Carbon nanomaterials as drug transporter for cancer therapy

There is a vigorous and growing research effort developing carbon nanotubes (CNTs) for medical applications. It is now known that nanocomposites of Single Wall Nanotubes (SWNTs) can be used to deliver anti-cancer drugs to cells. Also, SWNTs are efficient at converting near infrared (NIR) light to heat, and can do so in a cell, and so cancer cells can be targeted for destruction by NIR radiation, once the cells have taken up SWNTs. SWNTs are highly insoluble in water, but can be functionalized via physical or covalent attachment of solubilizing molecules and drugs of interest. Once this is done, they are readily taken up by cells. We found evidence that our CNT nanocomposites were found to enter cells via endocytosis (the mechanism cells use to take up nutrients); this agrees with earlier work by Dai and coworkers. Herein, we perform systematic study of the internalization, delivery and subcellular localization and possible adverse effects of SWNTs dispersed in culture media and SWNTs wrapped with different fluorescently labelled peptide (FLP-SWNTs) on Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells and SWNTs attached with anti-cancer drug on two common cancerous cell lines, human epithelial carcinoma cell line (HeLa) and colorectal cancer cell lines (WiDr)

Synthesis, characterization and investigation of photocatalytic activity of nano-titania from natural ilmenite with graphite for cigarette smoke degradation

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles and TiO2 with recycled graphite (TiO2/G) nanocomposite have been successfully synthesized by alkaline fusion method using synthetic rutile for measuring the degradation time of the cigarette smoke under the visible light irradiation. In this work, the synthetic rutile was derived from natural Malaysian Ilmenite’s waste to produce a low cost of TiO2 nanoparticles via environmental friendly process. The prepared samples were then analyzed using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and Energy Dispersive X-Ray Fluorescence (EDXRF) to study their structural phase composition, functional group, and elemental composition respectively. The surface morphology and the size of the particles were studied using Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM) and Particle Size Analyzer (PSA), respectively. The functionality of the prepared nanoparticles in terms of photocatalyst activity was analyzed by degradation of cigarette smoke under the exposure to the visible light. The UV–Vis Spectroscopy (UV–VIS) results revealed that the energy band gap of modified TiO2/G nanocomposite decreases to 2.90 eV compared with the commercial TiO2, 3.06 eV. This is capable enough to TiO2/G nanocomposite degrade the smoke under the visible light irradiation for 2 min faster compared to others types of TiO2 nanoparticles. This indicated the material has the ability to purify the toxins in the air

Synthesis and characterization of graphene oxide functionalized with magnetic nanoparticle via simple emulsion method

Current research focusing on the loading of Iron (III) oxide (IO) onto graphene oxide (GO) via simple emulsion technique. GO specialty such as big surface to volume ratio combined with magnetic nanoparticle superparamagnetic properties produce interesting nanocomposite material for biomedical application. Proper modification was carried out by simply varying the ratios of GO to IO ranging from 1:1 to 1:3 to discover the best amount of IO suitable to be loaded on GO. In addition, the prepared nanocomposites crystallinity, chemical interaction, structure, surface morphology and magnetic behaviour were investigated using various equipment such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy (RAMAN), Vibrating Sample Magnetization (VSM), and Atomic force microscopy (AFM). The magnetic nanoparticle synthesized via co-precipitation method found to be Iron (iii) oxide. IO loaded with GO were validated to be superparamagnetic with maximum magnetic saturation measured at the ratio of GO to IO of 1:2

Drug release and kinetic study of tamoxifen citrate conjugated with magnetite nanoparticle for drug delivery application

Breast cancer is affecting about 23 % of all cancers diagnosed in women. So, it is crucial to develop the treatment for breast cancer patient. Tamoxifen (TAM) has been used for treating estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer however TAM suffer from non-specific delivery to the breast cancer. TAM was introduce to magnetite nanoparticle (MNP) to increase tissue selectivity using Poly (d,l-lactice-co-glycolide acid) (PLGA-TAM-OAMNP) via oil in water emulsion and evaporation process. It was discovered that the size of the modified nanoparticle is 384 ± 17 nm while also maintaining its superparamagnetic nature. The percentage of drug loading and entrapment efficiency of TAM inside the PLGA-TAMOAMNP is around 6% and 80% respectively. Then, drug release was conducted for the next 96 hours releasing about 90% of the drug. The in vitro drug release was due to autocatalysis of PLGA

Drug release behavior for magnetite nanoparticle loaded with Tamoxifen citrate for drug delivery application

Statistic shows that 23 % of all cancers diagnosed in women are breast cancer. Hence, it is crucial to develop the treatment for breast cancer patient. Since 30 years ago, tamoxifen (TAM) has been used for treating estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer. Nonetheless TAM if used at high concentration can caused adverse effect such as thromboembolic events and endometrial cancer. So, by reducing the TAM doses its toxicity can be overcome. Therefore, TAM was introduce to targeted drug delivery system to increase tissue selectivity and improve its toxicity profile by using magnetite nanoparticles (MNP) as an anti-cancer drug carrier because of its biocompatibility, ultrafine size, and its superparamagnetic nature. MNP were synthesized via the co-precipitation method. Afterward, it was coated with oleic acid to improve the stability of the MNPs. MNP was conjugated with Poly (D,L lactide-co-glycolide acid) (PLGA) and TAM by applying oil in water emulsion evaporation method and was abbreviated as TAM-PLGA-OAMNP. After conjugation of MNP with TAM and PLGA. It was discovered that the size of the TAM-PLGA-OAMNP is 131±28 nm with a magnetic saturation of 8.3096×10-3 emu/g maintaining its superparamagnetic properties. This project further studies the drug loaded and drug release behaviors of the conjugated nanoparticles. The drug load and entrapment efficiency of TAM was determined via the UV-Vis spectroscopy. From the standard curve, TAM inside TAM-PLGA-OAMNPs is 0.1602 ± 0.0239 mg, so the percentage drug loading and percentage entrapment efficicency is around 6 % and 80 % respectively. After that, drug release was conducted for the next 96 hours releasing about 90 % of the drug. The in vitro drug release was fitted with different kinetic models. It was discovered that, the release pattern was best fitted in pseudo-second order R2=0.989. Several work had reported the pseudo-second order kinetic model that occur to PLGA. Therefore, the drug release was subjected to the autocatalysis of PLGA

Elastic properties of TeO2-B2O3—ZnO-Gd2O3 glasses using non-destructive ultrasonic technique

The addition of Gd2O3 causes the glass system to be highly ionic resulting in increasing rigidity and the tendency of devitrification. Gd2O3 affects the strength governing the elastic properties of the glass. The elastic moduli of the prepared glasses are expected to increase with the addition of the Gd2O3 due to increasing net molecular weight of prepared glass resulting in strong connectivity and more compactness of the glass network. The objective of this present work is to study the elastic properties of TeO2-B2O3-ZnO doped Gd2O3 using a non-destructive ultrasonic technique. A series of {[(TeO2)0.7(B2O3)0.3]0.7(ZnO)0.3}1-x(Gd2O3)x glasses with x = 0.01, 0.02, 0.03, 0.04 and 0.05 mol were prepared by conventional melt-quenching method. Both longitudinal and shear ultrasonic velocities were measured using a pulse-echo method at a frequency of 5 MHz at room temperature. The elastic moduli (longitudinal modulus, shear modulus, Young’s modulus and Bulk modulus), Poisson’s ratio, Debye temperature, micro-hardness and softening temperature have also been quantified. The experimental results show that the elastic properties depend on the composition of the glass systems and the role of Gd2O3inside the glass network

Advantages and applications of sustainable and green synthesis of titania: a review

The methods that applicable to synthesis titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles have been thoroughly reviewed. In this review, the focus will be on both the chemical and green synthesis of TiO2. Presently, green synthesis innovated by various researchers to prepare TiO2 nanoparticles due to their advantages offers where green synthesis does not require high quantity of chemical reagents and its offers sustainability. Green synthesis consists of and not limited to plant based, it can also originate from an aquatic animal, as well as enzymes where all of these categorized as natural resources that can be exploited for the green synthesis of nanomaterials coupled with the low cost and non-toxic final product. Although the chemical synthesis approach capable in producing large batch of nanoparticles, the disadvantages is it can harm the ecosystem due to their byproduct’s formation. In addition, green synthesis will produce minimum chemical waste in comparison to chemical synthesis. Herein, details comparisons between these two approaches are properly reviewed

Green reduction of graphene oxide involving extracts of plants from different taxonomy groups

Graphene, a remarkable material, is ideal for numerous applications due to its thin and lightweight design. The synthesis of high-quality graphene in a cost-effective and environmentally friendly manner continues to be a significant challenge. Chemical reduction is considered the most advantageous method for preparing reduced graphene oxide (rGO). However, this process necessitates the use of toxic and harmful substances, which can have a detrimental effect on the environment and human health. Thus, to accomplish the objective, the green synthesis principle has prompted researchers worldwide to develop a simple method for the green reduction of graphene oxide (GO), which is readily accessible, sustainable, economical, renewable, and environmentally friendly. For example, the use of natural materials such as plants is generally considered safe. Furthermore, plants contain reducing and capping agents. The current review focuses on the discovery and application of rGO synthesis using extracts from different plant parts. The review aims to aid current and future researchers in searching for a novel plant extract that acts as a reductant in the green synthesis of rGO, as well as its potential application in a variety of industries

Investigation of structural, optical and antibacterial activity of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs)

Investigations of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPS) in various applications had been well-reported. In this study, the ZnONPs was synthesized using the simple method which is sol-gel method. Then, the structural and optical of ZnONPs under different pH value (pH7-11) were characterized. X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements were performed to obtain the structural information of the samples. The XRD results showed that the ZnO has hexagonal wurtzite structure and dominated in plane (100), (002), and (101). To acquire the morphology and particle size of the samples, Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM) was used plus the Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) to obtain the elemental composition of ZNONPs. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) was to determine the functional group of the samples. The Photoluminescence (PL) and Ultraviolet-Visible (UV-Vis) was employed to study the optical properties of the samples and the absorption peak of the samples under various pH value. While for the antibacterial activity, the ZnONPs under different pH value were tested against coliform bacteria. From the antibacterial activity, the higher pH value of ZnONPs shows the greater of inhibition zone. ZnONPs can be one of the alternative/potential of metal oxide nanoparticles for wastewater treatment since it has the antibacterial properties and partly neutral to water