Conditional Cell-Penetrating Peptide Exposure as Selective Nanoparticle Uptake Signal.

A major bottleneck diminishing the therapeutic efficacy of various drugs is that only small proportions of the administered dose reach the site of action. One promising approach to increase the drug amount in the target tissue is the delivery via nanoparticles (NPs) modified with ligands of cell surface receptors for the selective identification of target cells. However, since receptor binding can unintentionally trigger intracellular signaling cascades, our objective was to develop a receptor-independent way of NP uptake.

Physical model of neutron scattering by clathrate hydrate and C60hosting paramagnetic oxygen molecules.

This paper describes the physical modelling of neutron scattering in two polycrystalline inclusion compounds, fully deuterated clathrate hydrate andC60, each with paramagnetic oxygen as guest molecules. For studying the suitability of these materials for neutron moderation to very low energies, the model includes, in addition to the magnetic neutron scattering by the oxygen, the nuclear scattering by all constituents. The theoretical total cross sections are calculated based on the phonon density of states obtained by density functional theory and molecular dynamics simulations.

The Use of General Anesthesia in Revision Joint Arthroplasty.

Background: Several studies have suggested that spinal anesthesia gives superior outcomes for primary total joint arthroplasty (TJA). However, there is a lack of available data regarding contemporary general anesthesia (GA) approaches for revision TJA utilized at high-volume joint arthroplasty centers.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed a series of 850 consecutive revision TJAs (405 revision total hip arthroplasties and 445 revision total knee arthroplasties) performed over 4 years at a single institution that uses a contemporary GA protocol and reported on the lengths of stay, early recovery rates, perioperative complications, and readmissions.

On the uncertainty of the correlation between nanoparticle avidity and biodistribution.

The specific delivery of a drug to its site of action also known as targeted drug delivery is a topic in the field of pharmaceutics studied for decades. One approach extensively investigated in this context is the use ligand functionalized nanoparticles. These particles are modified to carry receptor specific ligands, enabling them to accumulate at a desired target site.

Impact of interferon-γ on the target cell tropism of nanoparticles.

Interferon-γ (IFN-γ) is well known to reduce the infectivity of viral pathogens by altering their tissue tropism. This effect is induced by upregulation of cholesterol 25-hydroxylase (CH25H). Given the similarity of viral pathogens and ligand-functionalized nanoparticles in the underlying strategy of receptor-mediated cell recognition, it appears conceivable that IFN-γ exceeds similar effects on nanoparticles.