Developing and evaluating new nano-delivery vehicles for natural health antimicrobials

加拿大公共卫生署估计，每年大约有八分之一的加拿大人（或400万人）因国内获得的食源性疾病而生病。据估计，这将使加拿大经济每年损失超过20亿美元。家庭感染的一个常见来源是处理不当和受污染的食品材料，而肠道沙门氏菌、产气荚膜梭菌、大肠杆菌和单核细胞增生李斯特菌等细菌病原体约占这些疾病的90%。因此，迫切需要开发无毒有效的消毒剂，可以在加拿大各地的厨房安全使用。EastGate制药公司认识到减少这些病原体暴露的重要性，并致力于设计能够限制其传播的天然消费品。最近，他们开发了一种基于纳米的抗菌洗手液和果蔬洗涤液系列，这些产品都是由天然无毒成分制成的。这些抗菌剂的最初配方已证明对常见食源性细菌病原体的活性有限。通过与圭尔夫大学的Khursigara博士合作，EastGate旨在改善其天然抗菌剂的纳米递送机制，以增强其抗菌活性。Khursigara博士的团队将使用加拿大卫生部和安大略省公共卫生部制定的现有抗菌剂测试指南，评估新型抗菌剂配方对这些细菌病原体的功效。EastGate制药公司将利用这些信息开发更好的抗菌配方和纳米递送机制，这些机制有可能被改造成安全地在人体内递送其他类型的药物。

The Public Health Agency of Canada estimates that roughly one in eight Canadians (or four million people) get sick each year due to domestically acquired foodborne diseases. This is estimated to cost the Canadian economy more than $2 billion per year. A common source of domestic infections is poorly handled and contaminated foods materials, and bacterial pathogens such as Salmonella enterica, Clostridium perfringens, Escherichia coli and Listeria monocytogenes account for approximately 90% of these illnesses. Therefore, there is a pressing need to develop nontoxic and effective disinfectant agents that can be safely used in kitchens across Canada. EastGate Pharmaceuticals recognizes the importance of reducing the exposure of these pathogens and aims to design natural consumer products that will limit their spread. Recently, they have developed a nano-delivery-based line of antimicrobial hand sanitizers and fruit and vegetable washing solutions derived from natural, non-toxic ingredients. The initial formulations of these antimicrobials have demonstrated limited activities against common foodborne bacterial pathogens. By collaborating with Dr. Khursigara at the University of Guelph, EastGate aims to improve the nano-delivery mechanism of their natural antimicrobials to enhance their antibacterial activities. Dr. Khursigara's team will use existing antimicrobial testing guidelines that have been established by Health Canada and Public Health Ontario to assess the efficacy of the novel antimicrobial formulations against these bacterial pathogens. EastGate Pharmaceuticals will use this information to develop better antimicrobial formulations and nano-delivery mechanisms that could potentially be adapted to safely deliver other types of drugs in the human body.