whole world due to its attractive therapeutic effects. However, the bioavailability of the extract of bioactive compounds was barely satisfactory due to its easily deactivated and untargeted properties. The use of nanotechnology to develop novel carrier delivery techniques for bioactive extracts has been proven to have significant potential and provides an amazing improvement in the therapeutic effect. Calcium carbonate nanoparticles (CaCO3 NPs), as representative biodegradable materials, are well recognized as environmentally responsive delivery vehicles for disease treatment. In this study, extracts of the root of ginseng, the fruit of Alpinia oxyphylla Miq., and the stem of Millettia speciosa Champ. were developed as a CaCO3 nanoparticle loading drug. All of the three composite nanoparticles exhibited spherical shapes with a narrow size distribution. Notably, the ginseng extract-loaded CaCO3 NPs hold a relatively higher entrapment efficiency of up to 55.2% ± 6.7% and excellent release performance under acidic conditions (pH = 5.5). Moreover, intravenous injection of ginseng CaCO3 NPs resulted in significantly enhanced therapeutic effects in the treatment of glioma. The results demonstrate that CaCO3-based composite nanoparticles are ideal for the delivery of plant extracts, and the systems are expected to be effective against various types of diseases in the future.

Keywords: Alpinia oxyphylla Miq.; Millettia speciosa Champ.; calcium carbonate nanoparticles; drug delivery; ginseng.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Schematic illustration of the construction of CaCO3-based composite nanoparticles. The aqueous extracts derived from the root of the ginseng, the fruit of A. oxyphylla Miq., and the stem of M. speciosa champ. were prepared as loaded drugs for the construction of composite nanoparticles. The size, polydispersity (PDI), and entrapment efficiency (EE) of the corresponding composite nanoparticles (ginseng CaCO3 nanoparticles, A. oxyphylla Miq. CaCO3 nanoparticles, and M. speciosa champ. CaCO3 nanoparticles) were measured for the characterization of the load performance. Data are expressed as mean ± SD (n = 5).
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Preparation and characterization of CaCO3-based composite nanoparticles. (A) TEM image of CaCO3 NPs. Scale bar, 100 nm. (B) Cumulative drug release from CaCO3 NPs.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Confocal fluorescence images of GL261 cells after incubation with Cy5-loaded CaCO3 NPs. Scale bar: 50 µm.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Viabilities of GL261 cells after different treatments for 24 h. (A) Cell viability of ginseng aqueous extracts and ginseng CaCO3 NPs. (B) Cell viability of A. oxyphylla Miq. aqueous extracts and A. oxyphylla Miq. CaCO3 NPs. (C) Cell viability of M. speciosa Champ. aqueous extracts and M. speciosa Champ. CaCO3 NPs.
FIGURE 5
FIGURE 5
Cell apoptosis analysis via annexin V-FITC/PI double staining.
FIGURE 6
FIGURE 6
In vivo anti-glioma activity of ginseng CaCO3 NPs. (A) Representative bioluminescence images of GL261-Luc glioma-bearing mice treated via different groups. (B) Survival curve for the mice (n = 5 mice per group). (C) Body weight change in different groups.
FIGURE 7
FIGURE 7
H&E staining of major organs after treatments. Scale bar: 200 µm.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Balusamy S. R., Perumalsamy H., Huq M. A., Yoon T. H., Mijakovic I., Thangavelu L., et al. (2023). A comprehensive and systemic review of ginseng-based nanomaterials: synthesis, targeted delivery, and biomedical applications. Med. Res. Rev. 43 (5), 1374–1410. 10.1002/med.21953 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Chang-Xiao L., Pei-Gen X. (1992). Recent advances on ginseng research in China. J. Ethnopharmacol. 36 (1), 27–38. 10.1016/0378-8741(92)90057-x - DOI - PubMed
    1. Chen J., Lyu X., Zhai D., Cai J. (2021a). Advances in chemical constituents and pharmacological effects of Millettia speciosa Champ. J. Holist. Integr. Pharm. 2 (4), 287–300. 10.1016/s2707-3688(23)00072-9 - DOI
    1. Chen S.-L., Yu H., Luo H.-M., Wu Q., Li C.-F., Steinmetz A. (2016). Conservation and sustainable use of medicinal plants: problems, progress, and prospects. Chin. Med. 11 (1), 37. 10.1186/s13020-016-0108-7 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Chen X., Huang Z., Luo S.-Y., Zong M.-H., Lou W.-Y. (2021b). Multi-functional magnetic hydrogels based on Millettia speciosa Champ residue cellulose and Chitosan: highly efficient and reusable adsorbent for Congo red and Cu2+ removal. Chem. Eng. J. 423, 130198. 10.1016/j.cej.2021.130198 - DOI

LinkOut - more resources