Molecular architectonics of DNA for functional nanoarchitectures

• Debasis Ghosh,
• Lakshmi P. Datta and
• Thimmaiah Govindaraju

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 124–140, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.11

• using three 55 nucleotide-long carboxylic acid-linked DNA strands and a tumor-targeting 87 nucleotide-long aptamer. The carboxylic acid groups of the DNA tetrahedron facilitated the interaction with oleic acid-coated iron oxide nanoparticles via a ligand exchange reaction. The aptamer–DNA tetrahedron

• -functionalized iron oxide nanoparticle system was capable of selectively targeting the cancer cells and, potentially, to act as an MRI contrast agent. The programmability of the DNA tetrahedrons provided an opportunity to conjugate other functional nucleic acid sequences, viz., DNA, siRNA, or DNAzymes, to serve

• co-workers showed that self-assembled DNA tetrahedron nanoarchitectures with narrow size distribution could deliver siRNA into tumor cells [71]. The programmable DNA strands were functionalized with tumor-targeting folate ligands. The nanoarchitecture consisted of six DNA strands having a total of

The different ways to chitosan/hyaluronic acid nanoparticles: templated vs direct complexation. Influence of particle preparation on morphology, cell uptake and silencing efficiency

• Arianna Gennari,
• Julio M. Rios de la Rosa,
• Erwin Hohn,
• Maria Pelliccia,
• Enrique Lallana,
• Roberto Donno,
• Annalisa Tirella and
• Nicola Tirelli

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2594–2608, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.250

• targeting therapies has already been reported [22][34][35]. It is worth mentioning that HCT-116 apparently shows a lower CD44 expression (see Supporting Information File 1, Section SI5), but this does not imply a lower CD44 endocytic activity. The cytotoxicity of the nanoparticles was assessed using the MTS

Advanced hybrid nanomaterials

• Andreas Taubert,
• Fabrice Leroux,
• Pierre Rabu and
• Verónica de Zea Bermudez

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2563–2567, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.247

• -art, as well as potential further developments, are reviewed in “Targeting strategies for improving the efficacy of nanomedicine in oncology” [32]. Nanocarriers for drugs were also decorated with suitable moieties to tune their affinity with specific biological membranes. More sophisticated strategies

• , including double targeting, are also highlighted in several articles. Among others, nanoparticles are often used as specific agents in dual therapy and diagnostics (i.e., theranostics). In “Size-selected Fe3O4–Au hybrid nanoparticles for improved magnetism-based theranostics”, a Fe3O4–Au hybrid nanomaterial

Bombesin receptor-targeted liposomes for enhanced delivery to lung cancer cells

• Mohammad J. Akbar,
• Pâmela C. Lukasewicz Ferreira,
• Melania Giorgetti,
• Leanne Stokes and
• Christopher J. Morris

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2553–2562, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.246

• . Flow cytometric and microscopic studies showed that fluorescently labelled cystabn-decorated liposomes accumulated more extensively in GRPR over-expressing cells than matched liposomes that contained no cystabn targeting motif. Conclusion: The use of GRPR antagonistic peptides for nanoparticle

• targeting has potential for enhancing drug accumulation in resistant cancer cells. Keywords: bombesin; GRPR; liposome; lung cancer; targeting; Introduction Small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) accounts for approximately one in five lung cancer diagnoses. In spite of global efforts to reduce tobacco smoking in

• GRP/bombesin-based antagonists display superior in vivo targeting capacity cf. agonist peptides [11]. It is therefore reasonable to exploit the enhanced targeting capacity of the antagonist peptides for enhanced targeting of SCLC. Indeed, we postulate that high-affinity binding of antagonist peptides

pH-Controlled fluorescence switching in water-dispersed polymer brushes grafted to modified boron nitride nanotubes for cellular imaging

• Saban Kalay,
• Yurij Stetsyshyn,
• Volodymyr Donchak,
• Khrystyna Harhay,
• Ostap Lishchynskyi,
• Halyna Ohar,
• Yuriy Panchenko,
• Stanislav Voronov and
• Mustafa Çulha

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2428–2439, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.233

• were tested for their delivery potential, which showed promising results for imaging and drug targeting applications [60][61]. As a continuation of the work [60][61], we demonstrate the potential of BNNTs as a novel pH-switchable fluorescent water-dispersed material for cellular imaging. To study the

• -dependent fluorescence properties. Third, acrylic groups in P(AA-co-FA) can be easy modified for drugs and/or targeting agents similar to that reported in [61]. It is well known that the carboxyl group of acrylic acid can react with ammonia to form acrylamide, or with an alcohol to form an acrylate ester

Design of a nanostructured mucoadhesive system containing curcumin for buccal application: from physicochemical to biological aspects

• Sabrina Barbosa de Souza Ferreira,
• Gustavo Braga,
• Évelin Lemos Oliveira,
• Jéssica Bassi da Silva,
• Hélen Cássia Rosseto,
• Lidiane Vizioli de Castro Hoshino,
• Mauro Luciano Baesso,
• Wilker Caetano,
• Craig Murdoch,
• Helen Elizabeth Colley and
• Marcos Luciano Bruschi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2304–2328, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.222

• selectivity targeting cancer cells. Keywords: curcumin; mucoadhesion; oral squamous cell carcinoma; permeation; poloxamer 407; Introduction The development of nanostructured systems containing poloxamer 407 (P407) and Carbopol 974P® (C974P) have previously been shown to have rheological and mechanical

• determine the viability of oral mucosa as a targeting site for drug delivery [81][82]. These studies can be performed ex vivo, in vitro or in vivo and are dependent of the drug physicochemical characteristics and its behavior when incorporated in drug delivery systems and biological target tissue. The

Targeted therapeutic effect against the breast cancer cell line MCF-7 with a CuFe₂O₄/silica/cisplatin nanocomposite formulation

• B. Rabindran Jermy,
• Vijaya Ravinayagam,
• Widyan A. Alamoudi,
• Dana Almohazey,
• Hatim Dafalla,
• Lina Hussain Allehaibi,
• Abdulhadi Baykal,
• Muhammet S. Toprak and
• Thirunavukkarasu Somanathan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2217–2228, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.214

• cisplatin [20][21]. To overcome these limitations and to ensure specific tumor targeting, cisplatin/CuFe2O4/HYPS nanoparticles were tested. To investigate the cytotoxic efficiency of cisplatin/CuFe2O4/HYPS nanoparticles, we assessed cell viability using the MTT assay. In that assay, healthy cells will be

Mannosylated brush copolymers based on poly(ethylene glycol) and poly(ε-caprolactone) as multivalent lectin-binding nanomaterials

• Stefania Ordanini,
• Wanda Celentano,
• Anna Bernardi and
• Francesco Cellesi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2192–2206, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.212

• ), targeting a degree of polymerization (DP) equal to 5. Reaction conversions were monitored by means of 1H NMR analysis; almost full monomer conversion (99%) was obtained after 6 h. The dispersity of the purified polymer was 1.19. Subsequent methacrylation of the terminal hydroxy group was accomplished in

Liquid crystal tunable claddings for polymer integrated optical waveguides

• José M. Otón,
• Manuel Caño-García,
• Fernando Gordo,
• Eva Otón,
• Morten A. Geday and
• Xabier Quintana

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2163–2170, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.209

• channels, corresponding to the positions D and F in Figure 4. A refractive index change from 1.535 to 1.546 could lead to a single channel switching corresponding to positions B and D. The importance of targeting the lower refractive indices (as in the D-to-F transition) becomes evident when considering

Nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond for nanoscale magnetic resonance imaging applications

• Alberto Boretti,
• Lorenzo Rosa,
• Jonathan Blackledge and
• Stefania Castelletto

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2128–2151, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.207

• diamond with unique properties for use in ultra-sensitive, high-resolution magnetometry. One of the most interesting and challenging applications is nanoscale magnetic resonance imaging (nano-MRI). While many review papers have covered other NV centers in diamond applications, there is no survey targeting

Microbubbles decorated with dendronized magnetic nanoparticles for biomedical imaging: effective stabilization via fluorous interactions

• Da Shi,
• Justine Wallyn,
• Dinh-Vu Nguyen,
• Francis Perton,
• Delphine Felder-Flesch,
• Sylvie Bégin-Colin,
• Mounir Maaloum and
• Marie Pierre Krafft

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2103–2115, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.205

• and some limitations [25]. In both cases, the shells can be custom-made to enhance stability, circulation duration, drug-loading capacity and release rate, targeting the fusion with cell membranes [24]. Both types of constructs are generally more stable, but less echogenic than “true” gas microbubbles

Incorporation of doxorubicin in different polymer nanoparticles and their anticancer activity

• Sebastian Pieper,
• Hannah Onafuye,
• Dennis Mulac,
• Jindrich Cinatl Jr.,
• Mark N. Wass,
• Martin Michaelis and
• Klaus Langer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2062–2072, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.201

• targeting can be achieved via the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect, which is the consequence of increased leakiness of the tumour vasculature and a lack of lymph drainage [4]. Nano-sized drug carrier systems can also prolong the circulation time of anticancer drugs, protect them from

• effects, which were comparable to doxorubicin solution. Since nanoparticle preparations are known to have the capacity to improve the in vivo activity of anticancer drugs by tumour targeting through the EPR effect, this is an important step in the development of improved nanoparticle preparations. However

Gold-coated plant virus as computed tomography imaging contrast agent

• Alaa A. A. Aljabali,
• Mazhar S. Al Zoubi,
• Khalid M. Al-Batanyeh,
• Ali Al-Radaideh,
• Mohammad A. Obeid,
• Abeer Al Sharabi,
• Walhan Alshaer,
• Bayan AbuFares,
• Tasnim Al-Zanati,
• Murtaza M. Tambuwala,
• Naveed Akbar and
• David J. Evans

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1983–1993, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.195

• agent offer a fast scan time (less than 2 min), low cost, and biocompatibility and allow for high-resolution imaging with ca. 150 Hounsfield units (HU). The Au-CPMV surface was further modified allowing for the incorporation of targeting molecules of specific cell types. Keywords: biomedical imaging

• ; computed tomography (CT); gold; nanotechnology; viruses; targeting; Introduction Numerous types of nanomaterials are currently under investigation in medicine, including dendrimers, polymeric nanoparticles (NPs), liposomes and protein-based NPs. Each system has advantages and disadvantages in terms of its

• conclude that the prepared VCAM1-PEG5000Au-CPMV is an acceptable targeting model for further in vivo studies. STEM–EDX elemental maps Low-voltage STEM offers a contrast enhancement over conventional TEM analysis due to lower energy (20–30 kV). The higher electron scattering provides better insight into the

Synthesis and potent cytotoxic activity of a novel diosgenin derivative and its phytosomes against lung cancer cells

• Liang Xu,
• Dekang Xu,
• Ziying Li,
• Yu Gao and
• Haijun Chen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1933–1942, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.189

• by cholesterol have been substantially investigated as drug carriers for targeting, modulating drug pharmacokinetics, and decreasing drug toxicity [15][16]. Liposomes also can be used as solubilizing media to enhance solubility and bioavailability of insoluble drugs [17]. Di and our prepared

Engineered superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) for dual-modality imaging of intracranial glioblastoma via EGFRvIII targeting

• Xianping Liu,
• Chengjuan Du,
• Haichun Li,
• Ting Jiang,
• Zimiao Luo,
• Zhiqing Pang,
• Daoying Geng and
• Jun Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1860–1872, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.181

• Education, 826 Zhangheng Road, Shanghai 201203, China 10.3762/bjnano.10.181 Abstract In this work, a peptide-modified, biodegradable, nontoxic, brain-tumor-targeting nanoprobe based on superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) (which have been commonly used as T2-weighted magnetic resonance (MR

• construct the nanoprobe. Both in vitro and in vivo MR and optical imaging demonstrated that the as-constructed nanoprobe was effective and sensitive for tumor targeting with desirable biosafety. Given its desirable properties such as a 100 nm diameter (capable of penetration of the blood–brain barrier) and

• imaging [32][33][34]. There are many targeted probes for the diagnosis and treatment of GBM that have been constructed with high expression of EGFRvIII in the literature. Hadjipanayis and co-workers showed the specific EGFRvIII targeting and MRI contrast enhancement by means of EGFRvIII antibody

Materials nanoarchitectonics at two-dimensional liquid interfaces

• Katsuhiko Ariga,
• Michio Matsumoto,
• Taizo Mori and
• Lok Kumar Shrestha

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1559–1587, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.153

• sophisticated strategy to realize chemotherapy targeting at cancer cells using the controlled assembly and disassembly of layer-by-layer hybrid structures made of two dimensional MoS2 nanosheets with DNA [87]. The preparation of functional low-dimensional materials requires preservation of nanoscale features in

Scavenging of reactive oxygen species by phenolic compound-modified maghemite nanoparticles

• Małgorzata Świętek,
• Yi-Chin Lu,
• Rafał Konefał,
• Liliana P. Ferreira,
• M. Margarida Cruz,
• Yunn-Hwa Ma and
• Daniel Horák

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1073–1088, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.108

• , targeting tumor sites using an external magnetic field, MRI contrast agents, or magnetic hyperthermia. Under physiological conditions, the nanoparticle surface is exposed to the action of biomolecules, oxygen, peroxides, and radicals, which changes particle properties and behavior. Moreover, Fe2+ ions can

Enhanced inhibition of influenza virus infection by peptide–noble-metal nanoparticle conjugates

• Zaid K. Alghrair,
• David G. Fernig and
• Bahram Ebrahimi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1038–1047, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.104

• demonstrate that conjugation of FluPep to gold and silver nanoparticles enhances its antiviral potency; the antimicrobial activity of silver ions may enable the design of even more potent antimicrobial inhibitors, capable of targeting both influenza and bacterial co-infections. Keywords: antiviral peptides

• density on the gold nanoparticles [17][22][26][30][31][32]. This can be determined by chromatography targeting specifically the grafted function, which also provides a means to purify the functionalised gold nanoparticles from those not functionalised, when the molar fraction of the functional ligand is

Correlation of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) with the surface density of gold nanoparticles: evaluation of the critical number of SERS tags for a detectable signal

• Vincenzo Amendola

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1016–1023, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.102

• molecules (Raman reporters) resonant at the probe wavelength, where the entire structure is embedded in a stabilizing matrix [13][16][17][18][19]. When selectivity is required, the surface of the Raman tag should expose a targeting function for binding the analyte [13][16][17]. When the analytes can be

Tungsten disulfide-based nanocomposites for photothermal therapy

• Tzuriel Levin,
• Hagit Sade,
• Rina Ben-Shabbat Binyamini,
• Maayan Pour,
• Iftach Nachman and
• Jean-Paul Lellouche

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 811–822, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.81

• , thereby offering the possibility of bonding of additional biologically active agents. The properties of the CAN-mag also enabled magnetism-based targeting. In order to maximize the benefit from TMDC nanostructures in different applications, their surface functionalization is important. The relative

• values of reduced aggregation, which leads to better targeting, and the possibility for attachments of additional cancer therapy agents. Experimental A schematic description of the experimental pathway leading to CAN-mag functionalized WS2 nanotubes is given in Figure 1, followed by fully detailed

• , namely increased cancerous-cell death and better targeting. Figure 7 shows zeta potential averages and distribution curves for WS2-NTs, CAN-mag, and their composites. The values for WS2-NT and CAN-mag are consistent with previous works [52][65][66]. For each composite, the zeta values reflect the

Polydopamine-coated Au nanorods for targeted fluorescent cell imaging and photothermal therapy

• Boris N. Khlebtsov,
• Andrey M. Burov,
• Timofey E. Pylaev and
• Nikolai G. Khlebtsov

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 794–803, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.79

• -PDA based nanocomposites that combine fluorescent imaging modality with folate targeting and PPT ability have not been reported in the literature. Herein, we present PDA-coated NIR-absorbing AuNRs and used the potential of the PDA layer for folate surface functionalization and rhodamine 123 (R123

• ) loading, resulting in the formation of AuNR-PDA-R123-folate nanocomposites (Scheme 1). This platform demonstrates three distinct features: (1) targeting of nanocomposites with folic acid leads to enhanced cellular uptake by folate-positive cancer cells compared with PEG-coated nanorods; (2) the high

• were functionalized with folates and rhodamine 123. Folate receptors are commonly overexpressed in cancer cells, e.g., in HeLa cells, enabling an easy targeting with folic acid [44]. Rhodamine 123 was used as a fluorescent dye to control the nanocomposite interaction with cells using fluorescent

Targeting strategies for improving the efficacy of nanomedicine in oncology

• Gonzalo Villaverde and
• Alejandro Baeza

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 168–181, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.16

• their action specifically to the malignant cells. The selectivity improvement yielded by these nanocarriers provided a significative enhancement in the efficacy of the transported drug, while the apparition of side effects in the host was reduced. Additionally, it is possible to incorporate targeting

• moieties selective for organelles of the cell, which improves even more the effect of the transported agents. In the last years, more sophisticated strategies such as the use of switchable, hierarchical or double targeting strategies have been proposed for overcoming some of the limitations of conventional

• targeting strategies. In this review, recent advances in the development of targeted nanoparticles will be described with the aim to present the current state of the art of this technology and its huge potential in the oncological field. Keywords: antitumoral therapy; nanomedicine; smart nanocarriers

Bidirectional biomimetic flow sensing with antiparallel and curved artificial hair sensors

• Claudio Abels,
• Antonio Qualtieri,
• Toni Lober,
• Alessandro Mariotti,
• Lily D. Chambers,
• Massimo De Vittorio,
• William M. Megill and
• Francesco Rizzi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 32–46, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.4

• bidirectional sensitivity to flow sensing with curved artificial hair sensors. In the short term, the presented sensor platform will be investigated in liquids as well, once the sensors are embedded in a waterproof MEMS package. For future applications, we are targeting automotive, robotics, automation and air

Surface plasmon resonance enhancement of photoluminescence intensity and bioimaging application of gold nanorod@CdSe/ZnS quantum dots

• Siyi Hu,
• Yu Ren,
• Yue Wang,
• Jinhua Li,
• Junle Qu,
• Liwei Liu,
• Hanbin Ma and
• Yuguo Tang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 22–31, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.3

• distance using the combined strong electrostatic adsorption. Secondly, FA was conjugated with this composite nanoparticle for biological applications, where the FA renders the nanoparticle useful for the specific targeting of cancer cells [28][29]. According to current knowledge, when bulk semiconductor

• @CdSe/ZnS can be used in cell imaging studies, after conjugation with FA, we performed a MCF-7 breast cancer cell targeting imaging study, and the results as shown in Figure 8. Robust cellular uptake could be obtained from the CdSe/ZnS@FA and GNR@CdSe/ZnS@FA treated samples. The obvious luminescence and

Size-selected Fe₃O₄–Au hybrid nanoparticles for improved magnetism-based theranostics

• Maria V. Efremova,
• Yulia A. Nalench,
• Eirini Myrovali,
• Anastasiia S. Garanina,
• Ivan S. Grebennikov,
• Polina K. Gifer,
• Maxim A. Abakumov,
• Marina Spasova,
• Makis Angelakeris,
• Alexander G. Savchenko,
• Michael Farle,
• Natalia L. Klyachko,
• Alexander G. Majouga and
• Ulf Wiedwald

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2684–2699, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.251

• ]. For advanced functionality under real operational conditions, various approaches have been attempted, e.g., optimization of the NP surface using targeting molecules or specific polymers [13][14][15]. From the physics point of view, the strategically tailored design of structural and magnetic