Structure-properties correlation of acrylic resins modified with silver vanadate and graphene.

This study aimed to incorporate ß-AgVO3 and rGO into self-curing (SC) and heat-curing (HC) acrylic resins and to evaluate their physicochemical, mechanical, and antimicrobial properties while correlating them with the characterized material structure. Acrylic resin samples were prepared at 0 % (control), 0.5 %, 1 %, and 3 % for both nanoparticles. The microstructural characterization was assessed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) (n = 1) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) (n = 1). The physicochemical and mechanical tests included flexural strength (n = 10), Knoop hardness (n = 10), roughness (n = 10), wettability (n = 10), sorption (n = 10), solubility (n = 10), porosity (n = 10), and color evaluation (n = 10). The microbiological evaluation was performed by counting colony-forming units (CFU/mL) and cell viability (n = 8). The results showed that the ß-AgVO3 samples showed lower counts of Candida albicans, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Streptococcus mutans due to their promising physicochemical properties. The mechanical properties were maintained with the addition of ß-AgVO3. The rGO samples showed higher counts of microorganisms due to the increase in physicochemical properties. It can be concluded that the incorporation of ß-AgVO3 into acrylic resins could be an alternative to improve the antimicrobial efficacy and performance of the material.

Synthesis of mussel-inspired polydopamine-gallium nanoparticles for biomedical applications.

Aim: To established a simple, controlled and reproducible method to synthesize gallium (Ga)-coated polydopamine (PDA) nanoparticles (NPs). Materials & methods: PDA NPs were synthesized in alkali medium with posterior Ga shell formation due to ion chelation on the NP surface. Results: The obtained results with energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy confirmed the incorporation of Ga on the PDA NP surface. The cytotoxicity of Ga-coated PDA NPs was evaluated in vitro at different concentrations in contact with human adipose-derived stem cells. Further cell analysis also demonstrated the benefit of Ga-coated PDA NPs, which increased the cell proliferation rate compared with noncoated PDA NPs. Conclusion: This study indicated that Ga could work as an appropriate shell for PDA NPs, inducing cell proliferation at the analyzed concentrations.