Synthesis and Characterization of Supermagnetic Nanocomposites Coated with Pluronic F127 as a Contrast Agent for Biomedical Applications.

Nanomedicine has garnered significant interest owing to advances in drug delivery, effectively demonstrated in the treatment of certain diseases. Here, smart supermagnetic nanocomposites based on iron oxide nanoparticles (MNPs) coated with Pluronic F127 (F127) were developed for the delivery of doxorubicin (DOX) to tumor tissues. The XRD patterns for all samples revealed peaks consistent with Fe3O4, as shown by their indices (220), (311), (400), (422), (511), and (440), demonstrating that the structure of Fe3O4 did not change after the coating process. After loading with DOX, the as-prepared smart nanocomposites demonstrated drug-loading efficiency and drug-loading capacity percentages of 45 ± 0.10 and 17 ± 0.58% for MNP-F127-2-DOX and 65 ± 0.12 and 13 ± 0.79% for MNP-F127-3-DOX, respectively. Moreover, a better DOX release rate was observed under acidic conditions, which may be credited to the pH sensitivity of the polymer. In vitro analysis demonstrated the survival rate of approximately 90% in HepG2 cells treated with PBS and MNP-F127-3 nanocomposites. Furthermore, after treatment with MNP-F127-3-DOX, the survival rate decreased, confirming cellular inhibition. Hence, the synthesized smart nanocomposites showed great promise for drug delivery in liver cancer treatment, overcoming the limitations of traditional therapies.

Magnetic boron nitride nanosheets-based on pH-responsive smart nanocarriers for the delivery of doxorubicin for liver cancer treatment.

A new drug delivery system (DDS) type complexing magnetic nanoparticles (MNP) along with boron nanosheets (BNN) coated with a pH-responsive polymer-polyethylene glycol (PEG) for the manageable loading/release of the anti-cancerous drug, doxorubicin (DOX), was created (MNP-BNN-PEG-DOX). The X-ray diffraction patterns of the nanocomposites displayed wide diffraction peaks for BNN at 25.1° and 42.3°, belonging to the (002) and (100) planes, correspondingly. Additionally, the characteristic peaks of Fe3O4 appeared at 30.5°, 35.9°, 43.6°, 54.1°, 57.5°, and 63.2°, belonging to the (220), (311), (400), (422), (511), and (440) crystal planes, correspondingly. Moreover, the magnetic properties of the nanocomposites revealed that the MNP-BNN remained magnetic after coating with PEG. The saturation magnetization (Ms) of the uncoated-MNP-BNN and MNP-BNN-PEG-1 were 49.4 and 42.3 emu g-1, respectively. Both in vitro and in vivo analyses shown that DDS might inhibit tumor growth, provoke cancer cell apoptosis, and reduce the cytotoxic effects of DOX. In vivo analysis demonstrated that after treatment with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS), MNP-BNN-PEG-1, free DOX, and MNP-BNN-PEG-1-DOX, the average tumor growth and weight were 1906, 1997, 1188, and 1043 nm and 0.17, 0.20, 0.13, and 0.07 g, respectively. The MNP-BNN-PEG-DOX nanoparticles could be an effective treatment and potential alternative for liver cancer therapy.

In-situ reductive degradation of chlorinated DNAPLs in contaminated groundwater using polyethyleneimine-modified zero-valent iron nanoparticles.

Zero-valent iron nanoparticles (ZVIN) have found applications in many strategies for on-site soil and groundwater decontamination. A number of studies have reported the prospective utilization of ZVIN in the reduction of chlorinated organic compounds such as dense non-aqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs) in groundwater. Due to their bioaccumulation and carcinogenesis, DNAPLs in groundwater are a human health hazard and pose environmental risks. Therefore, decontamination of these contaminants is necessary. This study presents the in-situ remediation of trichloroethylene (TCE), perchloroethene (PCE), and 1,2-dichloroethene (1,2-DCE) DNAPLs through the direct injection of polyethylenimine (PEI)-coated ZVIN (PEI-ZVIN composite materials) to facilitate the reduction of contaminants in low-permeability media. A field test was conducted at the premises of a petrochemical company, situated in the Miaoli County of Northern Taiwan that discharged significant amounts of DNAPLs. After in-situ injection and one-day of reaction with groundwater contaminants, ZVIN was further characterized to examine its efficacy in the reduction of pollutants. After the direct injection of PEI-ZVIN, a notable reduction in the concentration of DNAPLs was recorded with conversion from toxic to non-toxic substances. Use of resistivity image profiling (RIP) technique suggested similar conductivity data for the PEI-coated ZVIN suspension and groundwater samples. X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) and X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) studies depicted that the oxidation of ZVIN and PEI-ZVIN was occurring after the reductive reaction with contaminated groundwater. The reacted samples had bond distance values of 1.98, 2.00, 1.96, and 1.94 Å. Combining floating surface-coated ZVIN and RIP technique seems promising and environmentally attractive.