Synergistic chemo-photothermal therapy using gold nanorods supported on thiol-functionalized mesoporous silica for lung cancer treatment.

Cancer therapy necessitates the development of novel and effective treatment modalities to combat the complexity of this disease. In this project, we propose a synergistic approach by combining chemo-photothermal treatment using gold nanorods (AuNRs) supported on thiol-functionalized mesoporous silica, offering a promising solution for enhanced lung cancer therapy. To begin, mesoporous MCM-41 was synthesized using a surfactant-templated sol-gel method, chosen for its desirable porous structure, excellent biocompatibility, and non-toxic properties. Further, thiol-functionalized MCM-41 was achieved through a simple grafting process, enabling the subsequent synthesis of AuNRs supported on thiol-functionalized MCM-41 (AuNR@S-MCM-41) via a gold-thiol interaction. The nanocomposite was then loaded with the anticancer drug doxorubicin (DOX), resulting in AuNR@S-MCM-41-DOX. Remarkably, the nanocomposite exhibited pH/NIR dual-responsive drug release behaviors, facilitating targeted drug delivery. In addition, it demonstrated exceptional biocompatibility and efficient internalization into A549 lung cancer cells. Notably, the combined photothermal-chemo therapy by AuNR@S-MCM-41-DOX exhibited superior efficacy in killing cancer cells compared to single chemo- or photothermal therapies. This study showcases the potential of the AuNR@S-MCM-41-DOX nanocomposite as a promising candidate for combined chemo-photothermal therapy in lung cancer treatment. The innovative integration of gold nanorods, thiol-functionalized mesoporous silica, and pH/NIR dual-responsive drug release provides a comprehensive and effective therapeutic approach for improved outcomes in lung cancer therapy. Future advancements based on this strategy hold promise for addressing the challenges posed by cancer and transforming patient care.

Comparison of intravenous regional anaesthesia with lidocaine and ropivacaine in dogs.

The present study was designed to compare the effects of lidocaine and ropivacaine in intravenous regional anaesthesia (IVRA) in dogs. Twelve adult male dogs were used. Under isoflurane anaesthesia, exsanguination was performed in the target forelimb. Then, a blood pressure cuff was encircled around the limb proximal to the elbow joint with a pressure of approximately 150 mmHg above the mean arterial blood pressure. The animals then received one of the two treatments of lidocaine (3 mg/kg) or ropivacaine (1.5 mg/kg) with a final volume of 0.6 mL/kg into the cephalic vein. After 60 min, the anaesthesia was disrupted and the tourniquet was removed using intermittent opening (30 s) and closing (5 min) manner for three times. The results revealed that at 20 and 30 min after the initiation of IVRA, the dogs in ROP showed higher analgesia than LID. A leakage under the tourniquet during IVRA was detected. Tremor and hypersalivation were observed after tourniquet removal in some dogs. It was concluded that ropivacaine might provide a higher quality of anaesthesia than lidocaine in IVRA in dogs. The development of local anaesthetic toxicity is a major concern and should be considered at the time of tourniquet removal.

Fabrication of UMCM-1 based monolithic and hollow fiber - Metal-organic framework deep eutectic solvents/molecularly imprinted polymers and their use in solid phase microextraction of phthalate esters in yogurt, water and edible oil by GC-FID.

In this study, for the first time, hollow fiber and monolithic fiber were fabricated based on metal-organic framework deep eutectic solvents/molecularly imprinted polymers (MOF- DES/MIPs) and were used for microextraction of phthalate esters under termed hollow fiber liquid membrane-protected solid-phase microextraction (HFLMP-SPME) followed by gas chromatography- flame ionization detection. Several parameters influencing extraction recoveries of phthalate esters including adsorption and desorption parameters were investigated and optimized using fabricated MOF- DES/MIPs monolithic fiber. Under optimal conditions, detection limits (S/N = 3) of the method were in a range of 0.008-0.03 µg L-1 and limits of quantification (S/N = 10) were between 0.028 and 0.12 µg L-1. RSD (%) for intra-day and inter-day precisions were between 2.4-4.7% and 2.6-3.4%, respectively. Subsequently, this procedure was successfully applied with satisfactory results in the determination of phthalate esters in yogurt, water, and soybean oil samples. The R (%) ranged from 95.5 to 100.0% in different samples.

Fabrication of ciprofloxacin molecular imprinted polymer coating on a stainless steel wire as a selective solid-phase microextraction fiber for sensitive determination of fluoroquinolones in biological fluids and tablet formulation using HPLC-UV detection.

A molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) fiber on stainless steel wire using ciprofloxacin template with a mild template removal condition was synthetized and evaluated for fiber solid phase microextraction (SPME) of fluoroquinolones (FQs) from biological fluids and pharmaceutical samples, followed by high performance liquid chromatography analysis with UV detection (HPLC-UV). The developed MIP fiber exhibited high selectivity for the analytes in complex matrices. The coating of the fibers were inspected using fourier transform infrared spectrophotometry, thermogaravimetric analysis, energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy as well as by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The fiber shows high thermal stability (up to 300°C), good reproducibility and long lifetime. The composite coating did not swell in organic solvents nor did it strip off from the substrate. It was also highly stable and extremely adherent to the surface of the stainless steel fiber. The fabricated fiber exclusively exhibited excellent extraction efficiency and selectivity for some FQs. The effective parameters influencing the microextraction efficiency such as pH, extraction time, desorption condition, and stirring rate were investigated. Under optimized conditions, the limits of detection of the four FQs ranged from 0.023-0.033 µg L(-1) (S/N=5) and the calibration graphs were linear in the concentration range from 0.1-40 µg L(-1), the inter-day and intraday relative standard deviations (RSD) for various FQs at three different concentration level (n=5) using a single fiber were 1.1-4.4% and the fiber to fiber RSD% (n=5) was 4.3-6.7% at 5 µg L(-1) of each anlyetes. The method was successfully applied for quantification of FQs in real samples including serum, plasma and tablet formulation with the recoveries between 97 to 102%.

A novel ultrasound-assisted back extraction reverse micelles method coupled with gas chromatography-flame ionization detection for determination of aldehydes in heated edibles oils.

A novel ultrasound-assisted back extraction reverse micelles coupled with gas chromatography-flame ionization detection has been developed for the extraction and determination of some short chain aldehydes in different heated edible oil samples. After the homogenization of the oil samples with Triton X-100, 200 µL of methanol was added to facilitate the phase separation. The aqueous micelle phase has been separated by centrifugation, then it was treated with a mixture of H2O: CHCl3 and ultrasonic vibration, were used to effectively back-extraction of the analytes into the chloroform phase. The sedimented organic phase was obtained after centrifugation, withdrawn into the microsyringe and directly injected into the GC-FID system. The calibration graphs were linear in the range 0.05-20 mg L(-1). The limits of detection were in the range of 0.02-0.15 mg L(-1). This procedure was successfully applied for determination of propanal, butanal, hexanal and heptanal in real heated oil samples.