Optimization of ionic liquid-incorporated PLGA nanoparticles for treatment of biofilm infections.

Ionic liquids (ILs) containing imidazolium cations have a number of useful properties, such as high permeability to cells, high antimicrobial activity, and good biocompatibility. With the aid of ILs, transdermal delivery, solubilization of poorly soluble drugs were developed and therapeutic effects were improved. In this work, 1­butyl­3­methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate-incorporated, chitosan-modified, submicron-sized poly(dl­lactide­co­glycolide) (PLGA) nanoparticles (NPs) were prepared using the emulsion solvent diffusion method for the treatment of biofilm infections. Prepared IL-incorporated PLGA NPs using surfactants such as Tween-80 and poloxamer-188 showed a high antibacterial activity to the bacterial cells under the biofilm. Additionally, antibacterial mechanism of IL-incorporated PLGA NPs was revealed by annular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy combined a simple sample pretreatment method. We established a drug delivery system using IL-incorporated PLGA NPs to enhance the potential of polymeric nanocarriers for treating biofilm infections.

Generation of gaseous sulfur-containing compounds in tumour tissue and suppression of gas diffusion as an antitumour treatment.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The mechanisms of cancer cell growth and metastasis are still not entirely understood, especially from the viewpoint of chemical reactions in tumours. Glycolytic metabolism is markedly accelerated in cancer cells, causing the accumulation of glucose (a reducing sugar) and methionine (an amino acid), which can non-enzymatically react and form carcinogenic substances. There is speculation that this reaction produces gaseous sulfur-containing compounds in tumour tissue. The aims of this study were to clarify the products in tumour and to investigate their effect on tumour proliferation. METHODS: Products formed in the reaction between glucose and methionine or its metabolites were analysed in vitro using gas chromatography. Flatus samples from patients with colon cancer and exhaled air samples from patients with lung cancer were analysed using near-edge x-ray fine adsorption structure spectroscopy and compared with those from healthy individuals. The tumour proliferation rates of mice into which HT29 human colon cancer cells had been implanted were compared with those of mice in which the cancer cells were surrounded by sodium hyaluronate gel to prevent diffusion of gaseous material into the healthy cells. RESULTS: Gaseous sulfur-containing compounds such as methanethiol and hydrogen sulfide were produced when glucose was allowed to react with methionine or its metabolites homocysteine or cysteine. Near-edge x-ray fine adsorption structure spectroscopy showed that the concentrations of sulfur-containing compounds in the samples of flatus from patients with colon cancer and in the samples of exhaled air from patients with lung cancer were significantly higher than in those from healthy individuals. Animal experiments showed that preventing the diffusion of sulfur-containing compounds had a pronounced antitumour effect. CONCLUSIONS: Gaseous sulfur-containing compounds are the main products in tumours and preventing the diffusion of these compounds reduces the tumour proliferation rate, which suggests the possibility of a new approach to cancer treatment.

Stability of dispersions of colloidal alumina particles in aqueous suspensions.

The colloidal stability of suspensions of alumina particles has been investigated by measuring particle size distribution, sedimentation, viscosity, and zeta potential. Alumina particles were found to be optimally dispersed at pH around 3 to 7.8 without dispersant and at pH 8.5 and beyond with dispersant. The above results corroborate zeta potential and viscosity measurement data well. The surface charge of alumina powder changed significantly with anionic polyelectrolyte (ammonium polycarboxylate, APC) and the iep shifted toward more acidic range under different dispersant conditions. It was found that the essential role played by pH and dispersant (APC) on the charge generation and shift in the isoelectric point of alumina manifests two features: (i) the stability decreases on approaching the isoelectric point from either side of pH, and (ii) the maximum instability was found at pH 9.1 for alumina only and at pH 6.8 for alumina/APC, which is close to the isoelectric points for both the system, respectively. Using the model based on the electrical double-layer theory of surfactant adsorption through shift in isoelectric points, the authors could estimate the specific free energy of interaction (7.501 kcal/mol) between particles and dispersant. The interaction energy, zeta potential, sedimentation, and viscosity results, were used to explain the colloidal stability of the suspension.