Concomitant Effect of Quercetin and Its Copper Complex in the Development of Sustained-Release Nanoparticles of Polycaprolactone, Used for the Treatment of Skin Infection.

The study aimed to improve the treatment of impetigo with naturally occurring quercetin and its copper-quercetin (Cu-Q) complex by preparing sustained-release (SR) nanoparticles of polycaprolactone (PCL). The solvent evaporation method was used for the copper-quercetin (Cu-Q) complex formation, and their PCL nanoparticles (PCL-NPs, Q-PCL-NPs, and Cu-Q-PCL-NPs) were prepared by the high-pressure homogenization method. Synthesis of nanoparticles was confirmed by their physicochemical and antibacterial properties of quercetin against Gram-positive as well as Gram-negative bacteria. The percentage loading efficiency of quercetin and release in 100 mM of phosphate buffer pH 7.4 and 5.5 at 37 °C was found to be more than 90% after 24 h with the zero-order release pattern. Minimum inhibitory concentration of nanoparticles was found to increase threefold in the case of Cu-Q-PCL-NPs may be due to the synergistic antibacterial behavior. Scanning electron microscopy showed spherical nanoparticles, and surface roughness was confirmed by atomic force microscopy analysis. Fortunately, no sign of irritation on rat skin even at 3%, was seen. In vitro antioxidant assay by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl reduction was found to be ≤80 ± 0.02% which confirmed their scavenging activity. Interestingly, for the ex vivo study, the tape-stripping model was applied against Staphylococcus aureus containing rats and showed the formation of the epidermal layer within 4-5 days. Confirmation of antibacterial activity of pure quercetin, from Cu-Q complex, and their SR release from Q-PCL-NPs and Cu-Q-PCL-NPs was considered an effective tool for the treatment of skin diseases and can be used as an alternative of already resistant ciprofloxacin in impetigo.

Fluorescence Guided Sentinel Lymph Node Mapping: From Current Molecular Probes to Future Multimodal Nanoprobes.

For SLN lymph node biopsy (SLNB), SLN mapping has become a standard of care procedure that can accurately locate the micrometastases disseminated from primary tumor sites to the regional lymph nodes. The broad array of SLN mapping has prompted the development of a wide range of SLN tracers, rationally designed for noninvasive and high-resolution imaging of SLNs. At present, conventional SLN imaging probes (blue dyes, radiocolloids, and few other small-molecular dyes), although serving the clinical needs, are often associated with major issues such as insufficient accumulation in SLN, short retention time, staining of the surgical field, and other adverse side effects. In a recent advancement, newly designed fluorescent nanoprobes are equipped with novel features that could be of high interest in SLN mapping such as (i) a unique niche that is not met by any other conventional SLN probes, (ii) their adoptable synthesis method, and (ii) excellent sensitivity facilitating high resolution SLN mapping. Most importantly, lots of effort has been devoted for translating the fluorescent nanoprobes into a clinical setup and also imparting the multimodal imaging abilities of nanoprobes for the excellent diagnosis of life-threatening diseases such as cancer. In this review, we will provide a detailed roadmap of the progress of a wide variety of current fluorescent molecular probes and emphasize the future of nanomaterial-based single/multimodal imaging probes that have true potential translation abilities for SLN mapping.

High molecular weight cross linked chitosan nanoparticles for controlled release of 5-Fluorouracil; Enhances its bioavailability.

The aim of study was cross linking of high molecular weight chitosan nanoparticles containing 5-fluorouracil to improve dissolution rate and ultimately enhance its bioavailability by reverse emulsion/micelles method and cross-linking agent i.e. glutaraldehyde (GA 25% aqueous solution in water). The nature and outer morphologies were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Drug release models were functional to support way from cross linked NPs. Cross linking of 5-fluorouracil with glutaraldehyde improved dissolution rate. Mean dissolution time of 5-fluorouracil decreased significantly upon reverse emulsion/cross linking as encapsulated drug is protective and thermally stable within cross linked chitosan NPs. FTIR studies showed formation of intermolecular hydrogen bonding between 5-fluorouracil and GA-co-CHNPs. DSC studies indicated a less crystalline state of 5-fluorouracil in cross linking. SEM showed spherical nanoparticles with somewhat rough surface. 5-FU release followed Korsmeyer-Peppas model which indicate diffusion and dissociation control drug release from GA-co-CH-NPs. 5-FU cross linked chitosan nanoparticles can be safe and useful tool for other chemotherapeutic agents.

Molecularly imprinted porous beads for the selective removal of copper ions.

In the present work, novel molecularly imprinted polymer porous beads for the selective separation of copper ions have been synthesized by combining two material-structuring techniques, namely, molecular imprinting and oil-in-water-in-oil emulsion polymerization. This method produces monodisperse spherical beads with an average diameter of ∼2-3 mm, in contrast to adsorbents produced in the traditional way of grinding and sieving. Field-emission scanning electron microscopy indicates that the beads are porous in nature with interconnected pores of about 25-50 µm. Brunner-Emmett-Teller analysis shows that the ion-imprinted beads possess a high surface area (8.05 m(2) /g), and the total pore volume is determined to be 0.00823 cm(3) /g. As a result of the highly porous nature and ion-imprinting, the beads exhibit a superior adsorption capacity (84 mg/g) towards copper than the non-imprinted material (22 mg/g). Furthermore, selectivity studies indicate that imprinted beads show splendid recognizing ability, that is, nearly fourfold greater selective binding for Cu(2+) in comparison to the other bivalent ions such as Mn(2+) , Ni(2+) , Co(2+) , and Ca(2+) . The imprinted composite beads prepared in this study possess uniform porous morphology and may open up new possibilities for the selective removal of copper ions from waste water/contaminated matrices.

Metal nanoparticle assisted polymerase chain reaction for strain typing of Salmonella Typhi.

Salmonella enterica serotype Typhi (S. Typhi) is the causative agent of typhoid fever and remains a major health threat in most of the developing countries. The prompt diagnosis of typhoid directly from the patient's blood requires high level of sensitivity and specificity. Some of us were the first to report PCR based diagnosis of typhoid. This approach has since then been reported by many scientists using different genomic targets. Since the number of bacteria circulating in the blood of a patient can be as low as 0.3 cfu ml(-1), there is always a room for improvement in diagnostic PCR. In the present study, the role of different types of nanoparticles was investigated to improve the existing PCR based methods for diagnosis and strain typing of S. Typhi (targeting Variable Number of Tandem Repeats [VNTR]) by using optimized PCR systems. Three different types of nanoparticles were used i.e., citrate stabilized gold nanoparticles, rhamnolipid stabilized gold and silver nanoparticles, and magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles. The non-specific amplification was significantly reduced in VNTR typing when gold and silver nanoparticles were used in an appropriate concentration. More importantly, the addition of nanoparticles decreased the non-specificity to a significant level in the case of multiplex PCR thus further validating the reliability of PCR for the diagnosis of typhoid.

Lipase-copper complex/chitosan microspheres; loaded with attapulgite used for the treatment of E. coli-induced diarrhea.

Diarrhea is a globally major problem especially Escherichia coli induced diarrhea becoming fatal nowadays in developing countries. Colon-targeted chitosan microspheres (Ms) comprising of lipase­zinc and lipase­copper complexes were prepared, loaded with Attapulgite (Cts-Li-Zn-ATG/Ms and Cts-Li-Cu-ATG/Ms) for the treatment of bacterial diarrhea. Thin layer chromatography (TLC) and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) studies were used for confirmation of proposed lipase-metal complexes. Ms showed particle size range 18 ±â€¯0.24 to 23 ±â€¯0.83 µm, zeta potential -13.7 ±â€¯0.71 to -29.3 ±â€¯1.34 mV, PDI 0.5 ±â€¯0.04 to 1.0 ±â€¯0.07 and hemolytic activity was found to be <5 ±â€¯1.25 %. After coating with Eudragit S-100 for colon targeting, in-vitro % drug release of ATG at pH 7.4 was 80 ±â€¯0.21 % for Eud-Cts-Li-Zn-ATG/Ms while it was increased to 83 ±â€¯0.54 % for Eud-Cts-Li-Cu-ATG/Ms within 7 h, respectively. In-vivo anti-diarrheal activity of Eud-Cts-Li-Zn-ATG/Ms and Eud-Cts-Li-Cu-ATG/Ms was performed by oral challenge on albino mice having infectious diarrhea colonized with E. coli. Results revealed significant anti-diarrheal effect of proposed Eud-Cts-Li-Cu-ATG/Ms in terms of weight gain from 24 ±â€¯0.12 g to 26.05 ±â€¯0.31 g, which was 2-fold increase as compared to Eud-Cts-Li-Zn-ATG/Ms. Conclusively, Eud-Cts-Li-Cu-ATG/Ms provides an innovative alternate for the treatment of bacterial diarrhea with additional support of chitosan and lipase for nutritional support and immunity which was compromised in diarrheal patients.

Surfactin-Conjugated Silver Nanoparticles as an Antibacterial and Antibiofilm Agent against Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

The emergence of antimicrobial resistance is an alarming global health concern and has stimulated the development of novel functional nanomaterials to combat multi-drug-resistant (MDR) bacteria. In this work, we demonstrate for the first time the synthesis and application of surfactin-coated silver nanoparticles as an efficient antibacterial and antibiofilm agent against the drug-resistant bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa for safe dermal applications. Our in vivo studies showed no significant superficial dermal irritation, edema, and erythema, while microscopic analysis revealed that surfactin-coated silver nanoparticles caused no pathological alterations at the applied concentrations. These results support the potential use of surfactin-coated silver nanoparticles against drug-resistant bacterial biofilm infections and in skin wound dressing applications.

Fabrication and electrical characterization of p-Cu2O/n-ZnO heterojunction.

The conducting metal oxide (ZnO, Cu2O) films were used for fabrication of p-n heterojunction by rf sputtering and electrodeposition techniques respectively. The as synthesized films were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), UV spectroscopy and electrical techniques. The electrical properties of the p-Cu2O/n-ZnO heterojunction were examined using the current-voltage measurements. The current-voltage (I-V) result showed that potential barrier was higher than the turn-on voltage, which was attributed to the presence of the interface defect states. The PN junction parameters such as ideality factor, barrier height, and series resistance were determined using conventional forward bias current-voltage characteristics. The annealing of Cu2O increase the crystallinity size and which enhance the photo current from 1.6 mA/cm2 to 3.7 mA/cm2. The annealing of respective film resulted in a decrease of these parameters with an increase in efficiency of solar cell from 0.14% to 0.3% at 350 degrees C.

Biofunctionalized Nano-antimicrobials - Progress, Prospects and Challenges.

The rapid emergence of multidrug-resistant bacterial strains highlights the need for the development of new antimicrobial compounds/materials to address associated healthcare challenges. Meanwhile, the adverse side effects of conventional antibiotics on human health urge the development of new natural product-based antimicrobials to minimize the side effects. In this respect, we concisely review the recent scientific contributions to develop natural product-based nano-antibiotics. The focus of the review is on the use of flavonoids, peptides, and cationic biopolymer functionalized metal/metal oxide nanoparticles as efficient tools to hit the MDR bacterial strains. It summarizes the most recent aspects of the functionalized nanoparticles against various pathogenic bacterial strains for their minimal inhibitory concentrations and mechanism of action at the cellular and molecular levels. In the end, the future perspectives to materialize the in vivo applications of nano-antimicrobials are suggested based on the available research.

Structural, elastic constant, and vibrational properties of wurtzite gallium nitride: a first-principles approach.

Perdew-Wang proposed generalized gradient approximation (GGA) is used in conjunction with ultrasoft pseudopotential to investigate the structural, elastic constant, and vibrational properties of wurtzite GaN. The equilibrium lattice parameters, axial ratio, internal parameter, bulk modulus, and its pressure derivative are calculated. The effect of pressure on equilibrium lattice parameters, axial ratio, internal parameter (u), relative volume, and bond lengths parallel and perpendicular to the c-axis are discussed. At 52 GPa, the relative volume change is observed to be 17.8%, with an abrupt change in bond length. The calculated elastic constants are used to calculate the shear wave speeds in the [100] and [001] planes. The finite displacement method is employed to calculate phonon frequencies and the phonon density of states. The first- and second-order pressure derivative and volume dependent Gruneisen parameter (γ(j)) of zone-center phonon frequencies are discussed. These phonon calculations calculated at theoretical lattice constants agree well with existing literature.

First-principle electronic, elastic, and optical study of cubic gallium nitride.

The ab initio pseudopotential (PP) method within the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) has been used to investigate the electronic, elastic constants, and optical properties of zinc-blende GaN. An underestimated band gap along with higher DOS and squeezed energy bands around the fermi level is obtained. The d-band effect is briefly discussed for electronic band structure calculations. With the help of elastic constants, acoustic wave speeds are calculated in [100], [110], and [111] planes. The dielectric constant, refractive index, and its pressure coefficient are well illustrated. The effect of hydrostatic pressure is explicated for all these properties. The results of the present study are evaluated with the existing experimental and first-principle calculations.

Development of a LAMP assay using a portable device for the real-time detection of cotton leaf curl disease in field conditions.

Cotton production is seriously affected by the prevalent cotton leaf curl disease (CLCuD) that originated from Nigeria (Africa) to various parts of Asia including Pakistan, India, China and Philippines. Due to CLCuD, Pakistan suffers heavy losses approximately 2 billion USD per annum. Numerous reports showed that CLCuD is associated with multiple species of begomoviruses, alphasatellites and a single species of betasatellite, that is 'Cotton leaf curl Multan betasatellite' (CLCuMuB). The most prevalent form of CLCuD is the combination of 'Cotton leaf curl Kokhran virus'-Burewala strain (CLCuKoV-Bur) and CLCuMuB. Thus, the availability of an in-field assay for the timely detection of CLCuD is important for the control and management of the disease. In this study, a robust method using the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay was developed for the detection of CLCuD. Multiple sets of six primers were designed based on the conserved regions of CLCuKoV-Bur and CLCuMuB-ßC1 genes. The results showed that the primer set targeting the CLCuMuB-ßC1 gene performed best when the LAMP assay was performed at 58°C using 100 ng of total plant tissue DNA as a template in a 25 µl reaction volume. The limit of detection for the assay was as low as 22 copies of total purified DNA template per reaction. This assay was further adapted to perform as a colorimetric and real-time LAMP assay which proved to be advantageously applied for the rapid and early point-of-care detection of CLCuD in the field. Application of the assay could help to prevent the huge economic losses caused by the disease and contribute to the socio-economic development of underdeveloped countries.

Supramolecular lipid nanoparticles as delivery carriers for non-invasive cancer theranostics.

Nanotheranostics is an emerging frontier of personalized medicine research particularly for cancer, which is the second leading cause of death. Supramolecular aspects in theranostics are quite allured to achieve more regulation and controlled features. Supramolecular nanotheranostics architecture is focused on engineering of modular supramolecular assemblies benefitting from their mutable and stimuli-responsive properties which confer an ultimate potential for the fabrication of unified innovative nanomedicines with controlled features. Amalgamation of supramolecular approaches to nano-based features further equip the potential of designing novel approaches to overcome limitations seen by the conventional theranostic strategies, for curing even the lethal diseases and endowing personalized therapeutics with optimistic prognosis, endorsing their clinical translation. Among many potential nanocarriers for theranostics, lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) have shown various promising advances in theranostics and their formulation can be tailored for several applications. Despite the great advancement in cancer nanotheranostics, there are still many challenges that need to be highlighted to fill the literature gap. For this purpose, herein, we have presented a systematic overview on the subject and proposed LNPs as the potential material to manage cancer via non-invasive approaches by highlighting the use of supramolecular approaches to make them robust for cancer theranostics. We have concluded the review by entailing the future perspectives of lipid nanotheranostics towards clinical translation.

The Development of Antibiotics Based on Nanostructured Manganese Oxide; Understanding Mechanism from Fundamental Aspects to Application.

The emergence of bacterial resistance to currently available antibiotics emphasized the urgent need for new antibacterial agents. Nanotechnology-based approaches are substantially contributing to the development of effective and better-formulated antibiotics. Here, we report the synthesis of stable manganese oxide nanostructures (MnO NS) by a facile, one-step, microwave-assisted method. Asprepared MnO NS were thoroughly characterized by atomic force microscopy (AFM), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), UV-Visible spectroscopy and X-ray powder diffraction (XRD). UV-Visible spectra give a sharp absorption peak at a maximum wavelength of 430 nm showed surface plasmon resonance (SPR). X-ray diffraction (XRD) profile demonstrated pure phase and crystalline nature of nanostructures. Morphological investigations by a scanning electron microscope showed good dispersity with spherical particles possessing a size range between 10-100 nm. Atomic force microscope data exhibited that the average size of MnO NS can be controlled between 25 nm to 150 nm by a three-fold increment in the amount of stabilizer (o-phenylenediamine). Antimicrobial activity of MnO NS on both gram-positive (Bacillus subtilis) and gram-negative (Escherichia coli) bacterial strains showed that prepared nanostructures were effective against microorganisms. Further, this antibacterial activity was found to be dependent on nanoparticles (NPs) size and bacterial species. These were more effective against Bacillus subtilis (B. subtilis) as compared to Escherichia coli (E. coli). Considering the results together, this study paves the way for the formulation of similar nanostructures as effective antibiotics to kill other pathogens by a more biocompatible platform. This is the first report to synthesize the MnO NS by green approach and its antibacterial application.

Nanoparticles-assisted delivery of antiviral-siRNA as inhalable treatment for human respiratory viruses: A candidate approach against SARS-COV-2.

The current pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has challenged healthcare structures across the globe. Although a few therapies are approved by FDA, the search for better treatment options is continuously on rise. Clinical management includes infection prevention and supportive care such as supplemental oxygen and mechanical ventilatory support. Given the urgent nature of the pandemic and the number of companies and researchers developing COVID-19 related therapies, FDA has created an emergency program to move potential treatments with already approved drugs to patients as quickly as possible in parallel to the development of new drugs that must first pass the clinical trials. In this manuscript, we have reviewed the available literature on the use of sequence-specific degradation of viral genome using short-interfering RNA (siRNA) suggesting it as a possible treatment against SARS-CoV-2. Delivery of siRNA can be promoted by the use of FDA approved lipids, polymers or lipid-polymer hybrids. These nanoparticulate systems can be engineered to exhibit increased targetability and formulated as inhalable aerosols.

Stimuli-activatable nanomedicines for chemodynamic therapy of cancer.

Chemodynamic therapy (CDT) takes the advantages of Fenton-type reactions triggered by endogenous chemical energy to generate highly cytotoxic hydroxyl radicals. As a novel modality for cancer treatment, CDT shows minimal invasiveness and high tumor specificity by responding to the acidic and the highly concentrated hydrogen peroxide microenvironment of tumor. The CDT approach for spatiotemporal controllable reactive oxygen species generation exhibits preferable therapeutic performance and satisfying biosafety. In this review article, we summarized the recent advances of stimuli-activatable nanomedicines for CDT. We also overviewed the strategies for augmenting CDT performance, including increasing the catalytic efficacy through rational design of the nanomaterials, modulating the reaction condition, inputting external energy field, and regulating the tumor microenvironment. Furthermore, we discussed the potential and challenges of stimuli-activatable nanomedicine for clinical translation and future development of CDT. This article is categorized under: Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Nanomedicine for Oncologic Disease Nanotechnology Approaches to Biology > Nanoscale Systems in Biology Diagnostic Tools > In Vivo Nanodiagnostics and Imaging.

Design of heterostructured hybrids comprising ultrathin 2D bismuth tungstate nanosheets reinforced by chloramphenicol imprinted polymers used as biomimetic interfaces for mass-sensitive detection.

Combining nanomaterials in varying morphology and functionalities gives rise to a new class of composite materials leading to innovative applications. In this study, we designed a heterostructured hybrid material consisting of two-dimensional bismuth nanosheets augmented by molecularly imprinted networks. Antibiotic overuse is now one of the main concerns in health management, and their monitoring is highly desirable but challenging. So, for this purpose, the resulting composite interface was used as a transducer for quartz crystal microbalances. The main objective was to develop highly selective mass-sensitive sensor for chloramphenicol. Morphological investigation revealed the presence of ultrathin, square shaped nanosheets, 2-3 nm in height and further supplemented by imprinted polymers. Sensor responses are described as the decrease in the frequency of microbalances owing to chloramphenicol re-binding in the templated cavities, yielding a detection limit down to 0.74 µM. This sensor demonstrated a 100 % specific detection of chloramphenicol over its interfering and structural analogs (clindamycin, thiamphenicol, and florfenicol). This composite interface offers the advantage of selective binding and excellent sensitivity due to special heterostructured morphology, in addition to benefits of robustness and online monitoring. The results suggest that such composite-based sensors can be favorable platforms, especially for commercial prospects, to obtain selective detection of other biomolecules of clinical importance.

Synthesis of SPIONs-CNT Based Novel Nanocomposite for Effective Amperometric Sensing of First-Line Antituberculosis Drug Rifampicin.

It is necessary to study the possible interactions among various chemical surfaces and analytes before applying them to biological systems. We report the synthesis of carbon nanotubes-iron oxide (SPIONs-CNT) nanocomposite material by using lecithin stabilized superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) obtained by facile hydrothermal technique. Various characterizations of the obtained nanocomposite were carried out and electrochemical studies were performed further to study the interaction capabilities of the nanocomposite with anti-TB drug Rifampicin. Obtained results by cyclic voltammetric studies of SPIONs-CNT nanocomposite with limit of detection (LOD) of 1.178 µM showed the enhanced electrochemical sensitivity and selectivity of anti-tuberculosis (anti-TB) drug Rifampicin (RIF).

Tunable fabrication of new theranostic Fe3O4-black TiO2 nanocomposites: dual wavelength stimulated synergistic imaging-guided phototherapy in cancer.

The development of a simplified theranostic system with high-efficiency for multifunctional imaging-guided photodynamic therapy/photothermal therapy (PDT/PTT) is a great challenge. Therefore, a versatile fabrication strategy was introduced to design new Fe3O4-black TiO2 nanocomposites (Fe-Ti NCs). The Fe-Ti NCs exhibit an intense broad light absorption, high photothermal conversion efficiency, inherited phototherapy, and favorable magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) properties. The in vitro results demonstrate synergistic PTT and PDT capability of Fe-Ti NCs under 808 nm irradiation at low concentration and power density. Fe-Ti NCs also show superior phototherapy performance (PTT/PDT) under 671 nm laser irradiation. The confocal microscopy analysis demonstrates reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated synergistic phototherapy. Hematological and histological analysis confirms no evident toxicity of Fe-Ti NCs. The in vivo photoinduced tumor ablation capability of Fe-Ti NCs was assessed and monitored, and a rapid increase in temperature (60 ± 2 °C) after being exposed to 808 nm laser at 0.7 W cm-2 for 5 min was observed. Then, the same change in temperature is observed under 671 nm laser at 0.5 W cm-2. Thus, in vitro and in vivo dual-wavelength laser tumor ablation ability of Fe-Ti NCs verified excellent synergistic phototherapy efficacy against tumors. Moreover, Fe-Ti NCs exhibit superparamagnetic behavior, high magnetization value (48 emu g-1), good r2 relaxivity value (38.2 mM-1 s-1), and excellent T2 imaging capability to monitor therapeutic performance.

Nanosensors for diagnosis with optical, electric and mechanical transducers.

Nanosensors with high sensitivity utilize electrical, optical, and acoustic properties to improve the detection limits of analytes. The unique and exceptional properties of nanomaterials (large surface area to volume ratio, composition, charge, reactive sites, physical structure and potential) are exploited for sensing purposes. High-sensitivity in analyte recognition is achieved by preprocessing of samples, signal amplification and by applying different transduction approaches. In this review, types of signals produced and amplified by nanosensors (based on transducers) are presented, to sense exceptionally small concentrations of analytes present in a sample. The use of such nanosensors, sensitivity and selectivity can offer different advantages in biomedical applications like earlier detection of disease, toxins or biological threats and create significant improvements in clinical as well as environmental and industrial outcomes. The emerging discipline of nanotechnology at the boundary of life sciences and chemistry offers a wide range of prospects within a number of fields like fabrication and characterization of nanomaterials, supramolecular chemistry, targeted drug supply and early detection of disease related biomarkers.