Narrow Results

The radiation-induced releasing of the liquid-core of the microcapsules was improved using H₂O₂, which produced O₂ generation of H₂O₂ after irradiation. Further, we tested whether these microcapsules enhanced the antitumor effects and decreased the adverse effects in vivo in C3He/J mice. The capsules were produced by spraying a mixture of 3.0% hyaluronic acid, 2.0% alginate, 3.0% H₂O₂, and 0.3 mmol of carboplatin on a mixture of 0.3 molFeCl₂ and 0.15 molCaCl₂. The microcapsules were subcutaneously injected into MM46 tumors that had been inoculated in the left hind legs of C3He/J mice. The radiotherapy comprised tumor irradiation with 10 Gy or 20 Gy ⁶⁰Co. The antitumor effect of the microcapsules was tested by measuring tumor size and monitoring tumor growth. Three types of adverse effects were considered: fuzzy hair, loss of body weight, and death. The size of the capsule size was 23 ± 2.4 µmɸ and that of the liquid core, 20.2 ± 2.2 µmɸ. The injected microcapsules localized drugs around the tumor. The production of O₂ by radiation increased the release of carboplatin from the microcapsules. The antitumor effects of radiation, carboplatin, and released oxygen were synergistic. Localization of the carboplatin decreased its adverse effects. However, the H₂O₂ caused ulceration of the skin in the treated area. The use of our microcapsules enhanced the antitumor effects and decreased the adverse effects of carboplatin. However, the skin-ulceration caused by H₂O₂ must be considered before these microcapsules can be used clinically.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been used in China for thousands of years for the prevention and treatment of various diseases. The materials that exert a therapeutic effect are called the active ingredients. The bioactive glycosides are important active ingredients from TCM that can make significant contributions to treating diseases. Because of the possibilities of various clinical applications, the properties and administration of these bioactive glycosides deserve further investigation. Their promising treatment effects, however, are hindered by their poor solubility, poor stability and rapid elimination. Therefore, it is necessary that we improve the therapeutic efficacy of bioactive glycosides by overcoming these problems. Meanwhile, some practical design strategies and novel drug delivery vehicles based on drug delivery systems provide favorable support in clinical practice for these active ingredients. This review summarizes diverse pharmacological activities of bioactive glycosides and focuses on recent advances in delivery system for these active constitutes; in particular, some glycol glycosides can effectively cure intractable diseases through targeted drug delivery. This review elucidates some design strategies for drug delivery system that are mainly based on two methods (avoiding physical barriers by changing dosage forms and enhancing the ability to bind to receptors or proteins after administration) and indicate the current challenges during the combination of delivery vehicles and these glycosides in hopes of promoting the process of receiving ideal therapeutic efficacy of them in future studies.

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Pseudopolyrotaxanes, Ps-PR, consisting of α-cyclodextrin rings, polyethylene glycol axes and end triazine groups were prepared and then were capped by amino-functionalized quantum dots, NH₂-QDs, to achieve polyrotaxanes. The amino-functionalized QDs stoppers of polyrotaxanes were used as core to synthesize polyamidoamine, PAMAM, dendrons divergently and hybrid nanomaterials were obtained. Synthesized hybrid nanomaterials were characterized by different spectroscopy, microscopy and thermal analysis methods. They were freely soluble in water and their aqueous solutions were stable at room temperature over several months. Due to their biocompatible backbone, high functionality and water solubility synthesized hybrid nanomaterials are promising carriers and probes in cancer diagnosis and therapy.

Ibuprofen-loaded poly(methyl methacrylate) nanoparticles with mean diameters smaller than 20 nm were prepared by a novel method. This consists in carrying out a semicontinuous heterophase polymerization, in which a solution of drug-monomer is added on a micellar solution at an appropriate dosing rate. Scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) measurements showed number-average diameters in the range 16–19 nm with 1.14–1.15 in polydispersity, determined as the ratio of weight-average to number-average diameter. Drug contents in nanoparticles close to 24% were determined by UV-Vis spectrophotometry, confirming the results obtained from a procedure that combines latex filtration and quasielastic light scattering (QLS) measurements. Differential scanning calorimetry (CDSC) determinations suggest that at the ibuprofen contents attained in this study, crystals and dispersed molecules of the drug coexist inside the nanoparticles. Based on the relative simplicity of the process it is expected that its use will be adopted to prepare ultrafine nanoparticles composed of different hydrophobic polymers and water insoluble drugs.

Amphipathic polymer coated magnetic nanoparticles which are loaded with docetaxel as photo-responsive multifunctional drug delivery systems for safer cancer therapy have been fabricated. Such kind of drug delivery system not only possesses favorable magnetic response property, but also could realize docetaxel-release and EGF-adsorption simultaneously simulated by UV and dark control, which can significantly boost the effectiveness of chemotherapy.

In this study, silver sulfadiazine (SSD) loaded Poly ($\epsilon$-caprolactone)/Poly (ethylene oxide) (PCL/PEO) nanofiber patches were prepared via electrospinning method for topical drug delivery applications. SSD was loaded for the first time into PCL/PEO nanofibers. Nanofiber patches were characterized by Attenuated Total Reflectance Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR) to check the presence of chemical bonding between SSD and polymer matrix. The surface morphology of the nanofibers was observed by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). SEM images showed that uniform and smooth composite nanofibers were obtained. The diameter of the nanofibers decreased with the addition of SSD. X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis was carried out to examine the crystallinity of composite nanofiber patches. Energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis was performed to confirm Ag and S contents in the SSD loaded composite nanofibers and EDS Mapping was used to show the homogeneous distribution of SSD in the fiber structure. In order to investigate the release and solubility properties of SSD, an unused buffer solution; Water/Propylene Glycol/Phosphoric Acid (82:16:2) was prepared. The release of SSD was performed in this buffer and the release amount of SSD was calculated by UV-Visible Spectrophotometer. Thereby, SSD containing PCL/PEO composite nanofiber carriers were electrospun to achieve the enhancement in solubility, effective drug release and efficient drug loading of SSD. All experimental studies demonstrated that SSD loaded PCL/PEO composite nanofibers have great potential to be used in topical drug delivery applications.

In this work, we constructed the “Biped” Janus Fe₃O₄@$n$SiO₂@TiO${}_{2-x}$&$m$SiO₂ nanoparticles as drug carriers to improve the performance of microwave-controlled releasing drugs. The SEM and TEM characterization confirmed the successful synthesis of the “Biped” Janus nanoparticles. The Fe₃O₄@$n$SiO₂@TiO${}_{2-x}$ core-shell nanosphere showed stable nanoparticles of consistent and desirable diameter of about 250nm. The length and the diameter of the rod-shaped $m$SiO₂ were about 420nm and 310nm, respectively. The cumulative loading rate of doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX) reached 43wt% after 240min, equivalent to 100.18mg g${}^{-1}$. It was found that the “Biped” Janus nanoparticles had dual-triggering properties of pH and microwave. At pH 7.0, 5.0 and 3.0, the drug release rate was as high as 55.91wt%, 73.78wt% and 77.81wt% at 210min, respectively. Under the microwave stimulation of pH 7.0, the drug release rate was significantly increased from 55.91wt% to 83.86wt% compared with nonmicrowave irradiation. The “Biped” Janus Fe₃O₄@$n$SiO₂@TiO${}_{2-x}$&$m$SiO₂ have high drug loading and release efficiency, and shown good biocompatibility. Therefore, the biped Janus-shaped nanoparticles have huge potential in targeted therapy.

Pegylation, as a simple procedure to attach hydrophilic polyethylene glycol (PEG) onto therapeutic molecule or drug carriers has been utilized widely to deliver small molecules, proteins and peptides. It was first reported in 1970s by Dr. Frank Davis of Rutgers University and Dr. Abuchowsky in the studies of PEG modified albumin and catalase. The significance of this method at that time was able to successfully modify the enzyme with better hydrophilicity but also keep the enzymatic activity. The employment of PEG has provided superior stability of drug delivery systems (DDS) and enhanced the circulation time in vivo. Simple conjugation of PEG chains with various molecular weights enables the possibility to regulate the properties of desired DDS and led to important contribution in targeting therapy and diagnosis. Pegylation has been reported to be able to protect peptides by shielding antigenic epitopes from reticuloendothelial (RES) clearance and avoid enzymes being recognized by immune system and avoid early degradation. In addition, utilization of PEG in DDS are reported with enhanced delivery efficiency, prolonged circulation time and improved stability, especially active enzymes and peptides drug delivery. In this paper, we will conclude current studies about Pegylated DDS and their biomedical applications from both in vitro and in vivo studies.

Neural activity that occur during motor movement, speech, thought, and various other events can be observed in the form of brainwaves composed of synchronized electrical pulses emitted from adjoining communicative neurons. Observations of these brainwaves have been made possible through neurodevices, which can detect changes in electrical and/or mechanical parameters. For decades, the field of neuroscience has been enriched by the utilization of neurotechnologies at the microscale, which has begun to gain further enhancement with the introduction of nanotechnology. For example, microelectrodes were initially used for only extracellular measurements, but over the past decade, developments have been made to also record intracellular signals. Likewise, nanoknives, which gained popularity due to their versatility, can now be used for both fabricating bio-Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) and also as a neurosurgery tool. Thus, considerable efforts have been made over the years to make micro- and nanosystems reliable, accurate, and sensitive to neural activity. In the late 20th century, several sophisticated technologies, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT), and intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring have been integrated with MEMS. Furthermore, existing biotechnologies are being miniaturized at both the system and component level. For example, there is a remarkable interest in the field of neuroscience to utilize microfluidic technology as a diagnostic tool using specimens such as cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Microfluidic devices are also employed as biocompatible drug delivery systems to target cells, tissues, and organs. This paper summarizes the recent developments in micro- and nano-scale neurotechnologies, including devices, fabrication processes, detection methods, their implementation challenges, in neural stimulation, monitoring, and drug delivery.

This review discusses recent developments in micro and nanotechnologies, fabrication methods, and their implementation in neuroimaging, neurostimulation, monitoring of neural activities, and neural drug delivery.