RSC Advances最新文献

The present study reports the formulation, characterization and antimicrobial studies of a stable vitamin-E-based o/w emulsion with saponin extracted from Acacia concinna. Saponins are plant-based natural surfactants and emulsifiers exhibiting antimicrobial activities against different fungi and bacteria. By embracing the gentle and natural profile of saponins, we can harness their potential benefits to ensure safer and sustainable developments. Vitamin-E, also known as a tocopherol, is a fat-soluble antioxidant that protects cells against damage caused by different external factors, like pollution, free radicals and toxins. Its anti-inflammatory properties promote healing of the affected area by reducing redness, itching, swelling, irritation and discomfort. Keeping all these properties in mind, an emulsion was formulated using saponin and vitamin-E. The emulsion, characterized using different spectrochemical methods, demonstrated its enhanced stability and commendable ability. It was found to remain stable at neutral pH and up to 60 °C, making it suitable for topical applications. Antimicrobial study of the o/w emulsion (SE) showed specific and efficient antifungal activity against strains of Aspergillus flavus and Candida albicans. This natural, gentle, and antioxidant-rich emulsion offers a promising alternative for targeted antifungal treatments for skin, hair and nails, warranting further studies of its in vivo efficacy.

In recent years, the development and use of nanomaterials have transformed numerous aspects of biomedical science. Nanomaterials have played a pivotal role in advancing disease diagnosis and treatment across a wide range of applications. Within this scope, silver nanoprisms (AgNPrs) stand out due to their remarkable properties, such as extensive surface area, chemical robustness, and tunable electrical conductivity, making them excellent candidates for biomedical purposes. By tailoring these nanomaterials through functionalization or coating surface, their multifunctionality can be enhanced, unlocking new opportunities for their application in areas such as diagnosis, imaging, and therapeutic intervention. This review begins with an overview of AgNPrs' synthesis techniques and their unique physicochemical characteristics. Recent advancements in analytical methods utilizing AgNPrs, categorized by sensing mechanisms such as optical and electrochemical approaches, are highlighted in the context of diagnostics. Lastly, the challenges and future prospects of bringing AgNPr-based technologies to commercialization and integrating them into disease diagnostics and medical treatment are explored. The integration of AgNPrs in disease therapy holds promise for the development of advanced chemotherapy agents that effectively address the challenges of efficient cancer treatment looking ahead, the ongoing advancement of nanocarrier systems comprising AgNPrs-based molecules holds great promise for improving the quality of life for patients worldwide.

An important class of fluorescent dyes used in studying interactions and visualization of vital biomolecules are compounds with a skeleton origin 4,4-difluoro-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene, known as BODIPY. The objects of the presented study are the simple, polar and hydrophobic 3,7-dimethyl-substituted-core BODIPY dyes with the unmodified or modified phenyl aromatic ring at the meso position. Their optical properties as well as binding interactions with different DNA forms (i-motif, parallel G4, antiparallel G4, hybrid G4, dsDNA and ssDNA) were investigated by biophysical methods. The BODIPY derivatives interact more preferably with tetraplexes than other DNA forms. Especially, ligand 1 and 3 exibit tendency to destabilize parallel c-MYC G-quadruplex. The experiments with peroxidase-mimicking DNAzymes manifest that the main interaction between these BODIPY ligands and parallel G-quadruplex occurs via end-stacking mode. Moreover, their biological activity was evaluated by MTT assay.

A novel porous bone scaffold based on nano-carbonated hydroxyapatite reinforced with fibrous-like structured polyethylene oxide/chitosan network (nCHA/PEO/CS) was introduced and fabricated via freeze-drying. Prior to this, the nCHA was synthesized through a hydrothermal reaction based on cuttlefish bone (CFB, Sepia officinalis). The raw cuttlefish bone (raw-CFB) was first decomposed to obtain cuttlefish bone-derived calcium oxide (CaO-CFB) by calcination at 1000 °C, which was used for synthesizing nCHA. The chemical composition analysis showed that the nCHA formed AB-type CHA with a high carbonate content of 7.38 wt%, which is in the range of carbonate content in native bone (2–9 wt%). The Ca/P molar ratio of nCHA was 1.712, very close to the Ca/P of biological apatite of 1.71. Morphological analysis revealed that nCHA consists of nanosized particles, potentially offering a large surface area to volume to promote ion exchange and cell interaction. The excellent physicochemical and morphological properties of nCHA proposed suitability as a bone scaffold precursor combined with PEO and CS. The nCHA/PEO/CS scaffolds were freeze-dried with varying PEO/CS concentrations. Physicochemical analysis indicated that increasing the PEO/CS concentration decreased the crystallinity of the scaffold, causing it to be lower than the nCHA crystallinity, which may be beneficial for cell growth. Morphological analysis revealed that the scaffold structure comprised nCHA cross-linked within a fibrous-like structured PEO/CS network, which appropriately mimics the fibrous structure of extracellular matrix (ECM) in natural bone. However, the nCHA/PEO/CS-11 scaffold formed more appropriate pores with suitable porosity for cell development, blood vessel formation, and nutrient perfusion. The nCHA/PEO/CS-11 scaffold also demonstrated sufficient compressive strength and good swelling behavior, which may favor bone regeneration. The nCHA/PEO/CS-11 scaffold demonstrated high cytocompatibility and facilitated the adherence of MC3T3E1 cells on the scaffold surface. The nCHA/PEO/CS-11 scaffold also promoted cell osteogenic differentiation. Owing to its desirable and suitable characteristics, the nCHA/PEO/CS-11 scaffold is promising in bone tissue engineering.

Hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) is the second most common cause of nosocomial infections and is responsible for 15% of nosocomial infections, with a high mortality rate, which has led to increased concern and significant costs in healthcare settings. The most significant agents of HAP are Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella pneumoniae, which create a biofilm that results in a resistant infection. We aimed to study the synthesis of Cu₂Ti₂O₅ nanoparticles, their effects on the growth and biofilms of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from respiratory infections, and their anticancer effects. In this study, for the first time, the Pechini method was used to synthesize Cu₂Ti₂O₅ nanostructures. The effects of nanoparticles on the growth and biofilms of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella pneumoniae were evaluated using a microdilution broth and the microtiter plate method, and the cytotoxic effect of the nanoparticles on the A549 cell line was also assessed by MTT. The characteristics of the nanoparticles were confirmed through XRD, FTIR, SEM, and TEM techniques. Cu₂Ti₂O₅ showed a minimum inhibitory effect in concentrations of 156.25 to 625 μg mL⁻¹ for ten isolates of K. pneumoniae and 625 to 1250 μg mL⁻¹ for ten isolates of P. aeruginosa and at sub-MIC concentrations as well. It reduced the biofilms of K. pneumoniae and P. aeruginosa strains by 75% and 44.4%. The nanoparticles killed 50% of A549 cancer cells in 48 h at concentrations of 30 to 40 μg mL⁻¹ and in 24 h at concentrations of 200 to 250 μg mL⁻¹. The findings of this study show the antibacterial, anti-biofilm, and anti-cancer effects of Cu₂Ti₂O₅ nanoparticles. Therefore, these nanoparticles can be considered potential antimicrobial candidates; however, these effects should be confirmed with more bacterial isolates.

In this work, new doping approaches are proposed towards effective band structure and magnetism engineering of Janus MoSSe monolayer. In its pristine form, MoSSe monolayer is a direct gap semiconductor. Magnetic semiconductor nature is obtained by doping with Al/Ga atoms at Mo sublattice and P atom at S sublattice. Herein, overall magnetic moments of 3.00/2.96 and 1.00 μ_B are obtained, respectively. Moreover, the spin-polarized states are produced primarily by the first neighboring Mo atoms from doping site and P impurity, respectively. Meanwhile, As doping metallizes the monolayer, maintaining its nonmagnetic nature. Similarly, no magnetism is induced by doping with AlP₃, AlAs₃, GaP₃, and GaAs₃ binary clusters. However, the substitution of these clusters causes large band gap reduction up to 78.85%, which can be attributed to new mid-gap subands formed mainly by Mo atoms. Further, doping with AlPAs/GaPAs and AlP₃As₃/GaP₃As₃ ternary clusters is also considered. In these cases, magnetic semiconductor and half-metallic natures are obtained, respectively, which are regulated primarily by Mo atoms. Further, Bader charge analysis is carried out to investigate the interactions between impurities/clusters with the host monolayer. Results demonstrate the charge gainer role of Al and Ga atoms, meanwhile P and As impurities act as charge gainer. Our findings may suggest the prospect of the proposed doping approaches to functionalize Janus MoSSe monolayer towards spintronic and optoelectronic applications.

Photocatalytic techniques are considered clean, sustainable and cost-effective in energy conversion and environmental restoration. The large band gap, light harvesting limitation and rapid electron–hole pair recombination can suppress the photocatalytic efficiency in photocatalytic applications. Metal deposition has become one of the most important technical means to improve photocatalytic efficiency. This study has dealt with photocatalytic hydrocarbon and hydrogen production from the acetic acid solution with simultaneous in situ Cu deposition on TiO₂ photocatalyst surface. Due to having favorable redox potential and work function values, the photodeposition and Schottky junction formation of Cu occurred smoothly on the TiO₂ surface, which further contributed to accelerating the interfacial charge transfer and photocatalytic activity. The reaction conditions (Cu²⁺ loading, reaction pH and initial concentration of acetic acid) were optimized to enhance photocatalytic methane production. Under the optimum condition, the Cu/TiO₂ photocatalytic hydrocarbon production was maximum (4136 μmol g⁻¹), approximately 9 times better than those obtained with pure TiO₂ (450 μmol g⁻¹). The surface morphological and optical properties of photodeposited Cu/TiO₂ samples were characterized before and after the photocatalytic reaction with utmost precision and thoroughness using a TEM, XPS, DRS, PL, N₂ adsorption–desorption isotherm and BET surface area analysis. The DRS and PL study confirm that in situ Cu-deposition on TiO₂ reduced the energy bandgap and improved the light-harvesting area, photogenerated electron–hole pair separation and migration efficiency, respectively. Cycle experiments disclose that the simultaneous Cu-deposited photocatalyst has excellent stability and reusability. A reaction mechanism was proposed for the photocatalytic hydrocarbon formation from the acetic acid by Cu/TiO₂ photocatalytic reaction.

Hydrophosphorylation of alkynes with dialkylphosphites in the various copper catalysts was investigated. The reactions provided the regio- and stereoselective E-vinylphosphonates under commercially available copper chloride catalyst in the presence of ethylene diamine as an efficient ligand. The impact of solvents, temperature, and diamine ligands are included in this report. In addition, the DFT calculations provided insight into the regio- and stereoselectivity of the reaction. It is suggested that the reaction proceeded via an in situ generated Cu(AN)₄⁺ complex. The reaction of phenylacetylene with diethyl phosphite in the presence of EDA and the (CH₃CN)₄CuBF₄ complex as a catalyst also gave the corresponding E-vinylphosphonates in good yield.

A novel supramolecular metallogel, termed Hg-SA, was synthesized using succinic acid (SA) as a low molecular weight gelator in a DMF solvent under standard conditions. The mechanical properties of the Hg-SA metallogel were evaluated through rheological tests, specifically focusing on the angular frequency and strain sweep measurements. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) results revealed the rod-like network structure of Hg-SA, while energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) elemental mapping confirmed its composition. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy provided insights into the formation mechanism of the synthesized Hg-SA metallogel. The antimicrobial activity of the metallogel was tested against Gram-positive bacteria Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus epidermidis as well as Gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, revealing its significant antibacterial potency. Thus, this study highlights the antimicrobial effects of Hg(II)-based succinic acid-mediated metallogels against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.