Hydrogel on a Smart Nanomaterial Interface to Carry Therapeutics for Digitalized Glioma Treatment

Glioma is considered the primary brain tumor to cause brain illnesses, and it is difficult to treat and shows resistance to various routine therapeutics. The most common treatments to cure glioma are the surgical removal of tumors followed by adjuvant chemotherapy and radiation therapy. The latest biocompatible interfaces have been incorporated into therapeutic modalities such as the targeted delivery of drugs using hydrogels to treat and manage brain glioma. This review illustrates the applications of the multimodal hydrogel as the carrier of therapeutics, gene therapy, therapeutic tactics, and glioma devices. The scientific articles were retrieved from 2019 to 2022 on Google Scholar and the Scopus database and screened to determine whether they were suitable for review. The 20 articles that fit the study are summarized in this review. These studies indicated that the sizes of the hydrogel range from 28 nm to 500 nm. There are 16 out of 20 articles that also explain the post-surgical application of hydrogels, and 13 out of 20 articles are employed in 3D culture and other structural manifestations of hydrogels. The pros of the hydrogel include the quick formulation for a sufficient filling of irregular damage sites, solubilizing hydrophobic drugs, continuously slowing drug release, provision of a 3D cell growth environment, improving efficacy, targetability of soluble biomolecules, increasing patient compliance, and decreased side effects. The cons of the hydrogel include difficult real-time monitoring, genetic manipulations, the cumbersome synchronized release of components, and lack of safety data. The prospects of the hydrogel may include the development of electronic hydrogel sensors that can be used to enhance guidance for the precise targeting patterns using patient-specific pathological idiosyncrasies. This technology has the potential to revolutionize the precision medicine approaches that would aid in the early detection and management of solid brain tumors

Mapping the Restoration of Degraded Peatland as a Field of Research Area: A Scientometric Review

Degraded peatland reduced many ecosystem services such as water quality and quantity, biodiversity, carbon storage, climate regulations and other cultural benefits. Therefore, several initiatives for the restoration of degraded peatland (RDP) have been attempted to restore the ecosystem processes, productivity and services of the degraded peatland to its original natural condition. Notwithstanding the popularity of RDP research among researchers and industry practitioners, a quantitative technique to map a comprehensive survey of the intellectual core and the general body landscape of knowledge on RDP research does not exist. In this study, a scientometric analysis was employed to analyze 522 documents using VOSviewer and CiteSpace. The Web of Science database was used to retrieve bibliographic records using the advanced search “TS (topic) =(‘drained peatland restoration’ OR ‘drained bog restoration’ OR ‘drained mire restoration’ OR degraded peatland restoration’ OR ‘degraded bog restoration’ OR ‘drained peatland reclamation’ OR ‘drained bog restoration’ OR ‘degraded peatland reclamation’ OR ‘degraded bog reclamation’ OR ‘drained mire restoration’ OR ‘degraded mire reclamation’ OR ‘degraded fen restoration’ OR ‘drained fen reclamation’). The outcome sought to provide relevant information in RDP research such as (i) publication trends (ii) research outlets (iii) most influential keywords (iv) most influential institutions and authors (v) top influential countries active in RDP research. In addition, four clusters were identified for ascertaining the central theme of RDP research in which cluster one is linked to the central research theme-“impact of drainage on peatland ecosystem services; cluster two focused on the impact of peatland restoration on greenhouse gas emissions; cluster three is associated with peatland restoration and biogeochemical properties and cluster four is related to peatland restoration and species richness. A new research hotspot such as soil respiration was identified via the keywords with the strongest citation bursts. This study will provide the various stakeholders such as industry, journal editors, policymakers and the researchers instinctive understanding of the research status and the development frontier of RDP research

The Biological Activity of Tea Tree Oil and Hemp Seed Oil

The interest in hemp seed oil (HSO) and tea tree oil (TTO) in the medical and food industries is increasing. The current study compares their bioactivity to other plant oils, mainly focusing on hemp seed oils (HSOs) with various cannabidiol (CBD) contents. A DPPH assay was employed to evaluate the antioxidant activity. The antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Salmonella enteritidis was evaluated using time–kill, minimum inhibition concentration (MIC), and Kirby–Bauer disk diffusion methods. Tea tree oil showed significantly higher antimicrobial activity against S. enteritidis compared to E. coli and S. aureus (p \u3c 0.05). The antioxitant activity range (lowest to highest) was sesame \u3c vetiver \u3c rosehip \u3c tea tree \u3c organic hemp \u3c pure hemp \u3c 5% CBD \u3c vitamin C. Tea tree oil and 5% CBD showed antioxidant activity at IC50 of 64.45 μg/mL and 11.21 μg/mL, respectively. The opposing antimicrobial and antioxidant results for TTO and HSO indicate that these activities arise from different components within the oil compositions

Hemp Growth Factors and Extraction Methods Effect on Antimicrobial Activity of Hemp Seed Oil: A Systematic Review

The bioactive Hemp Seed Oil (HSO) is becoming very popular in the medical and research fields due to its antimicrobial properties against several diseases caused by bacteria and fungi. However, the effect of hemp-growing factors and extraction methods on the bioactivity of HSO does not receive adequate research attention. Therefore, this review aims to investigate the effect of growth factors and extraction methods on the antimicrobial activity of HSO. Articles were retrieved from Google Scholar and the Scopus database and screened against inclusion and exclusion criteria. The study revealed that HSO prefers warm climates and favorable humidity ranging from 20 to 39 °C and 79–100% per year, respectively, and rainfall of 324 mm daily. The multivariate linear regression shown excellent prediction (R2 = 0.94) with climates upon Zone of Growth Inhibition (ZGI) of Gram-positive bacteria. Temperature is the strongest predictor (p \u3c 0.01) followed by humidity and rainfall (p \u3c 0.05). Furthermore, well-drained loam soil rich in organic matter seems to stimulate the antimicrobial activity of HSO. The major constituents that influence HSO’s antimicrobial ability to Staphylococcus aureus were cannabidiol (CBD), β-caryophyllene, and limonene. The extraction methods showed less influence on the HSO bioactivity. HSO did not show significant antioxidant activity, but Hemp Seed Hull (HSH), Hemp Seed Flour (HSF), and Hydrolyzed Hemp Seed Protein (HPH), expressed promising DPPH scavenging ability

Review of Analytical Techniques for Arsenic Detection and Determination in Drinking Water

Arsenic occurs in the natural environment in four oxidation states: As(V), As(III), As(0) and As(−III). The behavior of arsenic species changes depending on the biotic or abiotic conditions in water. In groundwater, arsenic is predominantly present as As(III) and As(V), with a minor amount of methyl and dimethyl arsenic compounds being reported. Global intake of As(III) and As(V) via drinking water and food has dramatically increased in recent years. The commonly used term inorganic arsenic includes both As(III) and As(V) species and constitutes the highest toxicological risk associated with arsenic in water compared to the organic arsenic species. Inorganic arsenic is a confirmed carcinogen and the World Health Organization (WHO) has published a guideline value for arsenic in their ‘Guidelines for drinking water quality’ and is on the WHO list of 10 chemicals of major public health concern. Presently, approximately, 230 million people worldwide are affected by arsenic toxicity. Chronic arsenic toxicity affects multiple physiological systems and can cause serious health issues (e.g. arsenicosis, cancer etc.) leading to death. To combat arsenic pollution, the WHO and United States Environmental Protection Agency (US-EPA) have set concentration limits for arsenic in drinking water. The WHO, US-EPA and European Union (EU) have set the maximum limit of arsenic in drinking water at 10 ppb. To meet the required limit, it is essential that rapid, reliable, sensitive and cost-effective analytical detection systems be developed and put into use. Different determination methods of inorganic arsenic have been developed over the last 5–6 decades. This review provides an overview of around 170 research articles and relevant literature, mainly regarding the existing methods for analysis of As(III) and As(V) in water. Chromatographic, spectroscopic, colorimetric, biological (whole cell biosensors (WCB) and aptasensors), electroanalytical and coupled techniques are discussed. For those who are at the early stage of their research career in this field, the basic introduction and necessary concepts for various techniques is discussed followed by an evaluation of their performance towards arsenic determination. Current challenges as well as potential avenues for future research, including the demands for enhanced analytical performance, rapid analysis and on-site technologies for remote water analysis and environmental applications are discussed. We believe that this review will be beneficial, a source of information, and enhance awareness and appreciation of the role of these advanced analytical techniques in informing and protecting our environment and water resources, globally. Environmental signicance Global intake of arsenic via drinking water is a major environmental concern: As(III)/As(V) species constitutes the highest toxicological-risk. To combat arsenic pollution and associated toxicity, WHO and EPA have regulations, guidelines and introduced directives for arsenic concentration limits in drinking water. The existing laboratory-based methods are suitable for arsenic analysis but are time-consuming, expensive and require skilled analysts and extensive sample preparation. Rapid, cost-effective and reliable portable techniques and on-site sensor-based methods are the emerging needs. This review provides an overview of various analytical techniques for arsenic detection and determination in water, and will enhance awareness of their role in informing and protecting our environment and water resources, globally. 1. Introduction Water covers more than 70% of our planet\u27s surface. Because life on Earth began in water, it is not surprising that all living organisms on our blue planet require water. Water is in fact the most valuable environmental natural resource, vital to global need, a transport corridor and a climate regulator. Global intake a MiCRA Biodiagnostics Technology Gateway, Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin), Dublin 24, D24 FKT9, Ireland. E-mail: [email protected]; Tel: +353 1 220 7863 b Centre of Applied Science for Health, Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin), Dublin 24, D24 FKT9, Ireland c School of Food Science & Environmental Health, Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin), Grangegorman, Dublin 7, D07 H6K8, Ireland d Pesticide Registration Division, Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Backweston Laboratory Campus, Celbridge, County Kildare W23 VW2C, Ireland Cite this: Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2023, 2, 171 Received 8th September 2022 Accepted 4th November 2022 DOI: 10.1039/d2va00218c rsc.li/esadvances © 2023 The Author(s). Published by the Royal Society of Chemistry Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2023, 2, 171–195 | 171 Environmental Science Advances TUTORIAL REVIEW Open Access Article. Published on 07 November 2022. Downloaded on 3/1/2023 9:48:16 AM. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported Licence. View Article Online

Antibody-Drug Gold Nanoantennas with Raman Spectroscopic Fingerprints for in Vivo Tumour Theranostics

Inspired by the ability of SERS nanoantennas to provide an integrated platform to enhance disease targeting in vivo, we developed a highly sensitive probe for in vivo tumoral recognition with the capacity to target specific cancer biomarkers such as epidermal growth factor receptors (EGFR) on human cancer cells and xenograft tumour models. Here, we used ~90 nm gold nanoparticles capped by a Raman reporter, encapsulated and entrapped by larger polymers and a FDA antibody-drug conjugate –Cetuximab (Erbitux®) – that specifically targets EGFR and turns off a main signalling cascade for cancer cells to proliferate and survive. These drug/SERS gold nanoantennas present a high Raman signal both in cancer cells and in mice bearing xenograft tumours. Moreover, the Raman detection signal is accomplished simultaneously by extensive tumour growth inhibition in mice, making these gold nanoantennas ideal for cancer nanotheranostics, i.e. tumour detection and tumoral cell inhibition at the same time

Synergistic Anticancer Response of Curcumin and Piperine Loaded Lignin-g-p (NIPAM-co-DMAEMA) Gold Nanogels Against Glioblastoma Multiforme

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most aggressive and commonly diag- 11 nosed brain cancer and presents a strong resistance to routine chemotherapeutic drugs. 12 The present study involves the synthesis of Lignin-g- p (NIPAM-co-DMAEMA) gold 13 nanogel, loaded with curcumin and piperine to treat GBM. The application has three 14 functions: (1) overcome the limitations of biodistribution, (2) enhance the toxicity of an- 15 ticancer drugs against GBM, (3) identify the uptake pathway. Atom transfer radical 16 polymerization was used to synthesize the Lignin-g-PNIPAM network, crosslinked with 17 the gold nanoparticles (GNPs) to self-assemble into nanogels. The size distribution and 18 morphological analysis confirmed that the drug-loaded gold nanogels are spherical and 19 exist in the size of 180 nm. The single and combinatorial toxicity effects of curcumin and 20 piperine loaded Lignin-g- p (NIPAM-co-DMAEMA) gold nanogels were studied against 21 GBM cells. A cytotoxicity analysis against glioblastoma cells (U-251 MG) displayed an- 22 ticancer properties. IC50 of curcumin and piperine-loaded gold nanogels were recorded 23 at 30 μM and 35 μM respectively. Immunostaining analysis of the drug-loaded nanogel 24 treated cells shows that the F-actin induced cytoskeletal deformations result in the trig- 25 gering of caspase-3 apoptotic pathways. Kinetic drug release revealed the 86% release of 26 hybrid curcumin-piperine from nanogel after 250 mins at pH 4. Atomic absorption 27 spectroscopic analysis confirmed that the drug-loaded nanogels have better internaliza- 28 tion or association with the cancer cells than the GNPs or nanogels alone. Morphology 29 studies further confirmed that the curcumin and piperine nanogels penetrate the cells via 30 endocytic pathways and induce caspase-3 related apoptosis. The experimental evidence 31 shows the enhanced synergistic properties of combinatorial curcumin-piperine gold 32 nanogels (IC 50 : 21 μM) to overcome the limitations of conventional chemotherapeutic 33 treatments of glioma cells

Enhanced Anticancer Response of Curcumin- and Piperine-Loaded Lignin-g-p (NIPAM-co-DMAEMA) Gold Nanogels against U-251 MG Glioblastoma Multiforme

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most aggressive and commonly diagnosed brain cancer and is highly resistant to routine chemotherapeutic drugs. The present study involves the synthesis of Lignin-g-p (NIPAM-co-DMAEMA) gold nanogel, loaded with curcumin and piperine, to treat GBM. The ongoing study has the application potential to (1) overcome the limitations of drugs biodistribution, (2) enhance the toxicity of anticancer drugs against GBM, and (3) identify the drugs uptake pathway. Atom transfer radical polymerization was used to synthesize the Lignin-g-PNIPAM network, crosslinked with the gold nanoparticles (GNPs) to self-assemble into nanogels. The size distribution and morphological analysis confirmed that the drug-loaded gold nanogels are spherical and exist in the size of 180 nm. The single and combinatorial toxicity effects of curcumin- and piperine-loaded Lignin-g-p (NIPAM-co-DMAEMA) gold nanogels were studied against U-251 MG GBM cells. A cytotoxicity analysis displayed anticancer properties. IC50 of curcumin- and piperine-loaded gold nanogels were recorded at 30 μM and 35 μM, respectively. Immunostaining and Western blot analysis confirmed the protein expression of caspase-3 and cleaved caspase-3 in cells treated with drug-loaded nanogels. Kinetic drug release revealed 86% release of hybrid curcumin–piperine from gold nanogel after 250 min at pH 4. Atomic absorption spectroscopic analysis confirmed that the drug-loaded nanogels have better internalization or association with the cancer cells than the GNPs or nano-gels alone. Morphological studies further confirmed that the curcumin and piperine nanogels penetrate the cells via endocytic pathways and induce caspase-3-related apoptosis. The experimental evidence shows the enhanced properties of combinatorial curcumin–piperine gold nanogels (IC50: 21 μM) to overcome the limitations of conventional chemotherapeutic treatments of glioma cells

Pulmonary DWCNT Exposure Causes Sustained Local and Low-Level Systemic Inflammatory Changes in Mice

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) represent promising vectors to facilitate cellular drug delivery and to overcome biological barriers, but some types may also elicit persistent pulmonary inflammation based on their fibre characteristics. Here, we show the pulmonary response to aqueous suspensions of block copolymer dispersed, double-walled carbon nanotubes (DWCNT, length 1–10 lm) in mice by bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) analysis, and BAL and blood cytokine and lung antioxidant profiling. The intratracheally instilled dose of 50 lg DWCNT caused significant pulmonary inflammation that was not resolved during a 7- day observation period. Light microscopy investigation of the uptake of DWCNT agglomerates revealed no particle ingestion for granulocytes, but only for macrophages. Accumulating macrophage, multinucleated macrophage and lymphocyte numbers in the alveolar region further indicated ineffective resolution with chronification of the inflammation. The local inflammatory impairment of the lung was accompanied by pulmonary antioxidant depletion and haematological signs of systemic inflammation. While the observed inflammation during its acute phase was dominated by neutrophils and neutrophil recruiting cytokines, the contribution of macrophages and lymphocytes with related cytokines became more significant after day 3 of exposure. This study confirms that acute pulmonary toxicity can occur on exposure of high doses of DWCNT agglomerates and offers further insight for improved nanotube design parameters to avoid potential long-term toxicity

PKA, Caspase 1 and HSP40 Induced Apoptosis under Fungi Starvation

To investigate the influence of starvation on the biochemical response of Aspergillus niger. The biochemical impact of starvation was determined by morphological observation, immunofluorescent analysis, High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and western blot over 8 days. Results showed that starvation can inhibit fungi survival rate in a time-dependent manner. A. niger exhibited active responses to starvation such as secretion of some 40 kDa proteins to manage changes in water balance. Conidiophores disintegrated from lack of nutrient. The immunofluorescent analysis demonstrated elevated ROS accumulation in starved cells (PA. niger growth by inducing cell apoptosis