Ultrasound-assisted encapsulating folic acid-based carbon quantum dots within breast cancer cell-derived exosomes as a co-receptors-mediated anticancer nanocarrier for enhanced breast cancer therapy.

The nonspecific nature of cancer drug delivery often results in substantial toxic side effects during treatments for breast cancer. To mitigate these negative outcomes, our approach involves loading methotrexate (MTX) within carbon quantum dots (CQDs) synthesized from folic acid, which are then enveloped in exosomal membranes obtained from breast cancer cells (Ex@MTX-CQDs). Analysis utilizing nanoparticle tracking techniques has demonstrated that these Ex@MTX-CQDs maintain the physical and biochemical properties of their exosomal precursors. The release profile of MTX indicated a restricted release percentage (less than 10%) under normal physiological conditions, which is contrasted by a more consistent release rate (approximately 65%) when emulating the conditions found within tumor tissues. The toxicological assessments have confirmed that the presence of exosomes combined with leftover folic acid significantly improves the delivery efficacy of MTX directly to the cancerous cells through the binding to folate and heparan sulfate proteoglycan receptors. This process results in increased disruption of the mitochondrial membrane potential and subsequently triggers apoptosis, ultimately leading to the destruction of cancerous cells. Our research could potentially contribute to the further innovation and application of nanocarriers derived from biological sources for the targeted treatment of breast cancer.

Review of Physical Layer Security in Molecular Internet of Nano-Things.

Molecular networking has been identified as a key enabling technology for Internet-of-Nano-Things (IoNT): microscopic devices that can monitor, process information, and take action in a wide range of medical applications. As the research matures into prototypes, the cybersecurity challenges of molecular networking are now being researched on at both the cryptographic and physical layer level. Due to the limited computation capabilities of IoNT devices, physical layer security (PLS) is of particular interest. As PLS leverages on channel physics and physical signal attributes, the fact that molecular signals differ significantly from radio frequency signals and propagation means new signal processing methods and hardware is needed. Here, we review new vectors of attack and new methods of PLS, focusing on 3 areas: (1) information theoretical secrecy bounds for molecular communications, (2) key-less steering and decentralized key-based PLS methods, and (3) new methods of achieving encoding and encryption through bio-molecular compounds. The review will also include prototype demonstrations from our own lab that will inform future research and related standardization efforts.

Recent advances in fluorescence nanoparticles "quantum dots" as gene delivery system: A review.

Biomaterial scientists have recently focused their attention on evaluating various aspects of delivering genetic materials into cells to induce a cellular response. The process involves complexing negatively charged plasmids, followed by delivering the resulting package into cells, a process facilitated by lipids, peptides, viruses, synthetically modified cationic polymers, and specific inorganic nanomaterials. In the context of gene delivery for specific imaging in biological and biomedical applications, fluorescence nanocrystals or quantum dots (QDs) present promising candidates as engineered nanoparticles (NPs). This literature review study aims to investigate the potential of QDs as a novel tool for gene delivery to retinal cells. The proficiency of QDs in this context arises from their unique physicochemical characteristics, including optical electronic and catalytic properties, which render them viable options for biosensing imaging, drug delivery, and gene delivery applications. In the field of gene delivery to the retinal cells, factors such as photoluminescence, quantum yield, biocompatibility, size, and shape play crucial roles in the utilization of QDs. In this paper, we discuss the most appropriate credentials and briefly outline the findings, supported by relevant illustrative samples, to explore the delivery of genetic material utilizing QDs.

Recent progress in tannic acid based approaches as a natural polyphenolic biomaterial for cancer therapy: A review.

Significant advancements have been noticed in cancer therapy for decades. Despite this, there are still many critical challenges ahead, including multidrug resistance, drug instability, and side effects. To overcome obstacles of these problems, various types of materials in biomedical research have been explored. Chief among them, the applications of natural compounds have grown rapidly due to their superb biological activities. Natural compounds, especially polyphenolic compounds, play a positive and great role in cancer therapy. Tannic acid (TA), one of the most famous polyphenols, has attracted widespread attention in the field of cancer treatment with unique structural, physicochemical, pharmaceutical, anticancer, antiviral, antioxidant and other strong biological features. This review concentrated on the basic structure along with the important role of TA in tuning oncological signal pathways firstly, and then focused on the use of TA in chemotherapy and preparation of delivery systems including nanoparticles and hydrogels for cancer therapy. Besides, the application of TA/Fe3+ complex coating in photothermal therapy, chemodynamic therapy, combined therapy and theranostics is discussed.

A review on the impacts of metal/metal nanoparticles on characteristics of hydrogels: Special focus on carbohydrate polymers.

Hydrogels with very interesting properties such as high water content, porosity, swelling, and mimicking the structure of the extracellular matrix (ECM) are promising candidates for a variety of applications. Recently, great efforts are being made to improve the shape and functionality of three-dimensional (3D) hydrogels. One of the most promising approaches is the incorporation of metal or metal nanoparticles (NPs) into hydrogels made of natural and synthetic polymers such as proteins, carbohydrates (i.e. chitosan, carboxymethyl cellulose, hyaluronic acid, etc), and the development of dynamic functional hydrogels that have been extensively studied. This review article focuses on the incorporation of metals or metal NPs into hydrogels to enhance their functionality and properties. In the first part, various metal-based hydrogels including metal- coordinated hydrogels, metal-nanocomposite hydrogels, and their synthesis methods are discussed. Subsequently, various properties of metal-containing hydrogels such as mechanical, self-healing, bioadhesion, antibacterial activity, and conductivity are explained. Finally, stimuli-responsive metal-based hydrogels are discussed with a special focus on carbohydrate polymers. This review article presents a new perspective on the development of hydrogels for various biomedical applications.

Matricaria chamomilla essential oil-loaded hybrid electrospun nanofibers based on polycaprolactone/sulfonated chitosan/ZIF-8 nanoparticles for wound healing acceleration.

Recently, developing antibacterial wound dressings based on biomaterials display good biocompatibility and the potential to accelerate wound healing. For this aim, we prepared eco-friendly and biodegradable nanofibers (NFs) based on N-(3-sulfopropyl)chitosan/ poly (ε-caprolactone) incorporated by zeolite imidazolate framework-8 nanoparticles (ZIF-8 NPs) and chamomile essential oil (MCEO) via the electrospinning technique for their efficacy as wound dressing scaffolds. Fabricated NFs were characterized and studied for their structural, morphological, mechanical, hydrophilic, and thermal stability properties. The results of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that adding the ZIF-8 NPs/ MCEO, very slightly influenced the average diameter of NFs (PCL/SPCS (90:10) with 90 ± 32 nm). The developed uniform MCEO-loaded ZIF-8/PCL/SPCS NFs displayed better cytocompatibility, proliferation, and physicochemical properties (e.g. thermal stability and mechanical properties) than neat NFs. The results of cytocompatibility, DAPI (4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole) staining study, and SEM micrographs demonstrated that formulated NFs had promising adhesion and proliferation against normal human foreskin fibroblasts-2 (HFF-2 cell line). The prepared NFs revealed excellent antibacterial activity against both Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli with inhibition of 32.3 mm and 31.2 mm, respectively. Accordingly, the newly developed antibacterial NFs hold great potential as effective biomaterials for use as an active platform in wound healing applications.