One-pot room-temperature synthesis of a BiOCl hierarchical microsphere assembled from nanosheets with exposed {001} facets for enhanced photosensitized degradation.

BiOCl hierarchical microspheres assembled from nanosheets with exposed {001} facets were successfully synthesized using PEG-2000 as template by a one-pot room-temperature hydrolysis method. The PEG-modified BiOCl photocatalyst exhibits a significantly enhanced RhB photosensitized degradation activity under visible light. After 10 min white LED irradiation, the degradation efficiency of RhB by the PEG-modified BiOCl sample S 0.07 reaches 99.5%. The degradation rate constant of the PEG-modified sample S 0.07 over RhB is 0.4568 min-1, which is 6.76 times that of the unmodified sample S 0 (0.0676 min-1). After 4 min of xenon lamp (λ ≥ 420 nm) irradiation, the degradation rate of RhB by S 0.07 is almost 100%. The exposed {001} facets with surface defects contribute to the superior adsorption capacity of BiOCl towards RhB, which immensely accelerates the electron transfer efficiency from the excited RhB into the conduction band of BiOCl, forming superoxide radical (˙O2 -) active species to degrade the pollutants. Moreover, the superior RhB-sensitized BiOCl system provides high photocatalytic degradation activity over MO. This work provides a facile and efficient BiOCl synthesis method that is conducive to large-scale production and simultaneously opens up new ideas for the synthesis of other photocatalysts.

Recent Advances in Phenylboronic Acid-Based Gels with Potential for Self-Regulated Drug Delivery.

Glucose-sensitive drug platforms are highly attractive in the field of self-regulated drug delivery. Drug carriers based on boronic acid (BA), especially phenylboronic acid (PBA), have been designed for glucose-sensitive self-regulated insulin delivery. The PBA-functionalized gels have attracted more interest in recent years. The cross-linked three-dimensional (3D) structure endows the glucose-sensitive gels with great physicochemical properties. The PBA-based platforms with cross-linked structures have found promising applications in self-regulated drug delivery systems. This article summarizes some recent attempts at the developments of PBA-mediated glucose-sensitive gels for self-regulated drug delivery. The PBA-based glucose-sensitive gels, including hydrogels, microgels, and nanogels, are expected to significantly promote the development of smart self-regulated drug delivery systems for diabetes therapy.

One-step, high-yield synthesis of g-C3N4 nanosheets for enhanced visible light photocatalytic activity.

A facile template-free one-step synthesis method of ultrathin g-C3N4 nanosheets was developed through thermal polycondensation of melamine. The higher temperature, prolonged time and tightly sealed crucible reaction system contributed to the formation of ultrathin g-C3N4 nanosheets. The as-synthesized g-C3N4 nanosheets were applied to the visible light photocatalytic degradation of RhB. The photocatalytic activity was significantly enhanced with increased calcination temperature from 500 °C to 650 °C and prolonged calcination time from 4 h to 10 h. Interestingly, the obtained ultrathin g-C3N4 nanosheets simultaneously possess high yield and excellent photocatalytic activity. Moreover, g-C3N4 nanosheets can maintain photochemical stability after five consecutive runs. The remarkably enhanced photocatalytic activity can be interpreted as the synergistic effects of the enhanced crystallinity, the large surface area, the reduced layer thickness and size and the reduced number of defects. A new layer exfoliation and splitting mechanism of the formation of the ultrathin nanosheets was proposed. This work provides a new strategy to develop a facile eco-friendly template-free one-step synthesis method for potential large-scale synthesis of ultrathin nanosheets with high yield, high photocatalytic efficiency and stable activity for environmental and energetic applications.

Glucose Oxidase-Based Glucose-Sensitive Drug Delivery for Diabetes Treatment.

The glucose-sensitive drug delivery systems based on glucose oxidase (GOD), which exhibit highly promising applications in diabetes therapy, have attracted much more interest in recent years. The self-regulated drug delivery systems regulate drug release by glucose concentration automatically and continuously to control the blood glucose level (BGL) in normoglycemic state. This review covers the recent advances at the developments of GOD-based glucose-sensitive drug delivery systems and their in vivo applications for diabetes treatment. The applications of GOD-immobilized platforms, such as self-assembly layer-by-layer (LbL) films and polymer vesicles, cross-linking hydrogels and microgels, hybrid mesoporous silica nanoparticles, and microdevices fabricated with insulin reservoirs have been surveyed. The glucose-sensitive drug delivery systems based on GOD are expected to be a typical candidate for smart platforms for potential applications in diabetes therapy.

Glucose-sensitive polymer nanoparticles for self-regulated drug delivery.

Glucose-sensitive drug delivery systems, which can continuously and automatically regulate drug release based on the concentration of glucose, have attracted much interest in recent years. Self-regulated drug delivery platforms have potential application in diabetes treatment to reduce the intervention and improve the quality of life for patients. At present, there are three types of glucose-sensitive drug delivery systems based on glucose oxidase (GOD), concanavalin A (Con A), and phenylboronic acid (PBA) respectively. This review covers the recent advances in GOD-, Con A-, or PBA-mediated glucose-sensitive nanoscale drug delivery systems, and provides their major challenges and opportunities.