Fluorine-Free Superhydrophobic Covalent-Organic-Polymer Nanosheet Coating for Selective Dye and Emulsion Separation.

Covalent organic polymer nanosheets (COPNs) endowed with porous networks and large surface areas in their structures offer great advantages over other materials in addressing environmental problems. In this study, fluorine-free superhydrophobic COPNs were designed and applied to selective dye absorption. Notably, COPNs selectively adsorb dyes with a high hydrophobic index (HI) and reject low HI dyes with maximum adsorption capacities of 361 and 263 mg/g for crystal violet and methylene blue, respectively.

Water-induced shape memory behavior of poly (vinyl alcohol) and p-coumaric acid-modified water-soluble chitosan blended membrane.

Shape memory polymer (SMP), composites and blends need to be prepared to improve the properties or obtain new functions of SMPs. In this work, we successfully prepared p-coumaric acid-modified water-soluble chitosan (M-Cs) and poly (vinyl alcohol) blended membrane (PVA/M-Cs) by a simple solution casting method to enhance its physico-chemical properties, including water-induced shape memory behavior. M-Cs were synthesized from native chitosan (Cs) using carbodiimide chemistry.

Preparation and characterization of ferulic acid-modified water soluble chitosan and poly (γ-glutamic acid) polyelectrolyte films through layer-by-layer assembly towards protein adsorption.

In this study, ferulic acid-modified water soluble chitosan and poly (γ-glutamic acid) polyelectrolyte multilayers films were constructed through the layer-by-layer (LBL) self-assembly technique. Chitosan (CS) or ferulic acid modified chitosan (MCS) and Poly (γ-glutamic acid) (PGA) was alternately deposited on the surface of glass substrate for the enhancement of surface modification. The obtained films were characterized by Fourier transform spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffractometry (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV-vis spectroscopy and water contact angle to study its physico-chemical properties including protein absorption.

PAMAM G4.5 dendrimers for targeted delivery of ferulic acid and paclitaxel to overcome P-glycoprotein-mediated multidrug resistance.

In this study, we prepared ferulic acid (FA) and paclitaxel (PTX) co-loaded polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimers conjugated with arginyl-glycyl-aspartic acid (RGD) to overcome P-glycoprotein (P-gp)-mediated multidrug resistance (MDR). FA was released in greater extent (80%) from the outer layer of the dendrimers compared with PTX (70%) from the interior of the dendrimers. FA improved intracellular availability of PTX via P-gp modulation in drug-resistant cells.

Bioinspired Composite, pH-Responsive Sodium Deoxycholate Hydrogel and Generation 4.5 Poly(amidoamine) Dendrimer Improves Cancer Treatment Efficacy via Doxorubicin and Resveratrol Co-Delivery.

Maximizing the antitumor efficacy of doxorubicin (DOX) with a new drug delivery strategy is always desired in the field of biomedical science. Because the clinical applications of DOX in the treatment of cancer is limited by the side effects related to the dose. Herein, we report the co-loading of DOX and resveratrol (RESV) using an injectable in situ formed sodium deoxycholate hydrogel (Na-DOC-hyd) at the pH of the tumor extracellular microenvironment.

Generation of universal and hypoimmunogenic human pluripotent stem cells.

There is a need to store very large numbers of conventional human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC) lines for their off-the-shelf usage in stem cell therapy. Therefore, it is valuable to generate "universal" or "hypoimmunogenic" hPSCs with gene-editing technology by knocking out or in immune-related genes. A few universal or hypoimmunogenic hPSC lines should be enough to store for their off-the-shelf usage.

Ibuprofen-Loaded Heparin Modified Thermosensitive Hydrogel for Inhibiting Excessive Inflammation and Promoting Wound Healing.

Hydrogels have been investigated as ideal biomaterials for wound treatment owing to their ability to form a highly moist environment which accelerates cell migration and tissue regeneration for prompt wound healing. They can also be used as a drug carrier for local delivery, and are able to activate immune cells to enhance wound healing. Here, we developed heparin-conjugated poly(-isopropylacrylamide), an injectable, in situ gel-forming polymer, and evaluated its use in wound healing.

Enrichment of cancer-initiating cells from colon cancer cells through porous polymeric membranes by a membrane filtration method.

Cancer-initiating cells (CICs) or cancer stem cells (CSCs) are primarily responsible for tumor initiation, growth, and metastasis and represent a few percent of the total tumor cell population. We designed a membrane filtration protocol to enrich CICs (CSCs) from the LoVo colon cancer cell line via nylon mesh filter membranes with 11 and 20 μm pore sizes and poly(lactide-co-glycolic acid)/silk screen (PLGA/silk screen) porous membranes (pore sizes of 20-30 μm). The colon cancer cell solution was filtered through the membranes to obtain a permeate solution.

Isolation, process optimisation and characterisation of the protein from the de-oiled cake flour of .

This work reports the isolation of the protein from the flour of an underutilised agro waste, a de-oiled cake of using the bis (2-ethylehexyl) sodium sulfosuccinate salt reverse micelle and the characterisation of the protein through various techniques. The experimental conditions for the extraction were optimised using Box-Behnken design. The highest yield of the protein was achieved when the extraction parameters, i.

Amino acid-modified PAMAM dendritic nanocarriers as effective chemotherapeutic drug vehicles in cancer treatment: a study using zebrafish as a cancer model.

The use of nanomaterials for drug delivery offers many advantages including the targeted delivery of drugs and their controlled release. Nonetheless, entry into the target cells remains a challenge for many nanomaterials used for drug delivery. Moreover, cellular uptake limits the therapeutic efficiency of many anticancer drugs.

Biodegradable polymer-nanoclay composites as intestinal sleeve implants installed in digestive tract for obesity and type 2 diabetes treatment.

Obesity and type 2 diabetes have become serious health problems in 21st century. Development of non-invasive treatment to treat obesity and type-2 diabetes is still unmet needs. For targeting on this, one of the promising treatments is to implant an intestine sleeve in the gastrointestinal tract for limitation of food absorption.

Encapsulation of gadolinium ferrite nanoparticle in generation 4.5 poly(amidoamine) dendrimer for cancer theranostics applications using low frequency alternating magnetic field.

Iron oxide-based magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents have negative contrast limitations in cancer diagnosis. Gadolinium (Gd)-based contrast agents show toxicity. To overcome these limitations, Gd-doped ferrite (Gd:FeO (GdIO) nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized as T1-T2 dual-modal contrast agents for MRI-traced drug delivery.

Modification of different molecular weights of chitosan by p-Coumaric acid: Preparation, characterization and effect of molecular weight on its water solubility and antioxidant property.

In this study, we modified three different molecular weights of chitosan by using p-Coumaric acid (p-CA) for enhancing their water solubility and antioxidant property. The chemical and physical properties of all native chitosan and its modified products were determined by Fourier transform spectroscopy (FTIR), ninhydrin assay, Folin-Ciocalteu reagent procedure, thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), high performance of liquid chromatography (HPLC), X-ray diffraction (XRD), water solubility and antioxidant property (both DPPH assay and reducing power assay). Results showed that the water solubility and antioxidant property of modified product decreases, when molecular weight of corresponding native chitosan increases.

Fabrication of Hydrogel Materials for Biomedical Applications.

Hydrogels are three-dimensional hydrophilic polymeric networks that can be made from a wide range of natural and synthetic polymers. This review discusses recent advanced engineering methods to fabricate hydrogels for biomedical applications with emphasis in cardiac constructs and wound healing. Layer-by-Layer (LbL) assembly offers a tissue-engineered construct with robust and highly ordered structures for cell proliferation and differentiation.

Cell proliferation on PVA/sodium alginate and PVA/poly(γ-glutamic acid) electrospun fiber.

To overcome the obstacles of easy dissolution of PVA nanofibers without crosslinking treatment and the poor electrospinnability of the PVA cross-linked nanofibers via electrospinning process, the PVA based electrospun hydrogel nanofibers are prepared with post-crosslinking method. To expect the electrospun hydrogel fibers might be a promising scaffold for cell culture and tissue engineering applications, the evaluation of cell proliferation on the post-crosslinking electrospun fibers is conducted in this study. At beginning, poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), PVA/sodium alginate (PVASA) and PVA/poly(γ-glutamic acid) (PVAPGA) electrospun fibers were prepared by electrospinning method.

Protein adsorption on polyanion/polycation layer-by-layer assembled polyelectrolyte films.

As layer-by-layer self-assembly deposition (LbL) is a versatile technique for surface modification, protein adsorption on the LbL modified glass is evaluated in this study. At the beginning, glass slides was silanized by 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES). Sodium alginate (Alg), poly(γ-glutamic acid) (PGA) and poly(aspartic acid) (PAsp) were selected as polyanion electrolytes and chitosan (CS) was used as the polycation electrolyte.

A quantitative cell modeling and wound-healing analysis based on the Electric Cell-substrate Impedance Sensing (ECIS) method.

In this paper, a quantitative modeling and wound-healing analysis of fibroblast and human keratinocyte cells is presented. Our study was conducted using a continuous cellular impedance monitoring technique, dubbed Electric Cell-substrate Impedance Sensing (ECIS). In fact, we have constructed a mathematical model for quantitatively analyzing the cultured cell growth using the time series data directly derived by ECIS in a previous work.

Chitosan/polyanion surface modification of styrene-butadiene-styrene block copolymer membrane for wound dressing.

The surface of styrene-butadiene-styrene block copolymer (SBS) membrane is modified with tri-steps in this study. At first, two step modified SBS membrane (MSBS) was prepared with epoxidation and ring opening reaction with maleated ionomer. Then chitosan was used as the polycation electrolyte and sodium alginate, poly(γ-glutamic acid) (PGA) and poly(aspartic acid) (PAsp) were selected as polyanion electrolytes to deposit on the surfaces of MSBS membrane by the layer-by-layer self-assembly (LbL) deposition technique to get three [chitosan/polyanion] LbL modified SBS membranes, ([CS/Alg], [CS/PGA] and [CS/PAsp]).

Evaluation of tri-steps modified styrene-butadiene-styrene block copolymer membrane for wound dressing.

Tri-steps modified styrene-butadiene-styrene block copolymer (SBS) membrane was prepared with epoxidation, ring opening reaction with maleated ionomer and layer-by-layer assembled polyelectrolyte technique. The tri-steps modified SBS membrane was characterized by infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscope (XPS). The structures of the modified SBS membranes were identified with methylene blue and azocarmine G.

A computational modeling and analysis in cell biological dynamics using electric cell-substrate impedance sensing (ECIS).

In this paper, a study of computational modeling and multi-scale analysis in cell dynamics is presented. Our study aims at: (1) deriving and validating a mathematical model for cell growth, and (2) quantitatively detecting and analyzing the biological interdependencies across multiple observational scales with a variety of time and frequency resolutions. This research was conducted using the time series data practically measured from a novel on-line cell monitoring technique, referred to as electric cell-substrate impedance sensing (ECIS), which allows continuously tracking the cellular behavior such as adhesion, proliferation, spreading and micromotion.

The simultaneous electrochemical detection of ascorbic acid, dopamine, and uric acid using graphene/size-selected Pt nanocomposites.

In this study, a graphene/Pt-modified glassy carbon (GC) electrode was created to simultaneously characterize ascorbic acid (AA), dopamine (DA), and uric acid (UA) levels via cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). During the preparation of the nanocomposite, size-selected Pt nanoparticles with a mean diameter of 1.7 nm were self-assembled onto the graphene surface.

Chitosan/poly(vinyl alcohol) blending hydrogel coating improves the surface characteristics of segmented polyurethane urethral catheters.

Segmented polyurethane (SPU) is commonly used to manufacture urethral catheters. Surface modifications for SPU catheters are needed to reduce friction and protein adsorption, in order to minimize catheter-related complications, including urethral trauma, encrustation, catheter obstruction, bacterial colonization, and infection. In this study, a four-step surface modification method was developed to create a thin lubricious layer of chitosan/poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) hydrogel on the SPU catheter.

Modification of HTPB-based polyurethane with temperature-sensitive poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) for biomaterial usage.

Hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB)-based polyurethane with dimethyol propionic acid (DPA) as chain extender was synthesized by solution polymerization. The HTPB-based polyurethane was modified by UV radiation with N-isopropyl acrylamide monomer to get poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide)-modified polyurethane (PUDPANIPAAm). The cohesive energy (E(coh)), molar volume (V), solubility parameter (delta), molecular weight (W(M)), volume per gram (V(g)), and the density (1/V(g)) of PUDPANIPAAm were calculated by group contribution methods.

Characterization of chemisorbed hyaluronic acid directly immobilized on solid substrates.

Hyaluronic acid (HA) has a number of potential biomedical applications in drug delivery and tissue engineering. For these applications, a prerequisite is to understand the characteristic of HA films directly immobilized to solid substrates. Here, we demonstrate that high molecular weight HA can be directly immobilized onto hydrophilic substrates without any chemical manipulation, allowing for the formation of an ultrathin chemisorbed layer.

Preparation of epoxy-SiO2 hybrid sol-gel material for bone cement.

An organic-inorganic hybrid material, epoxy-SiO(2), was prepared by incorporating epoxy structure units covalently into a SiO(2) glass network via the sol-gel approach. The precursor was obtained by the reaction of diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (DGEBA) with 3-aminopropyl trimethoxysilane (APTS). The precursor was then hydrolyzed and co-condensated with tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) in tetrahydrofuran (THF) at room temperature to yield epoxy-SiO(2) hybrid sol-gel material having a 50 wt % SiO(2) content.