Title:Anti-aging Strategies and Topical Delivery of Biopolymer-based
Nanocarriers for Skin Cancer Treatment
Volume: 17
Issue: 1
Author(s): Jino Affrald Ramaraj and Shoba Narayan*
Affiliation:
- Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, Chettinad Hospital and Research Institute, Chettinad Academy of Research and Education, Kelambakkam, Tamil Nadu, 603103, India.
Keywords:
Skin, aging, cancer, receptors, nanoformulation, biopolymers.
Abstract: Environmental factors like UV radiation and epigenetic changes are significant factors
for skin cancer that trigger early aging. This review provides essential information on cancer development
concerning aging, the receptors involved, and the therapeutic targets. Biopolymers like
polysaccharide, polyphenols, proteins, and nucleic acid plays a vital role in the regulation of normal
cell homeostasis. Therefore, it is pertinent to explore the role of biopolymers as antiaging formulations
and the possibility of these formulations being used against cancer via topical administrations.
As UV radiation is one of the predominant factors in causing skin cancer, the association
of receptors between aging and cancer indicated that insulin receptor, melatonin receptor, toll-like
receptor, SIRT 1 receptor, tumor-specific T cell receptor and mitochondria-based targeting could
be used to direct therapeutics for suppression of cancer and prevent aging. Biopolymer-based
nanoformulations have tremendously progressed by entrapment of drugs like curcumin and
resveratrol which can prevent cancer and aging simultaneously. Certain protein signaling or calcium
and ROS signaling pathways are different for cancer and aging. The involvement of mitochondrial
DNA mutation along with telomere shortening with a change in cellular energetics leading to
genomic instability in the aging process can also induce mitochondrial dysfunction and epigenetic
alterations leading to skin cancer. Therefore, the use of biopolymers as a topical supplement during
the aging process can result in the prevention of cancer.