Nano

Breast cancer is a malignant tumor that seriously endangers women’s health worldwide and is the number one cancer in terms of incidence. In recent years, although the research on interdisciplinary drug delivery systems that combine nanotechnology and medical oncology is fully developed with significant efficacy, such as nano-based drug delivery systems (NDDs), the current clinical translation rate of drug delivery systems is not high. Moreover, NDDs are designed as carrier systems for drug delivery to targets, prolonging drug circulation time in vivo, improving targeting, reducing tumor resistance, and providing new avenues for the prevention and treatment of many diseases. Herein, the current approaches of several commonly used carrier nanoparticles are discussed, mainly including liposomes, polymeric micelles, metals, inorganic nanoparticles and nanohydrogels, as well as composite NDDS in breast cancer treatment, including their properties, system design, major innovations, and applications in clinical settings.

${\mathrm{\text{La}}}_{0.8}{\mathrm{\text{Sr}}}_{0.2}{\mathrm{\text{Fe}}}_{1-x}{\mathrm{\text{Mn}}}_x{\mathrm{\text{O}}}_3$ ($x=0.0$, 0.1, 0.3 and 0.5) series samples were prepared by sol–gel method and characterized by powder X-ray diffractometer (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and Mössbauer spectroscopy. The effects of Mn doping on the microstructure, morphology and electronic structure of La–Sr ferrite were investigated. The XRD results show that all samples are single phase and have orthorhombic structures with Pbnm space group. The surface morphology and composition of chemical elements of the samples were analyzed by SEM and EDS, and the experimental values were consistent with the expected values. The sample was tested by ${}^{57}$Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy at room temperature, and the results showed that the percentage of doublet increased gradually with the increase of Mn ion doping ratio, and at $x=0.5$, all the sextet disappeared and only the doublet existed. According to the analysis, it can be seen that the prepared series of samples underwent a transition from antiferromagnetic to paramagnetic.

This research work presents a lead-free, environment-friendly, tin-halide-based perovskite solar cell (PSC). In our research, we employed Cs₂SnI₆ as an absorber layer, which is coupled with several different inorganic electron transport layers (ETLs) and hole transport layers (HTLs) for experimental purposes. These various permutations of the device structure are simulated and optimized in the SCAPS-1D simulator to achieve the highest possible efficiency. In our work, we suggested the architecture of ZnO/Cs₂SnI₆/Cu₂O which is the most suitable for effective and long-lasting PSCs with exceptional device performance. In addition, we investigated and evaluated the impact of several parameters like HTLs, ETLs, absorber thicknesses, defect densities, operating temperature and series resistance over device performance. The proposed configuration displayed excellent power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 30.11% with 1.49V, 27.25 mA/cm² and 73.66% of open-circuit voltage ($V_{\mathrm{\text{OC}}})$, short-circuit current ($J_{\mathrm{\text{SC}}})$ and fill factor (FF), respectively, and is pertinent for lead-less, tin-halide-based PSCs in the future.

Manganese (Mn) has been widely applied in drug resistant bacteria. Although it has advantages such as generating reactive oxygen species (ROS), holding multivalent phases, inducing photothermal effect and biocompatibility, it also brings the disadvantages of increased motility and decreased bacterial adhesion while exerting its advantages. Here, we propose an active antibacterial way by the jellyfish-like anisotropic nanocomposites (JAN), which measures both the advantages and disadvantages of MnO₂ nanoparticles (MnNP) together. In this jellyfish-like construct, the spheric gold nanoparticles (AuNP) were covered by MnO₂ nanosheets (MnNS), only leaving a bunch of glycopolymers (pMAG) stretching out from a small surface area of AuNP. In JAN, AuNP serves as the main body, possessing a photothermal property; glycopolymers play as the tentacles, binding specifically with Escherichia coli (E. coli); MnNS acts as the shell of jellyfish, initiating by the photo treatment to kill bacteria. The structure and surface properties of JAN were characterized by water contact angle (WCA), scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), ultraviolet and visible spectrophotometry (UV-Vis), transmission electron microscope (TEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and ellipsometry. The specific antibacterial effect of JAN was evaluated on the growth of both Gram-negative E. coli and Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). The results showed that JAN could bind efficiently with E. coli and kill almost all bacteria under near infrared (NIR irradiation, 808nm) irradiation for as short as 7 min. This antibacterial effect of JAN can be attributed to their excellent photothermal and photodynamic properties in increasing the temperature to higher than 53${}^{\circ }$C and ROS more than 0.45 mmol/L, indicating that the JAN achieved specific and efficient bactericidal effect due to their unique nanostructure and surface properties. In this study, we report for the first time on the synthesis strategy of jellyfish-like anisotropic nanoparticles and their specific bactericidal effect. Our work provides new possibilities for the application of anisotropic nanoparticles to inhibit bacterial growth.

Ti₃C₂T${}_x$ MXene films exhibited good electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding performance. However, the poor mechanical property and durability of Ti₃C₂T${}_x$ MXene films limited their commercial application. Herein, the ultrathin flexible conductive MXene/cellulose nanofiber (CNF)/MXene composite films with “sandwich” structure were successfully prepared by a simple vacuum-assisted filtration process. The addition of CNF can shield more electromagnetic microwaves (EMWs) via multiple reflections in the inner space and enhance the mechanical property of composite films by effectively welding the loosely MXene together. The composite film exhibited excellent EMI shielding effectiveness (up to 54.68 dB) at an ultrathin thickness (about 76 $\mu$m) as well as high electrical conductivity (up to 1610.51 S/m), which was mainly attributed to the hierarchical lamellar “sandwich” structure, where CNF was bonded to Ti₃C₂T${}_x$ MXene. The prepared flexible conductive composite films with brilliant EMI shielding effectiveness and good mechanical property possessed promising potential in various fields such as electromagnetic wave protection, weaponry and wearable electronics.

The advancement of technology has resulted in severe issues in the natural environment, notably organic water contamination that poses a significant threat to living organisms. To mitigate such problems, various technological solutions have been developed to treat water pollution. The emergence of photocatalytic semiconductor technology has enabled the utilization of numerous novel semiconductor composites for pollution control due to their high efficacy and eco-friendliness. In this paper, TpTt/CdS composites were produced via a simple two-step process, and the resulting samples were characterized using X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, ultraviolet (UV)–visible and photodegradation experiments using methylene blue to simulate organic pollutants. The experimental findings reveal that the composite structure system enhances the radiation absorption capacity of CdS in the UV range, as well as the adsorption capability of organic pollutants. This introduces a fresh concept for modifying semiconductor composite structures and highlights the considerable potential of CdS in degrading organic contaminants.

Nanoparticle-contained graphene foam material has attracted many practical applications in recent years, which require an in-depth comprehension of the basic mechanics of these heterogenous materials. In this paper, the effect of nanoparticles surface energy on the mechanical properties of nanoparticle-filled graphene foam under uniaxial tension and compression is systematically studied by the coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulation method. The mechanical strength of these nanoparticle-filled graphene foam is directly influenced by tuning the nanoparticles surface energy. The varying peeling-off behaviors of graphene sheets influenced by the surface energy of nanoparticles are observed. The stress distribution under uniaxial compression and tension at different nanoparticles surface energy is also studied. The mechanical behavior of nanoparticle-filled graphene foam is directly dependent on nanoparticles surface energy. The results should be helpful not only to understand the micro mechanism of such nanomaterials, but also to the design of advanced composites and devices based on porous materials mixed with particles.

To obtain highly efficient photocatalysts, we successfully prepared the GO/ZnO/CdS/Cu₂S composite that possesses superior photocatalytic degradation performance via a three-step solvothermal process. A series of characterization techniques were used to verify the composition and performance of prepared samples, such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Raman spectra, photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy and so on. SEM reveals that copper ions are supported on the surface of CdS to form active sites for photocatalysis. Under the irradiation of ultraviolet (UV) and visible light, GO/ZnO/CdS/Cu₂S photocatalyst exhibited relatively excellent photocatalytic degradation efficiency of methylene blue (MB), with 100% (80 min) and 95% (30 min), respectively. Compared with pure ZnO ($k=7.14\times 10^{-4}$) under the illumination of UV light, the kinetic constant of GO/ZnO/CdS/Cu₂S catalyst is up to $8.13\times 10^{-2}$, and as for visible light illumination, up to $9.87\times 10^{-2}$, showing relatively excellent visible-light-induced photocatalytic activity. Besides, under UV and visible light, after three cycles of photodegradation, GO/ZnO/CdS/Cu₂S still maintains the degradation efficiency of 78.3% and 74.8%, respectively, indicating that it has good stability. This work might inspire a new perspective that introduces the surface reaction sites (Cu₂S) in the design of other graphene oxide/mental oxide-based heterojunctions for environmental purification.

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) occupy a major part in biomedicine due to their unique physicochemical and biological properties including anti-microbial and anti-cancer activity. Evolvulus alsinoides (EA), commonly known as “Dwarf morning glory”, is a flowering plant with unique medicinal properties. This plant is reported for its therapeutic significance in chronic bronchitis, asthma and even possesses higher pharmacological properties. In this study, we have reported the synthesis and biological properties of quercetin functionalized biogenic silver nanoparticles (Qur-EA-AgNPs). AgNPs were synthesized using EA Leaf extract and functionalized with Quercetin. Qur-EA-AgNPs were characterized using various techniques and their biocompatibility was investigated. The UV-Visible spectrum of EA-AgNPs revealed a maximum absorbance at 428nm and quercetin functionalization results in a shift towards 390nm. The intense peak in the Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) spectra revealed the quercetin functionalization on EA-AgNPs. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) results confirmed the spherical morphology of quercetin-functionalized AgNPs with a size range around 20nm which was further confirmed by High resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM). Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectrum evidenced the presence of Ag, C and O. Hemocompatibility of Qur-EA-AgNPs was confirmed from hemolytic assay showing $<$5% hemolysis. Moreover, Annexin V PI assay on Qur-EA-AgNPs treated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) showed 78.58 % viability significantly which is comparable with the control cells and its biocompatible nature was proved.