Catalytic supercritical water oxidation of tri-n-butyl phosphate: Process optimization by response surface methodology and cytotoxicity assessment

Catalytic supercritical water oxidation (SCWO) of an organophosphate flame retardant, namely tri-n-butyl phosphate (TNBP) was studied. Firstly, copper oxide nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized in SCW and their properties were characterized by various analyses. Afterwards, their catalytic performance was investigated under different conditions including reaction temperature (400–500 °C), TNBP volume percentage in the feed (1–4%), oxidant ratio (0–2) and reaction time (50–150 min) based on response surface methodology (RSM). The synthesized CuO NPs had an average particle size of 30 nm with a narrow distribution. According to RSM analysis, the reaction temperature and time are the most significant factors; whereas, the impact of the other factors, especially TNBP volume percentage in the feed, was found to be negligible. Overall, excellent performance was achieved under optimal conditions found by the RSM, which was reaction temperature of 500 °C, TNBP volume percentage of 4%, oxidant ratio of 1.5, and reaction time of 90 min. The TOC removal efficiency as an indicator of TNBP degradation was about 99%. Finally, in vitro cell viability assays for the cytotoxicity evaluation of fresh and SCW-treated solution were applied. The results of MTT showed that SCWO converts TNBP into by-product that did not induce any cytotoxicity.     

Joint spatial registration and multi-target tracking using an extended PM-CPHD filter

An extended product multi-sensor cardinalized probability hypothesis density (PM-CPHD) filter for spatial registration and multi-target tracking (MTT) is proposed. The number and states of targets and the biases of sensors are jointly estimated by this method without the data association. Monte Carlo (MC) simulation results show that the proposed method (i) outperforms, although computationally more expensive than, the extended multi-sensor PHD filter which has been proposed for joint spatial registration and MTT; (ii) outperforms the multi-sensor joint probabilistic data association (MSJPDA) filter which is also extended in this study for joint spatial registration and MTT when the clutter is relatively dense.     

Automatic selection of arterial input function on dynamic contrast-enhanced MR images

Dynamic susceptibility contrast-magnetic resonance imaging (DSC-MRI) data analysis requires the knowledge of the arterial input function (AIF) to quantify the cerebral blood flow (CBF), volume (CBV) and the mean transit time (MTT). AIF can be obtained either manually or using automatic algorithms. We present a method to derive the AIF on the middle cerebral artery (MCA). The algorithm draws a region of interest (ROI) where the MCA is located. Then, it uses a recursive cluster analysis on the ROI to select the arterial voxels. The algorithm had been compared on simulated data to literature state of art automatic algorithms and on clinical data to the manual procedure. On in silico data, our method allows to reconstruct the true AIF and it is less affected by partial volume effect bias than the other methods. In clinical data, automatic AIF provides CBF and MTT maps with a greater contrast level compared to manual AIF ones. Therefore, AIF obtained with the proposed method improves the estimate reliability and provides a quantitatively reliable physiological picture.     

Fabrication, in vitro Degradation and Cytotoxic Assay of Different Crystalline Phases Calcium Polyphosphate

Fabrication, in vitro degradation and cytotoxic assay of different crystalline phases calcium polyphosphate（CPP） were reported. The CPP ceramics were fabricated by crystallizing the amorptous frits, and sintered at 550℃ ,875℃, 1000℃ for 1 h to obtain the 7-CPP, β-CPP and α-CPP respectively. The efffects of the different crystalline phases on their weight loss and released PO4^3- were investigated during the degradation. And the surface change was observed by the SEM, The osteoblastic ROS17/2.8 cell line was used to estimate the cytotoxicity of CPP. The effects of CPP on cells ＇ proliferation were evaluated by using MTT assay. The experimental restdts showed that γ-CPP, β-CPP and α-CPP did not exert cytotoxic effect on the cells. In addition, the proliferation of the growth of ROS17/2.8 cells on β-CPP was optimal.     

Fabrication, in vitro Degradation and Cytotoxic Assay of Different Cystalline Phases Calcium Polyphosphate

1Introduction Mostofthematerialsusedhistoricallyarecalcium phosphatessuchashydroxyapatite(HA),tricalciumphosphates(TCP),tetracalciumphosphate(TTCP),and cominationofthevariousphasesofcalciumphosphates[1].Calciumphosphatematerialshavesomeoutstandingprop ert…     

Betulinic Acid in Complex with a Gamma-Cyclodextrin Derivative Decreases Proliferation and in Vivo Tumor Development of Non-Metastatic and Metastatic B164A5 Cells

Betulinic acid, a very promising anti-melanoma agent, has very low water solubility that causes low bioavailability. To overcome this inconvenience, a highly water-soluble cyclodextrin was used (octakis-[6-deoxy-6-(2-sulfanyl ethanesulfonic acid)]-γ-cyclodextrin). The complex was physico-chemically analyzed using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) methods and then in vitro tested for its antiproliferative activity by the MTT assay and by cell cycle analysis. Finally, the complex was tested in vivo using an animal model of murine melanoma developed in C57BL/6J mice, where it caused a reduction in tumor volume and weight. The study revealed the beneficial influence of betulinic acid inclusion into the cyclodextrin in terms of antiproliferative activity and in vivo tumor development.     

Quality Monitoring of Porous Zein Scaffolds: A Novel Biomaterial

Our previous studies have shown that zein has good biocompatibility and good mechanical properties. The first product from a porous scaffold of zein, a resorbable bone substitute, has passed the biological evaluation of medical devices (ISO 10993) by the China Food and Drug Administration. However, Class III medical devices need quality monitoring before being placed on the market, and such monitoring includes quality control of raw materials, choice of sterilization method, and evaluation of biocompatibility. In this paper, we investigated four sources of zein through amino acid analysis (AAA) and sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) in order to monitor the composition and purity, and control the quality of raw materials. We studied the effect of three kinds of sterilization method on a porous zein scaffold by SDS-PAGE. We also compared the changes in SDS-PAGE patterns when irradiated with different doses of gamma radiation. We found that polymerization or breakage did not occur on peptide chains of zein during gamma-ray (γ-ray) sterilization in the range of 20–30 kGy, which suggested that γ-ray sterilization is suitable for porous zein scaffolds. Regarding cell compatibility, we found a difference between using a 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and a cell-counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay to assess cell proliferation on zein film, and concluded that the CCK-8 assay is more suitable, due to its low background optical density.     

A multifunctional ribonuclease A-conjugated carbon dot cluster nanosystem for synchronous cancer imaging and therapy

Carbon dots exhibit great potential in applications such as molecular imaging and in vivo molecular tracking. However, how to enhance fluorescence intensity of carbon dots has become a great challenge. Herein, we report for the first time a new strategy to synthesize fluorescent carbon dots (C-dots) with high quantum yields by using ribonuclease A (RNase A) as a biomolecular templating agent under microwave irradiation. The synthesized RNase A-conjugated carbon dots (RNase A@C-dots) exhibited quantum yields of 24.20%. The fluorescent color of the RNase A@C-dots can easily be adjusted by varying the microwave reaction time and microwave power. Moreover, the emission wavelength and intensity of RNase A@C-dots displayed a marked excitation wavelength-dependent character. As the excitation wavelength alters from 300 to 500 nm, the photoluminescence (PL) peak exhibits gradually redshifts from 450 to 550 nm, and the intensity reaches its maximum at an excitation wavelength of 380 nm. Its Stokes shift is about 80 nm. Notably, the PL intensity is gradually decreasing as the pH increases, almost linearly dependent, and it reaches the maximum at a pH = 2 condition; the emission peaks also show clearly a redshift, which may be caused by the high activity and perfective dispersion of RNase A in a lower pH solution. In high pH solution, RNase A tends to form RNase A warped carbon dot nanoclusters. Cell imaging confirmed that the RNase A@C-dots could enter into the cytoplasm through cell endocytosis. 3D confocal imaging and transmission electron microscopy observation confirmed partial RNase A@C-dots located inside the nucleus. MTT and real-time cell electronic sensing (RT-CES) analysis showed that the RNase A@C-dots could effectively inhibit the growth of MGC-803 cells. Intra-tumor injection test of RNase A@C-dots showed that RNase A@C-dots could be used for imaging in vivo gastric cancer cells. In conclusion, the as-prepared RNase A@C-dots are suitable for simultaneous therapy and in vivo fluorescence imaging of nude mice loaded with gastric cancer or other tumors.     

Mortality response of folate receptor-activated,PEG–functionalized TiO2 nanoparticles for doxorubicin loading with and without ultraviolet irradiation

TiO₂ nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized by hydrothermal assisted sol–gel technique. In the next step, as-synthesized NPs were modified by poly ethylene glycol (PEG). Then, folic acid (FA) was conjugated to TiO₂–PEG. Finally, Doxorubicin (Dox) as an anticancer drug was loaded on as-prepared TiO₂–PEG–FA nanocarrier. The optimization of TiO₂ and FA concentration and the influence of ultraviolet (UV) irradiation on photocatalytic activity of nanocarrier and Dox loaded carrier were assessed by utilizing the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT)-assay method.     

Radio-resistance induced by nitric oxide to heavy ion irradiation in A172 human glioma cells

To investigate effects of nitric oxide on cellular radio-sensitivity, three human glioma cell lines, i.e. A172, A172 transfected green fluorescence protein (EGFP) gene (EA172) and A172 transfected inducible nitric oxide synthesis (iNOS) gene (iA172), were irradiated by 12C6 ions to 0, 1 or 2Gy. Productions of nitric oxide and glutathione (GSH) in A172, EA172 and iA172 were determined by chemical methods, cell cycle was analyzed by flow cytometry at the 24th hour after irradiation, and survival fraction of the cells was measured by colorimetric MTT assay at the 5th day after irradiation. The results showed that the concentrations of nitric oxide and GSH in iA172 were significantly higher than in A172 and EA172; the G2/M stage arrest induced by the 12C6 ion irradiation was observed in A172 and EA172 but not in iA172 at the 24th hour after exposure; and the survival fraction of iA172 was higher than that of EA172 and iA172. Data suggest that the radio-sensitivity of the A172 was reduced after the iNOS gene transfection. The increase of GSH production and the change of cellular signals such as the cell cycle control induced by nitric oxide may be involved in this radio-resistance.