Drug delivery is one of the major challenges in the treatment of central nervous system disorders. The brain needs to be protected from harmful agents, which are done by the capillary network, the so-called blood–brain barrier (BBB). This protective guard also prevents the delivery of therapeutic agents to the brain and limits the effectiveness of treatment. For this reason, various strategies have been explored by scientists for overcoming the BBB from disruption of the BBB to targeted delivery of nanoparticles (NPs) and cells and immunotherapy. In this review, different promising brain drug delivery strategies including disruption of tight junctions in the BBB, enhanced transcellular transport by peptide-based delivery, local delivery strategies, NP delivery, and cell-based delivery have been fully discussed.

Immobilised magnetic nanoparticles are extensively used owing to their superparamagnetic nature, surface interaction, and binding specificity with the appropriate portentous substances. The present research focuses on the development of a portentous, robust carrier, which integrates the silica-coated amino-functionalised magnetic nanoparticle (AF-MnP) with the plant extracts of Cynodon dactylon (L1) and Muraya koenigii (L2) for the stable and enhanced removal of hazardous hexavalent chromium pollutant in the wastewater. Vibrating sample magnetometer (M _s – 45 emu/g) determines the superparamagnetic properties; Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy determines the presence of functional groups such as NH₂, Si–O–Si, C=C; high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, field emission scanning electron microscope and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy determine the size of the green adsorbents in the range of 20 nm and the presence of elements such as Fe, N, and Si determines the efficacy of the synthesised silica-coated AF-MnP. The AF-MnP-L1 shows the maximum adsorption capacity of 34.7 mg/g of sorbent calculated from the Langmuir isotherm model and the process follows pseudo-second-order kinetics. After treatment, the adsorbents can be easily separated from the solution in the presence of an external magnetic field and are reused for nine cycles after acid treatment with the minimal loss of adsorption efficiency.

Carbon nanotubes represent one of the best examples of novel nanostructures, exhibit a range of extraordinary physical properties, strong antimicrobial activity and can pierce bacterial cell walls. This investigation handles the antimicrobial activity of functionalised multiwall carbon nanotubes (F-MWNTs) as an alternative antimicrobial material compared to the commercial antibiotics. Antibacterial activities of F-MWNTs are investigated through two different kinds of bacteria, E. coli and S. aureus. The results demonstrate that the best concentration of F-MWNTs for the maximum inhibition and antibacterial functionality is 80 and 60 μg/ml for E. coli and S. aureus, respectively. The transmission electron microscope reveals the morphological changes damage mechanism for the cellular reliability on these microorganisms. F-MWNTs are capable of biologically isolating the cell from their microenvironment, contributing to the development of toxic substances and placing the cell under oxidative stress leading to cellular death. The efficiency of F-MWNTs is compared with the common antibiotics and shows an enhancement in the inhibitory effect with percentages reaches 85%. To account for the bactericidal performance of F-MWNTs towards these pathogens, the dielectric conductivity and the bacterial growth measurements are conducted. The present study endeavour that F-MWNTs could be exploited in biomedical devices and altering systems for hospital and industrial cleaning applications.

Cisplatin treatment results in acute kidney injury (AKI) by the phosphorylation of mixed lineage kinase domain-like protein (MLKL). The knockout of MLKL, which is a principle mediator of necroptosis, is believed to alleviate the AKI symptoms. The present study was aimed to improve the therapeutic efficacy in AKI. For this purpose, miR-500a-3P was identified as appropriate miRNA therapeutics and loaded in liposome delivery carrier. The authors have showed that the miR-LIP directly controls the expression of RIPK3 and MLKL – a modulator of necroptosis and thereby reduces the severity of kidney injury. The miR-LIP significantly controlled the phosphorylation of MLKL compared to that of CDDP-treated HK2 cells. Similar results are observed with RIPK3. The miR-LIP has also been demonstrated to control the inflammatory response in tubular cells. Western blot analysis further revealed that the phosphorylation of P-65 was mainly responsible for the inflammatory response and miR-LIP significantly decreased the CDDP-induced NF-kB phosphorylation. Overall, the present study explored the molecular mechanism behind the necroptosis in AKI and potential of miRNA in targeting MLKL pathways. Study further highlights the potential advantage of liposome as a delivery carrier for miRNA therapeutics.

Gadolinium as a contrast agent in MRI technique combined with DTPA causes contrast induced nephropathy (CIN) and nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF) which can reduce by usage of antioxidants such as N-acetyl cysteine by increasing the membrane's permeability leads to lower cytotoxicity. In this study, N-acetyl cysteine-PLGA Nano-conjugate was synthesized according to stoichiometric rules of molar ratios andafter assessment by FTIR, NMR spectroscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) imaging was combined with Magnevist® (gadopentetate dimeglumine) and its effects on the renal cells were evaluated. MTT [3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-Diphenyltetrazolium Bromide] and cellular uptake assays have indicated relatively significant toxicity of magnevist (P < 0.05) on three cell lines including HEK293, MCF7 and L929 compared to other synthesized ligands that shown no toxicity. Moreover, systemic evaluation has shown no notable changes of blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and creatinine in kidney of mice. In consequence, antioxidant effect was increased as well as the renal toxicity of the contrast agent reduced at the cell level. As a result, PLGA-NAC nano-conjugate can be a promising choice for decreasing the magnevist toxicity for treatment and prevention of CIN and will be able to open a new horizon to research on reduction of toxicity of contrast agents by using nanoparticles.

Based on the enhancement of synergistic antitumour activity to treat cancer and the correlation between inflammation and carcinogenesis, the authors designed chitosan nanoparticles for co-delivery of 5-fluororacil (5-Fu: an as anti-cancer drug) and aspirin (a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug) and induced synergistic antitumour activity through the modulation of the nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB)/cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) signalling pathways. The results showed that aspirin at non-cytotoxic concentrations synergistically sensitised hepatocellular carcinoma cells to 5-Fu in vitro. It demonstrated that aspirin inhibited NF-κB activation and suppressed NF-κB regulated COX-2 expression and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) synthesis. Furthermore, the proposed results clearly indicated that the combination of 5-Fu and aspirin by chitosan nanoparticles enhanced the intracellular concentration of drugs and exerted synergistic growth inhibition and apoptosis induction on hepatocellular carcinoma cells by suppressing NF-κB activation and inhibition of expression of COX-2.

In this examination, we researched the advantages of DNA fragmentation and metallic nanoparticles well-appointed with biomolecules. A novel interpretation of DNA damage by Silver Nano-Clusters (AgNCs) which were developed by the utilization of green synthesis method was demonstrated. The green synthesis of AgNCs was accomplished by utilizing the leaf extract of Salacia mulbarica (SM). The preparation of SM-AgNCs was developed by estimating surface plasmon resonance peak around 449 nm by using a UV–Visible spectrophotometer. The effect of phytochemicals in SM leaf extract on the development of stable SM-AgNCs was confirmed by FTIR spectroscopy. The size of the fabricated SM-AgNCs was estimated by dynamic light scattering and zeta-sizer analysis and the morphology of the SM-AgNCs was examined by transmission electron microscopy. The presence of clusters of Ag particles in the prepared SM-AgNCs was recognized by energy dispersion X-ray analysis. The results show that saponins, phytosterols, and phenolic compounds present in plant extract may play a great part in developing the SM-AgNCs in their specialized particles. The succeeded SM-AgNCs shows incredible anti-bacterial action towards Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis. In-light of the antibacterial study, these SM-AgNCs were analyzed with calf thymus-DNA and found significant damage to the strand of thymus-DNA.

Manipulating molecular scale bio-nanorobots and influencing their behaviour is one of the major challenges of new researches. Many coiled coil type proteins are involved in important biological functions due to physical properties that make them ideal for both nanoscale manipulation and sensing. The Prefoldin beta subunit from Thermococcus strain KS-1(Prefoldin β1) is one of the possible proteins that can serve as a new bio-nano-actuator. Besides having a balanced architecture, Prefoldin β1 can exhibit a wide range of exclusive authorities. In this study, steered molecular dynamics simulation is applied along with the centre of mass pulling and analyses of Prefoldin β1 conformational changes to characterise some of those abilities. Thus, applying external mechanical force without any position constraint shows that it has no movement throughout simulations. This proposes a novel method to capture different sizes and shapes of cargoes. During simulations, each arm was found to be very flexible, allowing it to enlarge its central cavity and capture different cargoes. For a more accurate analysis, the variations in the cavity of nano-actuator are investigated qualitatively and quantitatively with different parameters. Also, the force analysis of the arms can provide us with decent information about the performance of this nano-actuator.

To design, develop and study a novel drug delivery system for intraocular applications. The spin coating technique was applied to develop a polymeric, drug-eluting thin film consisting of a blend of organic polymers [poly (D, L lactide coglycolide) lactide: glycolide 75: 25, PLGA and polycaprolactone, PCL] and dexamethasone on the surface of intraocular lenses (IOLs). The initial durability of the IOLs during spinning was assessed. Information about the structural and optical properties of the modified IOLs was extracted using atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and spectroscopic ellipsometry. A drug release study was conducted for 8 weeks. The IOLs were durable in spinning speeds higher than the ones used to develop thin films. Single-layer thin films were successfully developed on the optics and the haptics of the lenses. The films formed nanopores with encapsulated aggregates of dexamethasone. The spectroscopic ellipsometry showed an acceptable optical transparency of the lenses regardless of the deposition of the drug-eluting films on their surface. The drug release study demonstrated gradual dexamethasone release over the selected period. In conclusion, the novel drug-eluting IOL system exhibited desired properties regarding its transparency and drug release rate. Further research is necessary to assess their suitability as an intraocular drug delivery system.

Cancer is a major cause of death. Thus, the incidence and mortality rate of cancer is globally important. Regarding vast problems caused by chemotherapy drugs, efforts have progressed to find new anti-cancer drugs. Pyrazole derivatives are known as components with anti-cancer properties. In here, Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles were first functionalized with (3-chloropropyl) trimethoxysilane, then 2-((pyrazol-4-yl) methylene) hydrazinecarbothioamide (P) was anchored on the surface of magnetic nanoparticles (PL). The synthesized nano-compounds were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, Zeta potential, dynamic light scattering, and energy-dispersive x-ray spectrometry analyses. The cytotoxicity effect was evaluated using MTT assay, apoptosis test by Flow cytometry, cell cycle analysis, Caspase-3 activity assay and Hoechst staining on MCF-7 cell line. The high toxicity for tumor cells and low toxicity on normal cells (MCF10A) was considered as an important feature (selectivity index, 10.9). Based on results, the IC50 for P and PL compounds were 157.80 and 131.84 μM/ml respectively. Moreover, apoptosis inducing, nuclear fragmentation, Caspase 3 activity and induction of cell rest in sub-G1 and S phases, were also observed. The inhibitory effect of PL was significantly higher than P, which could be due to the high penetrability of Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles.

In the present study, water-soluble hybrid selenium-containing nanocomposites have been synthesised via soft oxidation of selenide-anions, preliminarily generated from elemental bulk-selenium in the base-reduction system ‘N₂H₄–NaOH’. The nanocomposites obtained consist of Se⁰NPs (4.6–24.5 nm) stabilised by κ-carrageenan biocompatible polysaccharide. The structure of these composite nanomaterials has been proven using complementary physical–chemical methods: X-ray diffraction analysis, transmission electron microscopy, optical spectroscopy, and dynamic light scattering. Optical ranges of ‘emission/excitation’ of aqueous solutions of nanocomposites with Se⁰NPs of different sizes are established and the most important parameters of their luminescence are determined. For the obtained nanocomposites, the expressed antiradical activity against free radicals 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid has been found, the value of which depends on the size of selenium nanoparticles. It is experimentally revealed that all obtained nanocomposites are low toxic (LD₅₀ >2000 mg/kg). It is also found that small selenium nanoparticles (6.8 nm), in contrast to larger nanoparticles (24.5 nm), are accumulated in organisms to significantly increase the level of selenium in the liver, kidneys, and brain (in lesser amounts) of rats.

Montmorillonite (MMT) clay modified with lanthanum (La) ions and Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles was proposed for the effective removal of phosphate ions from aqueous solution. Characterisation of the adsorbent using FTIR, SEM, XRD, XPS, XRF, BET and VSM techniques were carried out. The effects of initial phosphate concentration, contact time, dosage and pH on the phosphorus adsorption were investigated. La-MMT/Fe₃O₄ exhibited an excellent adsorption capacity of up to 14.35 mg/g, with 97.8% removal within 60 min. Langmuir isotherm model fits well with the equilibrium isotherm data, with a maximum adsorption capacity of 15.53 mg/g at room temperature. The kinetic study was well fitted with pseudo-second-order kinetics, and the adsorption rate was mainly controlled by liquid-film diffusion. The manufactured adsorbent was effectively regenerated using 0.1 M NaOH solutions, with 90.18% adsorption efficiency remaining after six adsorption/desorption cycles. These results demonstrate that La-MMT/Fe₃O₄ provides an example of regenerable high-performance adsorbents for removal of PO₄ ³⁻ from wastewater.