Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) are collaborating on a new project to bolster global capabilities in food safety risk assessment, in support of the WHO Global Strategy for Food Safety 2022–2030.

Recently, Professor Peng Cao's team at Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine conducted an in-depth study on the therapeutic potential of plant-derived extracellular vesicles in inflammatory skin diseases. They proposed a novel strategy for treating psoriasis using Perilla frutescens leaf-derived extracellular vesicle-like particles (PLEVPs), and established a comprehensive research framework encompassing medicinal plant screening, molecular profiling, mechanistic studies, and in vivo validation.

The study revealed that PLEVPs effectively alleviate psoriasis symptoms by delivering the functional miRNA pab-miR396a-5p, which precisely modulates the IL-17 signaling pathway. This regulation reduces inflammation and keratinocyte hyperproliferation, demonstrating strong potential for localized therapy and clinical translation. The findings were published online in the international journal Research, under the title “Perilla frutescens Leaf-Derived Extracellular Vesicle-Like Particles Carry Pab-miR-396a-5p to Alleviate Psoriasis by Modulating IL-17 Signaling.”