Objectives Britanin was explored for the antitumour effect on gastric cancer, which is a sesquiterpene lactone (SL) extracted from Inula japonica. Methods In the present study, cell viability assays were performed to evaluate the antiproliferation effect of Britanin on gastric cancer cells. Tumour development in BGC‐823 cell‐bearing nude mice was monitored in real‐time after Britanin treatment via a bioluminescent imaging method. Western blotting analysis and enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assays detected proteins associated with the nuclear factor (NF)‐κB signalling pathway. Key findings Britanin can suppress the proliferation of gastric cancer cells in vitro and the growth of tumours in vivo. In the treatment group, decreased levels of p65 and phosphorylated (p)‐p65 were observed. This indicated that NF‐κB plays an important role in the antitumour effect of Britanin. Furthermore, considering the additional role of NF‐κB in the immune system, the levels of the downstream molecules interleukin (IL)‐2 and the cytokine IL‐10 were subsequently determined in vivo. An increase in the IL‐2 level and a decrease in the IL‐10 level indicated that Britanin elicited an enhanced immune response. Conclusions Britanin may be a promising candidate for gastric cancer chemotherapy, and its anticancer effect likely depends on an NF‐κB‐mediated immune response.

: Quantum dots (QDs), whose diameters are often limited to 10 nm, have been of interest to researchers for their unique optical characteristics, which are attributed to quantum confinement. Following their early application in the electrical industry as light-emitting diode materials, semiconductor nanocrystals have continued to show great potential in clinical diagnosis and biomedical applications. The conventional physical and chemical pathways for QD syntheses typically require harsh conditions and hazardous reagents, and these products encounter non-hydrophilic problems due to organic capping ligands when they enter the physiological environment. The natural reducing abilities of living organisms, especially microbes, are then exploited to prepare QDs from available metal precursors. Low-cost and eco-friendly biosynthesis approaches have the potential for further biomedical applications which benefit from the good biocompatibility of protein-coated QDs. The surface biomass offers many binding sites for modifying substances or targeting ligands and so achieving multiple functions through simple and efficient operations. Biosynthetic QDs could function as bioimaging and biolabeling agents because of their luminescence properties similar to those of chemical QDs. In addition, extensive research has been carried out on the antibacterial activity, metal ion detection and bioremediation. As a result, this review details the advanced progress of biomedical applications of biosynthesized QDs and illustrates these principles as clearly as possible.

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