Carbon nano-onions as fluorescent on/off modulated nanoprobes for diagnostics

• Stefania Lettieri,
• Marta d’Amora,
• Adalberto Camisasca,
• Alberto Diaspro and
• Silvia Giordani

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1878–1888, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.188

• 10.3762/bjnano.8.188 Abstract Multishell fullerenes, known as carbon nano-onions (CNOs), have emerged as a platform for bioimaging because of their cell-penetration properties and minimal systemic toxicity. Here, we describe the covalent functionalization of CNOs with a π-extended distyryl-substituted

• development of a nanosensor which can be “turned on” in an acidic environment. Remarkably, the fluo-CNOs maintained the switching properties upon cell internalization, as they were “switched-on” in response to acidic pH. In vitro experiments on HeLa cells showed excellent cellular uptake and low toxicity of

• treated with only cell culture medium were used as a control. The cell viability percentage was above 80%, showing that CNOs exhibited moderate toxicity to the cells at the tested concentrations (Figure 6). The observed high viability of the HeLa cells treated with CNOs demonstrated their suitability for

Optical techniques for cervical neoplasia detection

• Tatiana Novikova

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1844–1862, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.186

• ) combined with low toxicity and resistance to photo bleaching [93] make them ideal candidates for multi-wavelength cellular imaging. Because of the small size QDs can be effectively used for labeling molecular targets at both cellular and subcellular levels. Despite the above mentioned advantages of using

• QDs for molecular imaging in cancer theranostics the possible side effects (toxicity, disruption of cellular processes) also need to be considered [90]. Mueller polarimetry There is an emerging set of optical techniques based on the detection of changes in the polarization of light instead of (or

Synthesis and functionalization of NaGdF₄:Yb,Er@NaGdF₄ core–shell nanoparticles for possible application as multimodal contrast agents

• Dovile Baziulyte-Paulaviciene,
• Vitalijus Karabanovas,
• Marius Stasys,
• Greta Jarockyte,
• Vilius Poderys,
• Simas Sakirzanovas and
• Ricardas Rotomskis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1815–1824, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.183

• visible light, have been extensively investigated due to the advantages associated with their unique optical properties [1]. Compared with traditional semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) or organic fluorophores, UCNPs show superior features such as sharp emission peaks, low toxicity, high photochemical

• awareness of the effects of gadolinium toxicity [23][24]. Moreover, the possible influence of gadolinium-based UCNPs on cells is not yet investigated and understood. In this work, we focus on studies of multimodal core–shell NaGdF4:Yb,Er coated with NaGdF4 (NaGdF4:Yb,Er@NaGdF4) UCNPs synthesis and

• , treated with different concentrations of UCNPs for 24 h. Toxicity of UCNPs was investigated using XTT cell viability assay. Formation of water-soluble core and core–shell UCNPs by coating with Tween 80. Supporting Information Supporting Information File 134: The hydrodynamic particle size and zeta

Three-in-one approach towards efficient organic dye-sensitized solar cells: aggregation suppression, panchromatic absorption and resonance energy transfer

• Jayita Patwari,
• Samim Sardar,
• Bo Liu,
• Peter Lemmens and
• Samir Kumar Pal

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1705–1713, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.171

• extinction coefficient (ε) of the metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT) band, a poor absorption in the near-infrared (NIR) range of the solar light and the toxicity are well-documented limitations of these Ru photosensitizers [12]. As an alternative to Ru dyes, less toxic and less expensive organic dyes are

Uptake and intracellular accumulation of diamond nanoparticles – a metabolic and cytotoxic study

• Antonín Brož,
• Lucie Bačáková,
• Pavla Štenclová,
• Alexander Kromka and
• Štěpán Potocký

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1649–1657, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.165

• express chemical toxicity based on the production of reactive oxygen species. Figure 2 shows the results of a cell mitochondrial activity test (upper row) and counting of the cell nuclei (lower row) after 7 days of cultivation for three different concentrations of 10, 100 and 1000 µg/mL (3, 30, 300 µg/cm2

• and surface energy of the NDs. The presence of photoluminescent N-V centers had no negative effect on cell viability in the concentrations studied (3 µg/cm2 and 30 µg/cm2). Similar to the other HPHT NDs with an oxidized surface, the NDs with N-V optical centers expressed no significant toxicity when

• states on the surface. They were fully oxygenated by annealing at high temperature. The viability of the cells cultivated with NR-5 (100 and 1000 µg/mL, 30 and 300 µg/cm2) had already reduced by 80–85% after 3 days of cultivation. However, the annealing of these DNDs (NA-5) reduced their toxicity

Two-dimensional carbon-based nanocomposites for photocatalytic energy generation and environmental remediation applications

• Suneel Kumar,
• Ashish Kumar,
• Ashish Bahuguna,
• Vipul Sharma and
• Venkata Krishnan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1571–1600, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.159

• ], biosensors [25], molecular imaging [26], fuel cells [27] and catalysis [28]. The non-toxicity, abundance and the environmentally benign nature of these carbon-based materials makes them a remarkable class of materials with unique electrical and optical properties for diverse applications. In recent times

A nanocomplex of C₆₀ fullerene with cisplatin: design, characterization and toxicity

• Svitlana Prylutska,
• Svitlana Politenkova,
• Kateryna Afanasieva,
• Volodymyr Korolovych,
• Kateryna Bogutska,
• Andriy Sivolob,
• Larysa Skivka,
• Maxim Evstigneev,
• Viktor Kostjukov,
• Yuriy Prylutskyy and
• Uwe Ritter

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1494–1501, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.149

• lymphocytes and reduces the fraction of necrotic cells. Keywords: atomic force microscopy; C60 fullerene; cisplatin; comet assay; computer simulation; dynamic light scattering; flow cytometry; human lymphocytes; toxicity in vitro; Introduction The water-soluble inorganic bi-valent platinum derivative

• , increase solubility in bioavailable form and protect Cis from degradation [3][4][5][6][7][8][9]. The carbon allotrope С60 fullerene could act as such a potent agent. Pristine C60 fullerenes have no acute or sub-acute toxicity in vitro [10][11][12] and in vivo [13] (at least at low physiological

• of nanoparticles in solution is important not only for checking the quality of solution for study, but also to control the degree of aggregation which may influence their biodistribution and toxicity [47]. Figure 1 shows DLS data of C60FAS and C60+Cis mixture at room temperature. It is seen that

Calcium fluoride based multifunctional nanoparticles for multimodal imaging

• Marion Straßer,
• Joachim H. X. Schrauth,
• Sofia Dembski,
• Daniel Haddad,
• Bernd Ahrens,
• Stefan Schweizer,
• Bastian Christ,
• Alevtina Cubukova,
• Marco Metzger,
• Heike Walles,
• Peter M. Jakob and
• Gerhard Sextl

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1484–1493, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.148

• . Also, a decomposition of the NPs, resulting in an increase of the free Gd3+ concentration within the solution and therefore an increase of the relaxivity, does not take place. This is another very important property of our CA, because of the toxicity of free Gd3+ ions. Biocompatibility In general, NPs

• cell toxicity of the CaF2:(Tb3+,Gd3+) NPs was investigated in 96-well plates on a subconfluent monolayer culture of hdF. With the CellTiter-Glo luminescent cell viability assay (Promega), based on the quantification of the ATP concentration, the cell viability was examined. The cell line was seeded

Development of polycationic amphiphilic cyclodextrin nanoparticles for anticancer drug delivery

• Gamze Varan,
• Juan M. Benito,
• Carmen Ortiz Mellet and
• Erem Bilensoy

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1457–1468, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.145

• their intrinsic apoptotic effect in our first paper [26] in unloaded blank nanoparticle form. This study focuses on the nanocarrier properties and drug delivery system potential of the polycationic CD nanoparticles for PCX, which is an anticancer drug with several serious bioavaibility and toxicity

• presence of PF68 in CD nanoparticle formulations on cytotoxicity on L929, a healthy mouse fibroblast cell line. According to these results, it was suggested that PF68 has no significant effect on size and drug loading capacity of nanoparticles but dose-dependent toxicity could occur on L929 fibroblast

• particle size of nanoparticulate drug delivery systems play a direct and important role on cellular uptake, systemic circulation, toxicity and stability of nanoparticles [37][38]. It was reported that nanoparticles smaller than 200 nm can escape recognition by the mononuclear phagocytic system (MPS) [39

Carbon nanomaterials sensitize prostate cancer cells to docetaxel and mitomycin C via induction of apoptosis and inhibition of proliferation

• Kati Erdmann,
• Jessica Ringel,
• Silke Hampel,
• Manfred P. Wirth and
• Susanne Fuessel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1307–1317, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.132

• are frequently associated with severe side effects such as incontinence and erectile dysfunction as well as gastrointestinal and genitourinary toxicity in case of radiation that ultimately result in a diminished quality of life [2]. Furthermore, up to 50% of patients with localized high-risk PCa will

• chemoresistant cells to conventional chemotherapeutics and thus make them more prone to the cytotoxic drug effects [17][28]. One limiting factor for the application of carbon nanomaterials as drug delivery systems are their toxicity owing to their small size and structural resemblance to asbestos [33][42]. In

• can probably be further diminished for in vivo testing. Furthermore, the toxicity of carbon nanomaterials might depend on the route of administration with systemically applied nanocarriers being the most toxic [33][42]. In in vivo animal studies the adverse effects of systemically applied CNTs

Bright fluorescent silica-nanoparticle probes for high-resolution STED and confocal microscopy

• Isabella Tavernaro,
• Christian Cavelius,
• Henrike Peuschel and
• Annette Kraegeloh

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1283–1296, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.130

• studies in which a possible influence of the dye on toxicity and cell interaction should be minimised. Absorption and fluorescence properties of the dye-doped silica particles After characterisation of the physical particle attributes, fluorescence and absorption measurements of the dye-doped silica

Nano-engineered skin mesenchymal stem cells: potential vehicles for tumour-targeted quantum-dot delivery

• Liga Saulite,
• Dominyka Dapkute,
• Karlis Pleiko,
• Ineta Popena,
• Simona Steponkiene,
• Ricardas Rotomskis and
• Una Riekstina

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1218–1230, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.123

• ]. MSCs loaded with anti-cancer drugs can reduce melanoma tumour growth in vivo, suggesting that these molecules are suitable vectors for therapeutic applications [22]. The aim of the present study was to analyse the accumulation, release, toxicity and functional effects of carboxyl QD655 on skin-derived

• MSCs are potentially safe to use in long-term tumour imaging and cell tracking experiments. Although there is a great deal of concern about the potential hazards of QDs containing heavy metals, the toxicity of QDs is a topic of controversy. The toxicity and ecotoxicity of QDs is studied at various

ZnO nanoparticles sensitized by CuInZn_xS_2+x quantum dots as highly efficient solar light driven photocatalysts

• Florian Donat,
• Serge Corbel,
• Halima Alem,
• Steve Pontvianne,
• Lavinia Balan,
• Ghouti Medjahdi and
• Raphaël Schneider

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1080–1093, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.110

• air [1][2][3][4][5] and can also be used to produce energy vectors such as hydrogen from water [6][7][8]. Due to their strong catalytic activity, reasonable photo- and chemical stability, and weak toxicity, TiO2 and ZnO semiconductors are the most commonly used photocatalysts. However, their large

Treatment of fly ash from power plants using thermal plasma

• Sulaiman Al-Mayman,
• Ibrahim AlShunaifi,
• Abdullah Albeladi,
• Imed Ghiloufi and
• Saud Binjuwair

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1043–1048, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.105

• were analyzed using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES). The leaching behavior of heavy metals in the slag and fly ash was measured according to “Method 1311 Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure” of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA TCLP 1311

Study of the correlation between sensing performance and surface morphology of inkjet-printed aqueous graphene-based chemiresistors for NO₂ detection

• F. Villani,
• C. Schiattarella,
• T. Polichetti,
• R. Di Capua,
• F. Loffredo,
• B. Alfano,
• M. L. Miglietta,
• E. Massera,
• L. Verdoliva and
• G. Di Francia

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1023–1031, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.103

• -boiling and need to be handled with care because of their toxicity. Recently, the potential to effectively exfoliate natural graphite in a hydro-alcoholic mixture in a process of low environmental impact has been demonstrated [8]. In general, the liquid-phase preparation of graphene extends its

Needs and challenges for assessing the environmental impacts of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs)

• Michelle Romero-Franco,
• Hilary A. Godwin,
• Muhammad Bilal and
• Yoram Cohen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 989–1014, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.101

• chronic health effects of ENMs have not been conclusively identified in human populations [6], animal studies suggest that the ENMs exhibit mechanisms of respiratory toxicity similar to those of ambient ultrafine particles (UFPs) [7]. Furthermore, in vitro and in silico studies [8][9] suggest that

• human health related risks in a systematic manner based on toxicity, dose response curves and quantitative exposure assessment. These frameworks (i.e., EIA and RA) have also been incorporated into ecological risk assessment (ERA) [13], which is used to evaluate the likelihood of adverse environmental

• harmful impacts of chemicals has been traditionally addressed via toxicity and epidemiological studies, which allow risk assessors to establish causal relationships between exposure and effects. Risk characterization for chemicals entails quantitative integration of exposure assessment and dose–response

Modeling adsorption of brominated, chlorinated and mixed bromo/chloro-dibenzo-p-dioxins on C₆₀ fullerene using Nano-QSPR

• Piotr Urbaszek,
• Agnieszka Gajewicz,
• Celina Sikorska,
• Maciej Haranczyk and
• Tomasz Puzyn

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 752–761, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.78

• (AhR) toxicity mechanism. Therefore, the effectiveness of fullerenes as sorbent agents may be underestimated as sorption could be less effective for toxic congeners than previously believed. Keywords: brominated; chlorinated; dioxins; fullerenes; QSPR; sorption; Introduction Dioxin congeners are

• –C bond direction as well as an equatorial belt of negative potential, so that they can display different properties depending on the angle of approach [21]. Regarding one of the toxicity mechanisms for nanoparticles proposed at the NATO Advance Research Workshop, dioxin–fullerene interactions and

• substituents) in dioxin molecules on the final adsorption energy of the complex by using in silico methods. Our model presented here may provide important information in designing new fullerene applications and assessing the risk of those interactions according to the differences in toxicity caused by the

First examples of organosilica-based ionogels: synthesis and electrochemical behavior

• Andreas Taubert,
• Ruben Löbbicke,
• Barbara Kirchner and
• Fabrice Leroux

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 736–751, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.77

• imidazolium ring: while Delahaye et al. used a sulfopropyl chain, the current IL is functionalized with a sulfobutyl chain. The reason is the rather high toxicity of the 1,3-propanesultone precursor used for the synthesis of the previous IL. 1,3-Butanesultone, which was used in the current study has a similar

Synthesis of graphene–transition metal oxide hybrid nanoparticles and their application in various fields

• Arpita Jana,
• Elke Scheer and
• Sebastian Polarz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 688–714, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.74

Dispersion of single-wall carbon nanotubes with supramolecular Congo red – properties of the complexes and mechanism of the interaction

• Anna Jagusiak,
• Barbara Piekarska,
• Tomasz Pańczyk,
• Małgorzata Jemioła-Rzemińska,
• Elżbieta Bielańska,
• Barbara Stopa,
• Grzegorz Zemanek,
• Janina Rybarska,
• Irena Roterman and
• Leszek Konieczny

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 636–648, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.68

• length influences CNT toxicity and cellular uptake [22][23]. Surfactants commonly used for dispersion of CNTs include SDS, CTAB, Triton X-100 or sodium cholate [24][25][26]. A less known approach is based on the interaction of CNTs with a bis-azo dye – Congo red (CR) [27]. This original procedure was

α-((4-Cyanobenzoyl)oxy)-ω-methyl poly(ethylene glycol): a new stabilizer for silver nanoparticles

• Jana Lutze,
• Miguel A. Bañares,
• Marcos Pita,
• Andrea Haase,
• Andreas Luch and
• Andreas Taubert

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 627–635, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.67

• hydrophilicity and biological inertness of PEG, which renders PEG-stabilized NPs water-soluble and less susceptible to opsonization [19][20]. As a result, PEG-coated NPs are often referred to as “stealth” NPs [21][22]. Moreover, PEG coatings often lower the toxicity of otherwise toxic NPs [23][24]. For example

• cyano group anchor is limited [36][38][39][40][41][42][43] and further development of cyano-based stabilizers is of high interest. However, depending on the application, the toxicity of the cyano-based stabilizers will also have to be considered [44]. The current study introduces a new stabilizer, α-((4

Nanoscale isoindigo-carriers: self-assembly and tunable properties

• Tatiana N. Pashirova,
• Andrei V. Bogdanov,
• Lenar I. Musin,
• Julia K. Voronina,
• Irek R. Nizameev,
• Marsil K. Kadirov,
• Vladimir F. Mironov,
• Lucia Ya. Zakharova,
• Shamil K. Latypov and
• Oleg G. Sinyashin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 313–324, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.34

• toxicity as well as to minimize drug degradation and to provide a controllable drug release [51][52][53]. The modification of nanostructures with conjugated π–π fragments leads to the absorption of anticancer drugs via π–π stacking interaction and increases the drug-loading capacity of nanoscale soft

Photocatalysis applications of some hybrid polymeric composites incorporating TiO₂ nanoparticles and their combinations with SiO₂/Fe₂O₃

• Andreea Laura Chibac,
• Tinca Buruiana,
• Violeta Melinte and
• Emil C. Buruiana

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 272–286, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.30

• dispersion of inorganic nanoparticles into suitable organic matrices prevents their aggregation and furnishes a convenient handling of the NPs, besides reducing toxicity and enhancing the chemical stability [52]. Hence, 10 wt % TiO2 NPs (pure or in different combinations) were incorporated into a viscous

The cleaner, the greener? Product sustainability assessment of the biomimetic façade paint Lotusan^® in comparison to the conventional façade paint Jumbosil^®

• Florian Antony,
• Rainer Grießhammer,
• Thomas Speck and
• Olga Speck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 2100–2115, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.200

• further improvement of safety at work cannot be strictly ruled out, it may be assumed that major differences relating to social effects between the two colours can be ruled out. Furthermore, it has been decided to also evaluate the ecotoxicity potential and the human toxicity potential related to the two

• products regarding toxicology aspects within the LCA. In the course of conducting the LCA, the demand for titanium dioxide in both paints could be identified as main driver of toxicity potential indicator results. Regarding the base-case scenario, Lotusan® shows about 20% higher USEtoxhumantox indicator

A dioxaborine cyanine dye as a photoluminescence probe for sensing carbon nanotubes

• Mohammed Al Araimi,
• Petro Lutsyk,
• Anatoly Verbitsky,
• Yuri Piryatinski,
• Mykola Shandura and
• Aleksey Rozhin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1991–1999, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.190

• applications in reinforced plastics, conductive composites, sensors and photonic devices [1]. However, with the rapid growth of nanotechnology, carbon nanotubes pose a significant potential threat to health and environment in the near future due to their toxicity [1][2][3][4][5]. Therefore, efficient sensing