Synthesis and Anti-Melanoma Activity of L-Cysteine-Coated Iron Oxide Nanoparticles Loaded with Doxorubicin.

In this study, we report on the synthesis of L-Cysteine (L-Cys)-coated magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (NPs) loaded with doxorubicin (Dox). The Fe3O4-L-Cys-Dox NPs were extensively characterized for their compositional and morpho-structural features using EDS, SAED, XRD, FTIR and TEM. XPS, MÓ§ssbauer spectroscopy and SQUID measurements were also performed to determine the electronic and magnetic properties of the Fe3O4-L-Cys-Dox nanoparticles. Moreover, by means of a FO-SPR sensor, we evidenced and confirmed the binding of Dox to L-Cys. Biological tests on mouse (B16F10) and human (A375) metastatic melanoma cells evidenced the internalization of magnetic nanoparticles delivering Dox. Half maximum inhibitory concentration IC50 values of Fe3O4-L-Cys-Dox were determined for both cell lines: 4.26 µg/mL for A375 and 2.74 µg/mL for B16F10, as compared to 60.74 and 98.75 µg/mL, respectively, for unloaded controls. Incubation of cells with Fe3O4-L-Cys-Dox modulated MAPK signaling pathway activity 3 h post-treatment and produced cell cycle arrest and increased apoptosis by 48 h. We show that within the first 2 h of incubation in physiological (pH = 7.4) media, ~10-15 µM Dox/h was released from a 200 µg/mL Fe3O4-L-Cys-Dox solution, as compared to double upon incubation in citrate solution (pH = 3), which resembles acidic environment conditions. Our results highlight the potential of Fe3O4-L-Cys-Dox NPs as efficient drug delivery vehicles in melanoma therapy.

Mathematical formalism of femtosecond laser-deoxyribonucleic acid interaction: thermal evolution.

A novel analytical formalism is proposed based upon Quantum heat transport equation in order to describe the femtoseconds/picoseconds laser pulses interaction with the Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). The formalism generates solutions based upon inputs as: voltage, laser beam intensity and laser - DNA interaction time. Thermal waves induced inside irradiated DNA are defined and accounted for. Analytical simulations show that the optimum regime of laser - DNA interaction was reached for a potential carrier generated at the interface equal to 3.5 × 10-3 eV. It has to be mentioned that the formalism breaks down if the potential carrier generated at the interface is inferior to 10-2 eV. Accordingly, for pulse duration inferior to 1 ps, the laser beam spatial-temporal distribution has an essential role in defining the shape and magnitude of the thermal distribution within the irradiated DNA strands.

One-Temperature Analytical Model for Femto-/Atto-Second Laser-Metals Drilling: A Novel Approach.

Recently, ultrafast lasers have been developed and potentially become a point of interest worldwide, as their interaction with matter is yet unknown and can be mediated by new physical mechanisms. Real-time experimentation requires enormous costs, and there is therefore a need to develop computational models for this domain. By keeping in view this idea, a non-Fourier heat equation has solved the case of ultrafast laser-material interaction. Initial and boundary conditions were considered, and a one-dimensional mathematical model was presented. The simulations were compared with the experimental results for ultrashort laser-metallic sample interaction, and a close correlation was proven. It was found that the coupling of electron-phonon becomes "zero" due to short laser-material interaction time. The propagation of thermal waves was identified due to non-Fourier heat implementation. When the pulse duration increases, the variation in the thermal distribution becomes trivial due to an inverse correlation between the pulse duration and total energy within the pulse. When the laser-material interaction time decreases from fs to as, the generation of thermal waves increases and the powerful laser intensity acts as a shock wave during laser-material interaction, which causes a higher intensity of the thermal wave.

Flow injection enzymatic biosensor for aldehydes based on a Meldola Blue-Ni complex electrochemical mediator.

Carbon nanofibers (CNF) are efficient electrode modifiers in electrochemical biosensors that enhance the electrochemical active area, induce electrocatalytic effect toward the oxidation of the enzymatic cofactor nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (reduced form, NADH), and enable the quantitative immobilization of enzymes. Combining CNF with efficient and stable mediators radically augments the speed of electron transfer between NADH and solid electrodes and leads to electrochemical sensors characterized by high sensitivity and stability. The main aim of this work was to investigate the performance of a novel mediator for NADH with advantageously low solubility in an electrochemical detector based on a screen-printed CNF electrode as well as its potential in biosensing. Using a mediator, prepared from Meldola Blue and Ni hexamine chloride, a stable and sensitive electrochemical NADH sensor is provided with a detection limit of 0.5 µmol L-1. Further on, covalent immobilization of a recently described aldehyde dehydrogenase from the Antarctic Flavobacterium PL002 strain on the surface of the mediator-modified electrode produced a stable biosensor for the detection of aldehydes. When integrated in a flow injection analysis (FIA) setup with amperometric detection at 0.1 V vs. Ag/AgCl, the measurement of benzaldehyde with a detection limit of 10 µmol L-1 over a linear range of 30-300 µmol L-1 is possible. Determination of trace benzaldehyde impurities in a pharmaceutical excipient was also demonstrated and results compared with a chromatographic method. Graphical abstract.

Functional Bioglass-Biopolymer Double Nanostructure for Natural Antimicrobial Drug Extracts Delivery.

Aseptic loosening and periprosthetic infections are the main causes of implant failure. Strategies to mitigate this drawback are therefore mandatory to avoid primary and revision replacement surgeries. A functional bioapatite-biopolymer double nanostructure fabricated by matrix-assisted pulsed laser evaporation to prevent infection of orthopedic and dental implants could promote osseointegration and ensure controlled delivery of natural antimicrobial drugs. The synthesized nanostructure consists of two overlapping layers, the lower from a biocompatible polymer for anticorrosive protection, and the upper of bioactive glass incorporating antimicrobial plant extract, acting as a potential drug delivery system. Morphology, composition, adherence, ability for drug delivery and biological properties (cytotoxicity and antimicrobial effect) were studied. Structures proved compact and stable, conserving a remarkable drug delivery ability for more than 21 days, i.e., enough to ensure long-term microbes' eradication.

Direct Evidence of Lithium Ion Migration in Resistive Switching of Lithium Cobalt Oxide Nanobatteries.

Lithium cobalt oxide nanobatteries offer exciting prospects in the field of nonvolatile memories and neuromorphic circuits. However, the precise underlying resistive switching (RS) mechanism remains a matter of debate in two-terminal cells. Herein, intriguing results, obtained by secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) 3D imaging, clearly demonstrate that the RS mechanism corresponds to lithium migration toward the outside of the Lix CoO2 layer. These observations are very well correlated with the observed insulator-to-metal transition of the oxide. Besides, smaller device area experimentally yields much faster switching kinetics, which is qualitatively well accounted for by a simple numerical simulation. Write/erase endurance is also highly improved with downscaling - much further than the present cycling life of usual lithium-ion batteries. Hence very attractive possibilities can be envisaged for this class of materials in nanoelectronics.

Ambiguous Role of Growth-Induced Defects on the Semiconductor-to-Metal Characteristics in Epitaxial VO2/TiO2 Thin Films.

Controlling the semiconductor-to-metal transition temperature in epitaxial VO2 thin films remains an unresolved question both at the fundamental as well as the application level. Within the scope of this work, the effects of growth temperature on the structure, chemical composition, interface coherency and electrical characteristics of rutile VO2 epitaxial thin films grown on TiO2 substrates are investigated. It is hereby deduced that the transition temperature is lower than the bulk value of 340 K. However, it is found to approach this value as a function of increased growth temperature even though it is accompanied by a contraction along the V4+-V4+ bond direction, the crystallographic c-axis lattice parameter. Additionally, it is demonstrated that films grown at low substrate temperatures exhibit a relaxed state and a strongly reduced transition temperature. It is suggested that, besides thermal and epitaxial strain, growth-induced defects may strongly affect the electronic phase transition. The results of this work reveal the difficulty in extracting the intrinsic material response to strain, when the exact contribution of all strain sources cannot be effectively determined. The findings also bear implications on the limitations in obtaining the recently predicted novel semi-Dirac point phase in VO2/TiO2 multilayer structures.

Biocompatibility and bioactivity enhancement of Ce stabilized ZrO(2) doped HA coatings by controlled porosity change of Al(2) O(3) substrates.

Al(2) O(3) substrates with controlled porosity were manufactured from nanosized powders obtained by plasma processing. It was observed that when increasing the sintering temperature the overall porosity was decreasing, but the pores got larger. In a second step, Ce stabilized ZrO(2) doped hydroxyapatite coatings were pulsed laser deposited onto the Al(2) O(3) substrates. It was shown that the surface morphology, consisting of aggregates and particulates in micrometric range, was altered by the substrate porosity and interface properties, respectively. TEM studies evidenced that Ce stabilized ZrO(2) doped HA particulates ranged from 10 to 50 nm, strongly depending on the Al(2) O(3) porosity. The coatings consisted of HA nanocrystals embedded in an amorphous matrix quite similar to the bone structure. These findings were congruent with the increased biocompatibility and bioactivity of these layers confirmed by enhanced growing and proliferation of human mesenchymal stem cells.