Electrical spinning to electrospinning: a brief history

Fine fibers made by electrostatic force have been discussed, investigated, and patented for a long time starting already in the late 18th century. However, till the eighties of the 20th century, potential applications for such fibers were restricted by different technological limitations. In 1995, Doshi and Reneker reworked and simplified the electrical spinning process. The book begins with this journey, how the invention fuelled applications and also presents a short account on current status of electrospinning in diverse application field

An insight into embryogenesis interruption by carbon nitride dots: can they be nucleobase analogs?

The carbon nitride dot (CND) is an emerging carbon-based nanomaterial. It possesses rich surface functional moieties and a carbon nitride core. Spectroscopic data have demonstrated the analogy between CNDs and cytosine/uracil. Recently, it was found that CNDs could interrupt the normal embryogenesis of zebrafish. Modifying CNDs with various nucleobases, especially cytosine, further decreased embryo viability and increased deformities. Physicochemical property characterization demonstrated that adenine- and cytosine-incorporated CNDs are similar but different from guanine-, thymine- and uracil-incorporated CNDs in many properties, morphology, and structure. To investigate the embryogenesis interruption at the cellular level, bare and different nucleobase-incorporated CNDs were applied to normal and cancerous cell lines. A dose-dependent decline was observed in the viability of normal and cancerous cells incubated with cytosine-incorporated CNDs, which matched results from the zebrafish embryogenesis experiment. In addition, nucleobase-incorporated CNDs were observed to enter cell nuclei, demonstrating a possibility of CND–DNA interactions. CNDs modified by complementary nucleobases could bind each other via hydrogen bonds, which suggests nucleobase-incorporated CNDs can potentially bind the complementary nucleobases in a DNA double helix. Nonetheless, neither bare nor nucleobase-incorporated CNDs were observed to intervene in the amplification of the zebrafish polymerase-alpha 1 gene in quantitative polymerase chain reactions. Thus, in conclusion, the embryogenesis interruption by bare and nucleobase-incorporated CNDs might not be a consequence of CND–DNA interactions during DNA replication. Instead, CND–Ca 2+ interactions offer a plausible mechanism that hindered cell proliferation and zebrafish embryogenesis originating from disturbed Ca 2+ homeostasis by CNDs. Eventually, the hypothesis that raw or nucleobase-incorporated CNDs can be nucleobase analogs proved to be invalid

Emerging Opportunities in the Biomedical Applications of Dendrimers

The medical field remains challenged with many unmet needs, prompting rigorous research for solutions. Dendrimers are emerging as innovative solutions to many unmet clinical needs. Indeed, commercial dendrimer-enabled gene transfection technologies exist and work is ongoing to translate many other dendrimer products into the market to assist patients. Here, we review the ongoing work on dendrimer-enabled drug delivery technologies, diagnostic platforms, and antimicrobial agents. Our goal is to inspire the continuous exploration of the dendritic scaffold to address many issues in the biomedical landscape

Physical, chemical and microbiological aspects during the dry and rainy seasons in a pond covered by macrophyte used in aquaculture water supply

AIM: The water quality of a pond covered by macrophytes and used as a water supply for aquaculture was evaluated during the dry and rainy seasons; METHODS: Six points were established for water sampling, at water inflow and outflow. Samplings were carried out monthly between June 2008 and May 2009; RESULTS: Inflow points P1, P2 and P3 in the pond had higher nutrient concentrations and high trophic rates. Moreover, capybaras in the area caused sediment suspension and an increase in fecal coliforms. There was significant difference (p < 0.05) in the concentrations of nutrients in water between the dry and rainy seasons. The outflow of water caused by rain carried the material around the pond directly into the water; CONCLUSIONS: The system studied was influenced by rain and lack of adequate management of the surrounding area. Water quality was deteriorated by increase in nutrient concentrations, fecal coliforms and reduction of dissolved oxygen in the water during the rainy season. This was due to allochthonous material from the area surrounding the pond that affected negatively the supply system