Development of aminolyzed polylactic acid-based porous films for pH-responsive sustained drug delivery devices.

Biomaterial-based drug-carrying systems have scored enormous focus in the biomedical sector. Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) is a versatile material in this context. A porous and hydrophilic PLA surface can do this job better. We aimed to synthesize pH-responsive PLA-based porous films for uptaking and releasing amikacin sulfate in the aqueous media. The native PLA lacks functional/polar sites for the said purpose. So, we tended to aminolyze it for tailored physicochemical and surface properties. The amino (-NH2) group density on the treated films was examined using the ninhydrin assay. Electron microscopic analyses indicated the retention of porous morphology after aminolysis. Surface wettability and FTIR results expressed that the resultant films became hydrophilic after aminolysis. The thermal analysis expressed reasonable thermal stability of the aminolyzed films. The prepared films expressed pH-responsive behaviour for loading and releasing amikacin sulfate drug at pH 5.5 and 7.4, respectively. The drug release data best-fitted the first-order kinetic model based on Akaike information and model selection criteria. The prepared PLA-based aminolyzed films qualified as potential candidates for pH-responsive drug delivery applications. This study could be the first report on pH-responsive amikacin sulfate uptake and release on the swellable aminolyzed PLA-based porous films for effective drug delivery application.

Gold-hyaluranic acid micromotors and cold atmospheric plasma for enhanced drug delivery and therapeutic applications.

Micro/nanomotors have emerged as promising platforms for various applications, including drug delivery and controlled release. These tiny machines, built from nanoscale materials such as carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, or nanowires, can convert different forms of energy into mechanical motion. In the field of medicine, nanomotors offer potential for targeted drug delivery and diagnostic applications, revolutionizing areas such as cancer treatment and lab-on-a-chip devices. One prominent material used in drug delivery is hyaluronic acid (HA), known for its biocompatibility and non-immunogenicity. HA-based drug delivery systems have shown promise in improving the efficacy and reducing the toxicity of chemotherapeutic agents like doxorubicin (DOX). Additionally, micro/nanomotors controlled by external stimuli enable precise drug delivery to specific areas of the body. Cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) has also emerged as a promising technology for drug delivery, utilizing low-temperature plasma to enhance drug release and bioavailability. CAP offers advantages such as localized delivery and compatibility with various drug types. However, further research is needed to optimize CAP drug delivery systems and understand their mechanisms. In this study, gold-hyaluronic acid (Au-HA) micromotors were synthesized for the first time, utilizing acoustic force for self-motion. The release profile of DOX, a widely used anticancer drug, was investigated in pH-dependent conditions, and the effect of CAP on drug release from the micromotors was examined. Following exposure to the CAP jet for 1 min, the micromotors released approximately 29 µg mL-1 of DOX into the PBS (pH 5), which is significantly higher than the 17 µg mL-1 released without CAP. The research aims to minimize side effects, increase drug loading and release efficiency, and highlight the potential of HA-based micromotors in cancer therapy. This study contributes to the advancement of micro-motor technology and provides insights into the utilization of pH and cold plasma technology for enhancing drug delivery systems.

Effect of cold plasma treatment on polylactic acid and polylactic acid/poly (ethylene glycol) films developed as a drug delivery system for streptomycin sulfate.

Polylactic acid (PLA) being a renewable polyester have extensively researched in the biomedical field due to its non-toxicity, high biocompatibility, and easy processing properties. However, low functionalization ability and hydrophobicity limit its applications and hence demands physical and chemical modifications to overcome these limitations. Cold plasma treatment (CPT) is frequently used to improve the hydrophilic properties of PLA-based biomaterials. This provides an advantage to obtain a controlled drug release profile in drug delivery systems. The rapid drug release profile may be advantageous in some applications such as wound application. The main objective of this study is to determine the effects of CPT on PLA or PLA@polyethylene glycol (PLA@PEG) porous films fabricated by solution casting method for use as a drug delivery system with a rapid release profile. The physical, chemical, morphological and drug release properties of PLA and PLA@PEG films, such as surface topography, thickness, porosity, water contact angle (WCA), chemical structure, and streptomycin sulfate release properties, after CPT were systematically investigated. XRD, XPS and FTIR results showed that oxygen-containing functional groups were formed on the film surface with CPT without changing the bulk properties. Along with the changes in the surface morphology such as surface roughness and porosity, the new functional groups provide the films hydrophilic properties by reducing the water contact angle. The improved surface properties enabled the selected model drug, streptomycin sulfate, to exhibit a faster release profile with drug-released mechanism fitted by first order kinetic model. Considering all the results, the prepared films showed an enormous potential for future drug delivery applications, especially in wound application where rapid drug release profile is an advantage.

A Machine Learning Approach for Metal Oxide Based Polymer Composites as Charge Selective Layers in Perovskite Solar Cells.

A library of metal oxide-conjugated polymer composites was prepared, encompassing WO3 -polyaniline (PANI), WO3 -poly(N-methylaniline) (PMANI), WO3 -poly(2-fluoroaniline) (PFANI), WO3 -polythiophene (PTh), WO3 -polyfuran (PFu) and WO3 -poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) which were used as hole selective layers for perovskite solar cells (PSCs) fabrication. We adopted machine learning approaches to predict and compare PSCs performances with the developed WO3 and its composites. For the evaluation of PSCs performance, a decision tree model that returns 0.9656 R2 score is ideal for the WO3 -PEDOT composite, while a random forest model was found to be suitable for WO3 -PMANI, WO3 -PFANI, and WO3 -PFu with R2 scores of 0.9976, 0.9968, and 0.9772 respectively. In the case of WO3 , WO3 -PANI, and WO3 -PTh, a K-Nearest Neighbors model was found suitable with R2 scores of 0.9975, 0.9916, and 0.9969 respectively. Machine learning can be a pioneering prediction model for the PSCs performance and its validation.

RF plasma-enhanced conducting Polymer/W5O14 based self-propelled micromotors for miRNA detection.

Functionalized micro/nanomotors having immobilized biological molecules provide excellent and powerful tools for the detection of target molecules. Based on surface modifications and mobilities of micromotors, we report herein a new experimental design of high-speed, self-propelled and plasma modified micromotors for biomedical applications. Within this scope, in the first step, poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) was in-situ synthesized onto W5O14 (tungsten trioxide) wires by using radio frequency (RF) rotating plasma reactor. Then, W5O14/PEDOT-Platinum (Pt) hybrid micromotors were fabricated by using magnetron sputtering technique. The detection of miRNA-21 was performed using both single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) (probe DNA) immobilized W5O14-Pt and W5O14/PEDOT-Pt micromotors. The fluorescence signals were determined after hybridization of probe DNA immobilized these novel W5O14-Pt and W5O14/PEDOT-Pt micromotors with different molar concentrations of the synthetic target (6-carboxyfluorescein dye (FAM)-labeled miRNA-21). The changes in the micromotor speeds after the hybridization process were also evaluated. W5O14/PEDOT-Pt micromotors presented better sensor properties compared to the W5O14-Pt micromotors. A good linearity for miRNA-21 concentration between 0.1 nM and 100 nM was obtained for these micromotors based on their fluorescence intensities. The detection limit was found as 0.028 nM for W5O14/PEDOT-Pt micromotors (n = 3). Thus, sensor and motor characteristics of the W5O14-Pt micromotors were improved by RF plasma enhanced PEDOT coatings. The new catalytic W5O14 based micromotors demonstrated here had great potential for the development of sensitive and simple sensing platforms for detection of miRNA-21.

Comparison of Machine Learning Models on Performance of Single- and Dual-Type Electrochromic Devices.

This study shows that the model fitting based on machine learning (ML) from experimental data can successfully predict the electrochromic characteristics of single- and dual-type flexible electrochromic devices (ECDs) by using tungsten trioxide (WO3) and WO3/vanadium pentoxide (V2O5), respectively. Seven different regression methods were used for experimental observations, which belong to single and dual ECDs where 80% percent was used as training data and the remaining was taken as testing data. Among the seven different regression methods, K-nearest neighbor (KNN) achieves the best results with higher coefficient of determination (R 2) score and lower root-mean-squared error (RMSE) for the bleaching state of ECDs. Furthermore, higher R 2 score and lower RMSE for the coloration state of ECDs were achieved with Gaussian process regressor. The robustness result of the ML modeling demonstrates the reliability of prediction outcomes. These results can be proposed as promising models for different energy-saving flexible electronic systems.

Biosensing applications of titanium dioxide coated graphene modified disposable electrodes.

In the present work, preparation of titanium dioxide coated graphene (TiO2/graphene) and the use of this nanocomposite modified electrode for electrochemical biosensing applications were detailed. The nanocomposite was prepared with radio frequency (rf) rotating plasma method which serves homogeneous distribution of TiO2 onto graphene. TiO2/graphene was characterized with scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. Then, this nanocomposite was dissolved in phosphate buffer solution (pH 7.4) and modified onto disposable pencil graphite electrode (PGE) by dip coating for the investigation of the biosensing properties of the prepared electrode. TiO2/graphene modified PGE was characterized with SEM, EDS and cyclic voltammetry (CV). The sensor properties of the obtained surface were examined for DNA and DNA-drug interaction. The detection limit was calculated as 1.25mgL(-1) (n=3) for double-stranded DNA (dsDNA). RSD% was calculated as 2.4% for three successive determinations at 5mgL(-1) dsDNA concentration. Enhanced results were obtained compared to the ones obtained with graphene and unmodified (bare) electrodes.

Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) coated chitosan modified disposable electrodes for DNA and DNA-drug interaction sensing.

The need for sensitive, selective, rapid and low-cost detection systems for DNA and DNA-drug interactions are in crucial demand for diagnostics and real-world applications. This work details the preparation of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) coated chitosan (CHIT) and the use of PEDOT coated CHIT modified disposable pencil graphite electrodes (PGEs) for DNA and DNA-anticancer drug interaction sensing. PEDOT coated CHIT (PEDOT/CHIT) was prepared with rotating plasma polymerization using radio frequency (RF: 13.56 MHz) power generator. Then, modification of PEDOT/CHIT onto PGE was performed. The use of the prepared electrode was carried out using differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). Cyclic voltammetry (CV) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to characterize the PEDOT/CHIT/PGE. The performance of the electrode was compared with CHIT/PGE and unmodified PGE. The electrode exhibited high sensitivity for the investigation of DNA sensing and DNA-anticancer drug interaction. Such disposable sensing platform hold considerable promise for diverse bioapplications.

Electrospun chitosan/PEDOT nanofibers.

Plasma-modified chitosan and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) were blended to obtain conducting nanofibers with polyvinyl alcohol as a supporting polymer at various volumetric ratios by electrospinning method. Chemical compositions and molecular interactions among nanofiber blend components were determined using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The conducting blends containing plasma-modified chitosan resulted in a superior antibacterial activity and thinner fiber formation than those containing chitosan without plasma-modification. The obtained nanofiber diameters of plasma-modified chitosan were in the range of 170 to 200 nm and those obtained from unmodified chitosan were in the range of 190 to 246 nm. The electrical and electrochemical properties of nanofibers were also investigated by four-point probe conductivity and cyclic voltammetry measurements.