A study on the preparation and anti-tumor efficacy of bovine serum albumin nanospheres containing 5-fluorouracil

The therapeutic profile of many anti-cancer drugs has been improved by their modified distribution through a colloidal carrier system. Hence, bovine serum albumin nanospheres containing 5-fluorouracil were prepared by pH-coacervation methods. To select the most suitable cryoprotector for the formulated nanosphere system, a study on the effect of cryoprotectors in the prevention of particle agglomeration was done. Using glucose and mannitol at various concentrations during freeze drying, glucose at a concentration of 5% was observed to be relatively more effective in the prevention of particle agglomeration than the other cryoprotectors. The carrier capacity was determined through the drug-to-albumin ratio. The particle size of all the drug-loaded batches was analyzed before and after freeze drying. The batch of nanospheres with uniform size distribution, and highest drug loading, was used for other subsequent studies. The effect of surfactant in drug loading was estimated through various concentrations of sodium lauryl sulfate, and it was observed that the surfactant has no influence on drug loading at the selected concentrations. The batch of nanospheres with highest drug loading was evaluated for its in-vitro release, and the drug release was found to be in a bi-phasic pattern. To evaluate the efficacy of 5-fluorouracil-loaded nanospheres against cancer cells, an in vitro cytotoxicity study was carried out using HEp-2 cell lines. The nanosphere-bound drug was observed to produce a better cytotoxic effect than the free drug. The anti-tumor efficacy of drug-loaded nanosphere was investigated in DLA tumor-induced mice models, and the percentage tumor inhibition was relatively higher in animals treated with nanosphere-bound drug than with free drug.     

无机材料纳米空心球的制备方法研究进展

探索新的纳米结构已成为近年来物理、化学、材料等领域的研究热点之一.纳米空心球作为一种新的纳米结构,其特有的核-壳空心结构及纳米厚度的壳层使它具有许多优异的物理化学性能,从而在医学、制药学、材料学、染料工业等领域具有很好的应用前景.本文综述了模板法和由模板法发展而来的L-bL自组装法制备无机材料纳米空心球的一般过程及原理,最后展望了纳米空心球材料的发展前景,并探讨了目前在无机材料纳米空心球研究领域中存在的问题.     

Large-scale preparation of hollow graphitic carbon nanospheres

Hollow graphitic carbon nanospheres (HGCNSs) were synthesized on large scale by a simple reaction between glucose and Mg at 550 °C in an autoclave. Characterization by X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy demonstrates the formation of HGCNSs with an average diameter of 10 nm or so and a wall thickness of a few graphenes. The HGCNSs exhibit a reversible capacity of 391 mAh g⁻¹ after 60 cycles when used as anode materials for Li-ion batteries.     

Study of biodistribution of methotrexate-loaded bovine serum albumin nanospheres in mice

Nanospheres made from natural hydrophilic polymers have been proved efficient in terms of better drug-loading capacity, biocompatibility, and possibility less opsonization by reticuloendothelial system (RES) through an aqueous stearic barrier. Hence, nanospheres containing methotrexate were prepared from bovine serum albumin (BSA) by a novel pH coacervation method. A drug-to-polymer ratio study was carried out to determine the carrier capacity. The batch with the highest drug loading was subjected to in vitro analysis. It was found to provide a slow release after an initial burst release. Biodistribution of nanosphere-bound drug was compared with that of free drug in mice. It was observed that the percentage increase in drug distribution to the lungs, liver, and spleen was markedly high from the nanosphere when compared to free drug.     

Large-scale preparation of polyaniline nanospheres anchored with thiol-stabilized gold nanoparticles

Reported herein is the preparation of a new nanostructured composite consisting of PANI(SH) (where PANI(SH) is poly(aniline-co-4-aminothio phenol)) and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs)) via "seed"-induced bulk polymerization. The PANI(SH)-AuNPs composite was designated as PANI(SH)-Au-NS(P). The composite was characterized in terms of its morphology and structural, thermal, and electrochemical properties. The field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) image of PANI(SH)-Au-NS(P) revealed the presence of PANI(SH) nanospheres (sizes: approximately 150-250 nm) with finely distributed AuNPs (approximately 10 nm). The usefulness of PANI(SH)-Au-NS(P) as an electrocatalyst towards the oxidation of methanol was tested.     

Controllable preparation of magnetic polymer nanospheres with high saturation magnetization by miniemulsion polymerization

Magnetic Fe₃O₄/poly(styrene-co-acrylamide) core/shell nanospheres were prepared by one-step miniemulsion polymerization in the presence of Fe₃O₄ ferrofluids. The functional monomer of acrylamide was used not only to modify the surface of the nanospheres with functional groups, but also to form modified bilayer with SDBS to control the encapsulation and particle size of nanospheres. The properties of magnetic nanospheres were characterized by IR, TEM, TG and VSM. The results indicated that the superparamagnetic nanopsheres had small particle size of 60 nm, high saturation magnetization of 27.1 emu/g, high magnetic content and abundant functional groups. The possible formation mechanism of magnetic nanospheres was discussed in detail.     

Template-directed preparation of bovine serum albumin microporous multilayer films

The fabrication of polymeric materials with ordered submicron-size void structures is potentially valuable for many applications such as catalysts, separation and adsorbent media. This paper reports the preparation of macroporous protein multilayer films with regular voids using silica nanospheres as templates. Both monodisperse silica colloids and highly ordered assembly silica multilayer films are used as templates to prepare microporous bovine serum albumin multilayer films with ruleless and ordered submicron-sized voids. Glutaraldehyde is used as a crosslinking agent to form a firm net-like protein film on the surface of silica templates. The microporous protein film is obtained after removing of silica templates. Compare with polymer film, protein film has good biocompatibility and biodegradability which will be beneficial to its biological applications.     

Silica fluorescent nanospheres containing a large amount of quantum dots prepared using liposomes as templates

Quantum dot (QD) fluorescent spheres have captivated many scientists because of their many potential applications in biomedical research. In this work, QD nanospheres were prepared using a novel method: incorporating QDs into nano-liposomes and then synthesising a silica shell using a lipid membrane as the template. The results showed that the nanocomposites obtained were spherical in shape, and each nanosphere contained a silica shell and the cores consisted of a large amount of QDs. Ultrathin sections of the spheres showed that the thickness of the silica shell was about 50–60?nm. Because the QD cores were coated with liposome and thick silica shell, the bright field of the silica sphere suspension was close to milk white in colour, which was different from that of the red-coloured QD solution. Although the quantum yield of the silica spheres (2.27%) was lower than that of the QDs (23.52%), these nanospheres still emitted a bright fluorescence, and there was no obvious difference between the fluorescent colour of the nanosphere suspension and the QD solution.     

Effect of diode-laser and AC magnetic field of bovine serum albumin nanospheres loaded with phthalocyanine and magnetic particles

This study reports on the development and characterization of bovine serum albumin (BSA) nanospheres containing Silicon(IV) phthalocyanine (NzPc) and/or maghemite nanoparticles (MNP), the latter introduced via ionic magnetic fluid (MF). The nanosized BSA-loaded samples were designed for synergic application while combining Photodynamic Therapy and Hyperthermia. Incorporation of MNP in the albumin-based template, allowing full control of the magnetic content, was accomplished by adding a highly-stable ionic magnetic fluid sample to the albumin suspension, following heat denaturing. The material's evaluation was performed using Zeta potential measurements and scanning electron microscopy. The samples were characterized by steady-state techniques and time-resolved fluorescence. The in vitro assay, using human fibroblasts, revealed no cytotoxic effect in all samples investigated, demonstrating the potential of the tested system as a synergistic drug delivery system.     

Facile synthesis of hollow carbon nanospheres from hollow chitosan nanospheres

Hollow carbon nanospheres (HCNS) with large surface area were synthesized from hollow chitosan nanospheres by one-step pyrolysis with a relatively low temperature (550 degrees C). The resulted HCNS is fully carbonized and partially graphitized under the experiment conditions. It is an important and facile method to prepare the uniform, shape- and size-controlled carbon nanomaterials by carbonization of the natural polysaccharide compounds and their derivatives. The as-prepared HCNS has a narrow size distribution in hollow carbon nanospheres (about 53 nm). The structure and size of HCNS are reproducible and could be tunable by changing the preparation conditions. The characterizations to estimate the composition, decompose properties, crystalline form, structure and surface property of the HCNS were investigated using FT-IR spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction measurement (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis, and the N2 adsorption-desorption isothermal process. The present preparation method makes it feasible to synthesize carbon nanospheres in abundance in the lab, and the synthesized HCNS could be a promising support for metal catalysts, an ideal matrix connecting with DNA or other bioactive substances.     

Aqueous preparation and evaluation of albumin-chitosan microspheres containing indomethacin

Controlled-release egg albumin-chitosan microspheres containing indomethacin as a model drug were successfully prepared by coacervation method. The proposed method can offer a simple method for microsphere preparation in an aqueous system with the elimination of the use of organic solvents that are usually needed in conventional techniques of microencapsulation. The interaction between negatively charged egg albumin molecules in phosphate buffer, pH 7.2, or sodium hydroxide solution and positively charged chitosan molecules dissolved in diluted acetic acid to form an insoluble precipitate was the principle for the formation of the microspheres. The effects of many process variables, such as amount of formaldehyde as a cross-linking agent, stirring time, final pH of encapsulation medium, initial drug loading, and albumin concentration or albumin-to-chitosan weight ratio, on the properties of the prepared microspheres were investigated. Incorporation efficiencies of the microspheres to the drug were high in most cases and ranged between 63.3 ± 3.6% and 92.39 ± 3.2%, while particle sizes were 435.2 ± 12.6 up to 693.9 ± 34.6 µm for the different tested batches. On the other hand, the values of angles of repose and compressibility indices were in the range of 23.5 ± 0.4 to 32.0 ± 0.7 degrees and 11.1 ± 0.7% to 23.6 ± 0.7% respectively, which indicate overall good free flowing nature of the microspheres of all batches. The maximum required amount of the cross-linking agent was determined to avoid excessive unnecessary chemicals. It was also noticed that excessive time of stirring and excessive initial drug loading are not recommended as it may lead to microspheres of low properties. The pH of the encapsulation media (pH 3.77 up to pH 4.91) significantly affected the properties of the microspheres. As the pH of the encapsulation media was increased, the incorporation efficiency, particle size, and flowability decreased, along with increase of drug release rate, which could be related to incomplete cross linking of the microspheres matrix. It was also observed that high concentration of albumin solution and accordingly the increase of albumin-to-chitosan weight ratio were accompanied with increases in incorporation efficiency and particle size with improved microsphere flowability and slow indomethacin release. Thus, the proposed microspheres showed the ability to control the release of indomethacin, and their properties were highly affected by many process variables that could be controlled to obtain an optimized system.     

含氟织物整理剂的制备

以顺丁烯二酸酐、八氟戊醇为原料合成马来酸单酯,并进一步探索了以马来酸单酯、苯乙烯为聚合单体,过氧化苯甲酰为引发剂,丁酮为溶剂合成含氟整理剂。研究了合成马来酸单酯和含氟整理剂的最佳工艺条件。研究结果表明,合成马来酸单酯的最佳优化条件为:顺丁烯二酸酐与八氟戊醇的质量配比为1.2∶1,反应温度为85~90℃,反应时间为4~5h,催化剂为无水乙酸钠,催化剂用量为八氟戊醇质量的6%,产物的转化率为98.87%。合成含氟整理剂的最佳条件是:马来酸单酯与苯乙烯的质量配比为2∶1,反应温度为79℃,反应时间为4~5h,引发剂的用量为马来酸单酯质量的6%,丁酮用量为30mL,烘干温度为90℃,整理剂防油级别为6级。     

用鸡蛋清中的卵清蛋白测定常用超滤膜的切割分子量

提出了一种测定超滤膜切割分子量的简便方法,该法以鸡蛋清代替生化试剂作为标准分子量蛋白质,以卵清蛋白的截留率而不是截留率一分子量曲线作为判据来确定膜的切割分子量,切割分子量的确定范围为1万～6万．讨论了配制卵清蛋白溶液的适宜pH范围为10～11,实际使用质量分数为0．03％NaOH溶液即可;证明了用生化试剂和鸡蛋清配制的卵清蛋白溶液具有相同的分光光度性质,共享同一条浓度-吸光度工作曲线;阐明了比尔定律的适用范围,只需控制超滤前溶液的起始吸光度E。＝0．200左右就可用吸光度代替浓度计算膜对蛋白质的截留率;测定了不同鸡蛋中的卵清蛋白含量在10％～15％之间,同一只鸡蛋的蛋清中卵清蛋白的含量分布是相当均匀的;用已知切割分子量的膜测定了对卵清蛋白的截留率,并据此提出了确定切割分子量的判据;用细胞色素C的截留率证明了本法的适用性;还证明了用0．03％NaOH溶液配制的卵清蛋白溶液可在4～5℃下存放2～3周．     

Controlled surface functionalization of silica nanospheres by covalent conjugation reactions and preparation of high density streptavidin nanoparticles

Silica nanoparticles with a diameter of 100 nm were covalently modified at their surface by adjustable amounts of amine and carboxyl functional groups. Bioconjugation studies of two proteins, streptavidin and streptactin, with the functional nanoparticles resulted in optimum binding of the proteins to a long-chain carboxyl-terminated linker. The surface functionalization of the nanoparticles was monitored by a variety of independent methods, including zeta-potential measurements, dynamic light scattering (DLS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), particle charge detection titrations (PCD) and elemental analysis. At the surface of the nanoparticles, a functional surface group density of 1.8 amino groups per nm2 was realized. The amine functions were quantitatively transferred to carboxyl groups coupled with a linker elongation. Streptavidin was immobilized by covalent binding to the carboxyl linkers and resulted in a protein density at the surface of the nanoparticles that was three times higher than the highest binding densities at nanoparticles published to date. The binding capacity of the streptavidin-covered nanoparticles for ligand biotin was quantified by titration with biotin-4-fluorescein to 2.5 biotin binding sites per 100 nm2.     

Evaluation of arsenic trioxide-loaded albumin nanoparticles as carriers: preparation and antitumor efficacy

Bovine serum albumin (BSA) nanoparticles containing arsenic trioxide (As(2)O(3)) were prepared by a pH-coacervation method. To investigate the properties of the As(2)O(3)-loaded BSA nanoparticles, a study on drug-to-polymer ratio was done to determine the drug loading (DL), and a H-600 transmission electron microscope (TEM) was used to examine the particle sizes. The results showed that the DL was 27.8% and the average particle size was about 734 nm. The drug release in vitro test was done, which revealed that the drug release was found to provide a slow release after an initial burst release and the cumulative percentage release reached close to 95%. In vitro cytotoxicity test was carried out using APL NB4 cell lines (acute promyelocytic leukemia), and the anticancer efficacy in vivo against mouse H22 hepatoma cells was evaluated on kungming mice. The results indicated that the anticancer efficacy of the As(2)O(3)-loaded BSA nanoparticles was very obvious.     

Hydrogel containing dexamethasone-loaded nanocapsules for cutaneous administration: preparation,characterization, and in vitro drug release study

Context: Our group previously reported the development of dexamethasone-loaded polymeric nanocapsules as an alternative for topical dermatological treatments. Objective: Our study aimed to prepare and characterize a hydrogel containing this system to improve the effectiveness of the glucocorticoid for cutaneous disorders. Methods: For the antiproliferative activity assay, a dexamethasone solution and D-NC were tested on Allium cepa root meristem model. D-NC were prepared by the interfacial deposition of preformed polymer. Hydrogels were prepared using Carbopol Ultrez® 10 NF, as polymer, and characterized according to the following characteristics: pH, drug content, spreadability, viscosity, and in vitro drug release. Results and Discussion: Nanocapsules showed mean particle size and zeta potential of 201 ± 6 and ?5.73 ± 0.42 nm, respectively. They demonstrated a lower mitotic index (4.62%) compared to free dexamethasone (8.60%). Semisolid formulations presented acidic pH values and adequate drug content (between 5.4% and 6.1% and 100% and 105%, respectively). The presence of nanocapsules in hydrogels led to a decrease in their spreadability factor. Intact nanoparticles were demonstrated by TEM as well as by dynamic light scattering (mean particle size < 300 nm). In vitro studies showed a controlled dexamethasone release from hydrogels containing the drug associated to the nanocapsules following the Higuchi's squared root model (k = 20.21 ± 2.96 mg/cm²/h^1/2) compared to the hydrogels containing the free drug (k = 26.65 ± 2.09 mg/cm²/h^1/2). Conclusion: Taking all these results together, the hydrogel containing D-NC represent a promising approach to treat antiproliferative-related dermatological disorders.     

一种含羧基的PPV衍生物的制备与表征

以对甲氧基苯酚和6-溴己酸为原料,经过醚化,溴甲基化以及脱卤化氢反应,成功的合成了一种新型含羧基的聚对苯乙炔(PPV)衍生物材料-聚[2-甲氧基-5(5-羧基戊氧基)对苯乙炔]。通过傅里叶变换红外光谱(FTIR),核磁共振波谱1 HNMR和13 CNMR及紫外吸收分光光谱(UV-Vis)对中间产物及聚合物进行了结构表征,结果表明,所合成的中间产物和聚合物与目标产物的结构一致。     

Evaluation of metal-ions containing sludges in the preparation of black inorganic pigments

Inorganic pigments were prepared from industrial wastes: galvanizing sludges resulting from Cr/Ni plating processes (S, G, and T) and a sludge generated from steel wiredraw process that is Fe-rich (F). These industrial wastes were characterized in order to determine the main compositional variations and discover their influence on the colour characteristics of pigments for glazes and ceramics. The toxic character was also investigated and established. Attempting to form the black spinel structure, several combinations of sludges were prepared and then calcined at 1000 °C. XRD and microscopy analysis confirmed the presence of nichromite for compositions with higher Ni amounts, while trevorite was detected in iron-rich formulations. The combination of S and F sludges (SF compositions) generates pigments with higher black colorimetric quality, which is similar to, and sometimes better than, a commercial black pigment. Pigments containing GF and TF sludges develop brown hues on glazes and on porcelain stoneware bodies, being this effect more evident upon industrial firing trials. The addition of minor amounts of cobalt or manganese enhances the black coloration, and might adjust some formulation deviations.     

In situ thermal preparation of polyimide nanocomposite films containing functionalized graphene sheets

Graphene oxides (GO) were exfoliated in N,N-dimethylformamide by simple sonication treatment of the as-prepared high quality graphite oxides. By high-speed mixing of the pristine poly(amic acid) (PAA) solution with graphene oxide suspension, PAA solutions containing uniformly dispersed GO can be obtained. Polyimide (PI) nanocomposite films with different loadings of functionalized graphene sheets (FGS) can be prepared by in situ partial reduction and imidization of the as-prepared GO/PAA composites. Transmission electron microscopy observations showed that the FGS were well exfoliated and uniformly dispersed in the PI matrix. It is interesting to find that the FGS were highly aligned along the surface direction for the nanocomposite film with 2 wt % FGS. Tensile tests indicated that the mechanical properties of polyimide were significantly enhanced by the incorporation of FGS, due to the fine dispersion of high specific surface area of functionalized graphene nanosheets and the good adhesion and interlocking between the FGS and the matrix.     

含纳米颗粒V2O5溶胶凝胶的制备技术

以片状工业V2 O5晶体为原料 ,采用无机途径的溶胶 -凝胶法成功地制取了V2 O5溶胶和凝胶。测试了V2 O5溶胶中颗粒大小 ,并研究了其粘度和 pH值的变化。结果表明 :溶胶中V2 O5颗粒呈针状 ,其径向尺寸为 5 0～ 60nm ;当V2 O5溶胶浓度在 2 0 g/L以上时极易形成凝胶 ,其粘度随放置时间增大较快 ,约 10天以后即失去流动性 ,其 pH值也同时发生类似的变化