Cryptotanshinone

The growing demand for sustainable medical applications has sparked interest in the valorisation of agro‐industrial waste for bioactive compounds. Compost teas (CTs) from agrifood waste, rich in phenolics and lignin derivatives, offer promising biological properties. This study analysed CTs from bell pepper (CT‐BP) and citrus (CT‐C) composted waste, assessing their antioxidant, antiviral, and antimicrobial activities. NMR spectroscopy and thermochemolysis revealed that CT‐BP had more oxidised lignin derivatives, while CT‐C contained intact lignin structures. Both CTs effectively inhibited Gram‐positive bacteria ( Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus faecalis ), with CT‐BP showing greater efficacy. However, Gram‐negative bacteria ( Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa ) were more resistant. CT‐BP also exhibited potent antiviral effects against enveloped viruses like herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV‐1) and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). These findings support the use of compost‐derived extracts as sustainable bioactive agents, offering natural alternatives to conventional treatments. Further research could enhance the extraction and scalability of these materials for biomedical applications, aligning with principles of the circular economy.

Bile salt vesicles (BSVs) are phases formed by the self-assembly of bile salts and phospholipids in the intestinal endogenous environment, which play a crucial role in the absorption of insoluble components. Reciprocal absorption of drug pairs is considered to be one of the potentiating mechanisms of herbal medicine compounding; however, the contribution of intestinal BSVs in the reciprocal absorption of drug pairs needs to be explored. In this study, Pueraria lobata-Salvia miltiorrhiza was used as a model drug pair. Puerarin (PUE), the main constituent of Pueraria lobata, and the predominant fat-soluble constituents of Tanshinone IIA (TSA) and Cryptotanshinone (CTS) and water-soluble constituents Danshensu (DSS) of Salvia miltiorrhiza were selected as model drugs. Blank BSVs, three co-loaded BSVs fabricated from Sodium Taurocholate and Egg Yolk Lecithin (TL/BSVs), and four mono-loaded TL/BSVs were subsequently prepared by the film hydration method. The co-loaded TL/BSVs prepared were BSVs for co-delivery of PUA and TSA (PT-TL/BSVs), BSVs for co-delivery of PUA and CTS (PC-TL/BSVs), BSVs for co-delivery of PUA and DSS (PD-TL/BSVs), prepared single drug-loaded TL/BSVs were BSVs for co-delivery of PUA and TSA (PT-TL/BSVs), BSVs for co-delivery of PUA and CTS (PC-TL/BSVs), BSVs for co-delivery of PUA and DSS (PD-TL/BSVs), and they were evaluated in vitro and in vivo. The effects of different drug-loaded TL/BSVs prepared in vitro and self-assembled TL/BSVs in the intestinal environment on the absorption of the "Pueraria lobata-Salvia miltiorrhiza" drug pairing were investigated by comparing the absorption of three combinations of PUA-TSA, PUA-CTS, and PUA-DSS in the bile and bile-less models. The endogenous BSVs were approved to have positive effect on the intestinal absorption of the "Pueraria lobata-Salvia miltiorrhiza" medicine pair, due to their solubilization effect on PUA, TSA, CTS, DSS. Moreover, compared with mono-loaded BSVs, the better structural stability of co-loaded BSVs was observed, which is beneficial to the BSVs'intestinal transportation and the absorption of the active compounds of Pueraria lobata-Salvia miltiorrhiza. Accordingly, this work demonstrates that the BSVs plays an important role in the reciprocal absorption of drug pairs, which provides a new research perspective for elucidating the modern scientific connotation of drug pair compatibility.