Innovative perspectives on metal free contrast agents for MRI: Enhancing imaging efficacy, and AI-driven future diagnostics.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a boxed warning and mandated additional safety measures for all gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs) used in clinical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) due to their prolonged retention in the body and associated adverse health effects.

Leveraging Non-Radiative Transitions in Asphaltenes-Derived Carbon Dots for Cancer Photothermal Therapy.

Cancer photothermal therapy leverages the capability of photothermal agents to convert light to heat for cancer cell ablation and necrosis. However, most conventional photothermal agents (Au, CuS, Pd, mesoporous silica nanoparticles, and indocyanine green dye) either face scalability challenges or photobleached upon prolonged irradiation which jeopardizes practical applications. Here, asphaltenes-derived carbon dots (ACDs, 5 nm) are rationally engineered as a low-cost and photostable photothermal agent with negligible in vivo cytotoxicity.

Unraveling Water-Based Lubrication with Carbon Dots of Asphaltene Origin.

Despite the lower toxicity of water-based lubricants over nonrenewable petroleum-based analogues, they face challenges in achieving widespread adoption due to low stability and inadequate friction-reduction performance. To address this, a cost-effective nanoadditive is synthesized by expansive oxidation of asphaltenes to create biocompatible asphaltene-derived carbon dots [(ACDs); 5 nm]. These ACDs exhibit excellent water redispersibility, promoting long-term friction reduction and marking the first use of an asphaltene-based system for friction reduction in water or oil.

Assessment of hypertension service availability in some primary health centres in Nigeria: a mixed-methods study.

Objective: Strengthening primary health centre (PHC) systems is a potentially effective strategy to reduce the burden of non-communicable diseases in Nigeria, a low/middle-income country with limited resources. The aim of this study was to assess hypertension service availability in some PHCs in Nigeria and seek recommendations that could facilitate improved services from PHC workers.

Design: Explanatory sequential mixed-methods study.

GdO/b-TiO composite nanoprobes with ultra-high photoconversion efficiency for MR image-guided NIR-II photothermal therapy.

Photothermal therapy (PTT), as an important noninvasive and effective tumor treatment method, has been extensively developed into a powerful cancer therapeutic technique. Nevertheless, the low photothermal conversion efficiency and the limited tissue penetration of typical photothermal therapeutic agents in the first near-infrared (NIR-I) region (700-950 nm) are still the major barriers for further clinical application. Here, we proposed an organic/inorganic dual-PTT agent of synergistic property driven by polydopamine-modified black-titanium dioxide (b-TiO@PDA) with excellent photoconversion efficiency in the second NIR (NIR-II) region (1000-1500 nm).

Platelet-Membrane-Coated Polydopamine Nanoparticles for Neuroprotection by Reducing Oxidative Stress and Repairing Damaged Vessels in Intracerebral Hemorrhage.

Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) has a high morbidity and mortality rate. Excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) caused by primary and second brain injury can induce neuron death and inhibit neurological functional recovery after ICH. Therefore, exploring an effective way to noninvasively target hemorrhage sites to scavenge ROS is urgently needed.

Recent progress on near-infrared fluorescence heptamethine cyanine dye-based molecules and nanoparticles for tumor imaging and treatment.

Recenly, near-infrared fluorescence heptamethine cyanine dyes have shown satisfactory values in bioengineering, biology, and pharmacy especially in cancer diagnosis and treatment, owing to their excellent fluorescence property and biocompatibility. In order to achieve broad application prospects, diverse structures, and chemical properties of heptamethine cyanine dyes have been designed to develop novel functional molecules and nanoparticles over the past decade. For fluorescence and photoacoustic tumor imaging properties, heptamethine cyanine dyes are equipped with good photothermal performance and reactive oxygen species production properties under near-infrared light irradiation, thus holding great promise in photodynamic and/or photothermal cancer therapies.

Transformable Neuropeptide Prodrug with Tumor Microenvironment Responsiveness for Tumor Growth and Metastasis Inhibition of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) has the worst prognosis among all breast cancer subtypes due to lack of specific target sites and effective treatments. Herein, a transformable prodrug (DOX-P18) based on neuropeptide Y analogue with tumor microenvironment responsiveness is developed for TNBC treatment. The prodrug DOX-P18 can achieve reversible morphological transformation between monomers and nanoparticles through the manipulation of protonation degree in different environments.

Evaluation of aquifer hydraulic conductivity and transmissivity of Ezza/Ikwo area, Southeastern Nigeria, using pumping test and surficial resistivity techniques.

Aquifer hydraulic parameters including hydraulic conductivity and transmissivity play a very important role in the assessment and management of groundwater. Conventionally, these parameters are best estimated employing pump test, which is usually expensive and time-consuming. The use of surficial electrical resistivity data integrated with few available pumping test data provides a cost-effective and efficient alternative.

pH-Responsive Au@Pd bimetallic core-shell nanorods for enhanced synergistic targeted photothermal-augmented nanocatalytic therapy in the second near-infrared window.

Nanotheranostic agents based on plasmonic nanostructures with their resonance wavelengths located in the second near-infrared window (NIR-II) have gained significant attention in profound tumor photothermal therapy. However, the modulation of localized surface plasmon resonance of gold nanomaterials from the first near-infrared (NIR-I) window to the NIR-II window is still challenging. The structures and compositions of the plasmonic nanomaterials have demonstrated promising characteristics in controlling the optical properties of plasmonic nanostructures.

Chemotherapeutic nanomaterials in tumor boundary delineation: Prospects for effective tumor treatment.

Accurately delineating tumor boundaries is key to predicting survival rates of cancer patients and assessing response of tumor microenvironment to various therapeutic techniques such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy. This review discusses various strategies that have been deployed to accurately delineate tumor boundaries with particular emphasis on the potential of chemotherapeutic nanomaterials in tumor boundary delineation. It also compiles the types of tumors that have been successfully delineated by currently available strategies.

The strategy of precise targeting and oxygenating for enhanced triple-negative breast cancer chemophototherapy.

The absence of effective therapeutic targets and tumor hypoxia are the main causes of failure in the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). Biomimetic nanotechnology and tumor microenvironment (TME) responsiveness bring hope and opportunity to address this problem. Here, we develop a core membrane nanoplatform (HM/D-I-BL) using hollow mesoporous manganese dioxide (HM) coated with a biomimetic cancer cell membrane for enhanced chemotherapy/phototherapy the strategy of precise drug delivery and hypoxia amelioration.

Multiple valence states of Fe boosting SERS activity of FeO nanoparticles and enabling effective SERS-MRI bimodal cancer imaging.

Developing novel nanoparticle-based bioprobes utilized in clinical settings with imaging resolutions ranging from cell to tissue levels is a major challenge for tumor diagnosis and treatment. Herein, an optimized strategy for designing a FeO-based bioprobe for dual-modal cancer imaging based on surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is introduced. Excellent SERS activity of ultrasmall FeO nanoparticles (NPs) was discovered, and a 5 × 10 M limit of detection for crystal violet molecules was successfully obtained.

Nature-Inspired Polyethylenimine-Modified Calcium Alginate Blended Waterborne Polyurethane Graded Functional Materials for Multiple Water Purification.

In recent years, natural disasters such as hurricanes and floods have become more frequent, which usually leads to the pollution of drinking water. Drinking contaminated water may cause public health emergencies. The demand for healthy drinking water in disaster-affected areas is huge and urgent.

Ultrahigh SERS activity of the TiO@Ag nanostructure leveraged for accurately detecting CTCs in peripheral blood.

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) usually shed from primary and metastatic tumors serve as an important tumor marker, and easily cause fatal distant metastasis in cancer patients. Accurately and effectively detecting CTCs in a peripheral blood sample is of great significance in early tumor diagnosis, efficacy evaluation, and postoperative condition monitoring. In this work, a TiO@Ag nanostructure is structured as a SERS substrate, rhodamine 6G (R6G) is used as a Raman signal molecule, the reduced bovine serum protein (rBSA) acts as a protective agent, and folic acid (FA) acts as a target molecule to specifically recognize cancer cells.

Maltodextrin-Conjugated Gd-Based MRI Contrast Agents for Specific Diagnosis of Bacterial Infections.

Bacterial infections are one of the most serious health risks worldwide, and their rapid diagnosis remains a major challenge in clinic. To enhance the relaxivity and bacterial specificity of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents, here, a kind of gadolinium-based nanoparticles (NPs) of impressive biocompatibility is constructed as a contrast agent for maltodextrin-mediated bacteria-targeted diagnosis. To realize this, positively charged ultrasmall gadolinium oxide (GdO, 2-3 nm) NPs are embedded in mesoporous silica NPs (MSN) with pore size around 6.

The Neuropeptide Y Receptor Ligand-Modified Cell Membrane Promotes Targeted Photodynamic Therapy of Zeolitic Imidazolate Frameworks for Breast Cancer.

Zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs), widely regarded as promising materials for application in catalysis and separation, hold an increasingly significant position in drug delivery systems for their high drug loading capacity. Focused specifically on the rational design of targeting and bioresponsive nanovehicles, a neuropeptide Y receptor ligand (YL)-modified cell membrane camouflaged bioresponsive ZIF system (YL-RBC@ZIF-90@Ce6) was constructed for targeted photodynamic therapy of breast cancer. The biomimetic ZIF-based nanocarrier enhanced tumor accumulation by both neuropeptide Y receptor-targeted guidance and long-term stability.

Nanoscale covalent organic frameworks: from controlled synthesis to cancer therapy.

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs), as a new type of crystalline porous materials, mainly consist of light-weight elements (H, B, C, N and O) linked by dynamic covalent bonds to form periodical structures of two or three dimensions. As an attribute of their low density, large surface area, and excellent adjustable pore size, COFs show great potential in many fields including energy storage and separation, catalysis, sensing, and biomedicine. However, compared with metal organic frameworks (MOFs), the relatively large size and irregular morphology of COFs affect their biocompatibility and bioavailability , thus impeding their further biomedical applications.

Fluorescent carbon dots with excellent moisture retention capability for moisturizing lipstick.

Long-lasting moisture retention is a huge challenge to humectants, and effective methods or additives for promote these functions are limited, especially nano-additives. Carbon dots (CDs) have attracted increasing research interest due to its ultra-small size, excellent optical properties and low toxicity, etc. However, most of researches have been focused on the photoexcited CDs and its subsequent photophysical and chemical processes, such as photoluminescence, photodynamic, photothermal and photocatalytic behavior.

Hydrogeochemical facies and pollution status of groundwater resources of Owerri and environs, Southeastern Nigeria.

The aim of the study was to assess the status of groundwater quality of Owerri and environs, for drinking and irrigation purposes. Twenty-two (22) groundwater samples were collected and analyzed for both chemical and physical compositions. The result of the study showed that groundwater in the area is of good quality for drinking purposes, except for pH and Fe, which had higher concentrations in some areas.

Facile synthesis of biocompatible magnetic titania nanorods for T-magnetic resonance imaging and enhanced phototherapy of cancers.

Cancer treatment has been recently energized by nanomaterials that simultaneously offer diagnostic and therapeutic effects. Among the imaging and treatment modalities in frontline research today, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and phototherapy have gained significant interest due to their noninvasiveness among other intriguing benefits. Herein, Fe(iii) was adsorbed on titanium dioxide to develop magnetic Fe-TiO nanocomposites (NCs) which leverage the Fe moiety in a double-edge-sword approach to: (i) achieve T-weighted MRI contrast enhancement, and (ii) improve the well-established photodynamic therapeutic efficacy of TiO nanoparticles.

Octahedral silver oxide nanoparticles enabling remarkable SERS activity for detecting circulating tumor cells.

The detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) is a crucial tool for early cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and postoperative evaluation. However, detection sensitivity remains a major challenge because CTCs are extremely rare in peripheral blood. To effectively detect CTCs, octahedral AgO nanoparticles (NPs) with high dispersibility, good biocompatibility, remarkable surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) enhancement, and obvious enhancement selectivity are designed as an SERS platform.