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A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2018) | Viewed by 33972

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Prof. Dr. Carlos Lodeiro

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Inorganic Chemistry and NanoChemistry, NOVA School Of Science And Technology, FCT NOVA, NOVA University Lisbon, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal
Interests: metallic nanoparticles; nanoproteomics; imaging; silica nanoparticles; catalysis
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Prof. Dr. Jose Luis Capelo

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BIOSCOPE Group, LAQV@REQUIMTE, Chemistry Department, Faculty of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, Caparica, Portugal
Interests: antibiotic resistance; MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry; analytical proteomics; biomarker discovery; analytical chemistry; biochemistry
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Dr. Javier Fernandez Lodeiro

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LAQV-REQUIMTE—Chemistry Department, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, Caparica, Portugal
Interests: chalcogenide materials; green methodologies; iron and nobel nanoparticles; rods and quantum dots
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Dr. Elisabete Oliveira

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Chemistry Department, REQUIMTE, FCT-University NOVA of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal
Interests: mesoporous nanoparticles; nanoparticles; quantum dots; cancer research
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are proud to announce this Special Issue, “Nanomaterials and Materials for Translational Research”, in Materials (MDPI Editorial; IF: 2.654) devoted to the 3rd International Symposium on Nanoparticles, Nanomaterials and Applications (3rdISN2A-2018). (http://www.isn2a2018.com/)

The conference will be held in Costa de Caparica, Portugal, 22–25 January, 2018. This Special Issue will select excellent papers from the oral (plenary, keynotes, and regular talks) and posters participations, and covers a very wide range of fields in materials and nanomaterials applied in translational research, focusing in environmental, toxicological, and bio-medical applications. We invite investigators to contribute original research articles, as well as review articles, to this Special Issue.

Prof. Carlos Lodeiro
Prof. Jose Luis Capelo
Dr. Javier Fernandez Lodeiro
Dr. Elisabete Oliveira
Guest Editors

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 2161 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Electrical Conductivity and Optical Properties of Pulsed Laser Deposited LaNi₅ Nanoscale Films

by Daniela Todoran, Radu Todoran, Zsolt Szakács and Eugen Anitas

Materials 2018, 11(8), 1475; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11081475 - 19 Aug 2018

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4122

Abstract

This work presents pulsed laser deposition as a method to obtain unoxidized LaNi₅ nanoscale films and describes their temperature and thickness dependent electrical conductivity and the spectral dispersions of some optical properties. AB₅-type rare earth element (REE)-nickel compounds are currently studied from both theoretical and practical points of view. Special challenges are posed during the preparation of these nanomaterials, which can be overcome using finely tuned parameters in a preparation process that always involves the use of high energies. Film deposition was made by laser—induced vaporization, with short and modulated impulses and electro–optical tuning of the quality factor, mainly on glass and one SiO₂ substrate. Deposition geometry dependent linear thickness increase, between 1.5–2.5 nm per laser burst, was achieved. Film structures and phase compositions were determined using XRD and discussed in comparison with films obtained by similar deposition procedures. Temperature and scale dependent properties were determined by studying electrical conductivity and optical properties. Electrical conductivity was measured using the four-probe method. The observed semiconductor-like conductivity for film thicknesses up to 110 nm can be explained by thermal activation of electrons followed by inter-insular hopping or quantum tunneling, which, on the other hand, modulates the material’s native metallic conductance. Films with thicknesses above this value can be considered essentially metallic and bulk-like. The spectral behaviors of the refractive index and absorption coefficient were deduced from differential reflectance spectroscopy data acquired on a broad ultraviolet, visible, near- and mid-infrared (UV-VIS-NIR-MIR) domain, processed using the Kramers-Krönig formalism. Their study led to the identification of the allowed interband transitions. Electronic behavior in the energy bands near the Fermi level and in the surface and interface-states was described, discussing the differences between experimental data and the classical free-electron theoretical model applied for the bulk intermetallic alloy, in correlation with theoretical optical properties or experimental X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results from references. However, the dielectric-like shape of the reflectance of the thinnest film was in accordance with the Lorentz–Drude model. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterials and Materials for Translational Research)

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12 pages, 2657 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Synthesis of Gold Functionalised Nanoparticles with the Eranthis hyemalis Lectin and Preliminary Toxicological Studies on Caenorhabditis elegans

by Jamila Djafari, Marie T. McConnell, Hugo M. Santos, José Luis Capelo, Emilia Bertolo, Simon C. Harvey, Carlos Lodeiro and Javier Fernández-Lodeiro

Materials 2018, 11(8), 1363; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11081363 - 6 Aug 2018

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3628

Abstract

The lectin found in the tubers of the Winter Aconite (Eranthis hyemalis) plant (EHL) is a Type II Ribosome Inactivating Protein (RIP). Type II RIPs have shown anti-cancer properties and have great potential as therapeutic agents. Similarly, colloidal gold nanoparticles are successfully used in biomedical applications as they can be functionalised with ligands with high affinity and specificity for target cells to create therapeutic and imaging agents. Here we present the synthesis and characterization of gold nanoparticles conjugated with EHL and the results of a set of initial assays to establish whether the biological effect of EHL is altered by the conjugation. Gold nanoparticles functionalised with EHL (AuNPs@EHL) were successfully synthesised by bioconjugation with citrate gold nanoparticles (AuNPs@Citrate). The conjugates were analysed by UV-Vis spectroscopy, Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS), Zeta Potential analysis, and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). Results indicate that an optimal functionalisation was achieved with the addition of 100 µL of EHL (concentration 1090 ± 40 µg/mL) over 5 mL of AuNPs (concentration [Au⁰] = 0.8 mM). Biological assays on the effect of AuNPs@EHL were undertaken on Caenorhabditis elegans, a free-living nematode commonly used for toxicological studies, that has previously been shown to be strongly affected by EHL. Citrate gold nanoparticles did not have any obvious effect on the nematodes. For first larval stage (L1) nematodes, AuNPs@EHL showed a lower biological effect than EHL. For L4 stage, pre-adult nematodes, both EHL alone and AuNPs@EHL delayed the onset of reproduction and reduced fecundity. These assays indicate that EHL can be conjugated to gold nanoparticles and retain elements of biocidal activity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterials and Materials for Translational Research)

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14 pages, 2251 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Annealing Temperature on ECD Grown Hexagonal-Plane Zinc Oxide

by Sukrit Sucharitakul, Rangsan Panyathip and Supab Choopun

Materials 2018, 11(8), 1360; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11081360 - 6 Aug 2018

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 4295

Abstract

Zinc oxide (ZnO) offers a great potential in several applications from sensors to Photovoltaic cells thanks to the material’s dependency, to its optical and electrical properties and crystalline structure architypes. Typically, ZnO powder tends to be grown in the form of a wurtzite structure allowing versatility in the phase of material growths; albeit, whereas in this work we introduce an alternative in scalable yet relatively simple 2D hexagonal planed ZnO nanoflakes via the electrochemical deposition of commercially purchased Zn(NO₃)₂ and KCl salts in an electrochemical process. The resulting grown materials were analyzed and characterized via a series of techniques prior to thermal annealing to increase the grain size and improve the crystal quality. Through observation via scanning electron microscope (SEM) images, we have analyzed the statistics of the grown flakes’ hexagonal plane’s size showing a non-monotonal strong dependency of the average flake’s hexagonal flakes’ on the annealing temperature, whereas at 300 °C annealing temperature, average flake size was found to be in the order of 300 μm². The flakes were further analyzed via transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to confirm its hexagonal planes and spectroscopy techniques, such as Raman Spectroscopy and photo luminescence were applied to analyze and confirm the ZnO crystal signatures. The grown materials also underwent further characterization to gain insights on the material, electrical, and optical properties and, hence, verify the quality of the material for Photovoltaic cells’ electron collection layer application. The role of KCl in aiding the growth of the less preferable (0001) ZnO is also investigated via various prospects discussed in our work. Our method offers a relatively simple and mass-producible method for synthesizing a high quality 2D form of ZnO that is, otherwise, technically difficult to grow or control. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterials and Materials for Translational Research)

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21 pages, 6503 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Toxicological Evaluation of Luminescent Silica Nanoparticles as New Drug Nanocarriers in Different Cancer Cell Lines

by Gonçalo Marcelo, Jessica Ariana-Machado, Maria Enea, Helena Carmo, Benito Rodríguez-González, José Luis Capelo, Carlos Lodeiro and Elisabete Oliveira

Materials 2018, 11(8), 1310; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11081310 - 28 Jul 2018

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 4854

Abstract

Luminescent mesoporous silica nanoparticles, CdTeQDs@MNs@PEG1, SiQDs@Isoc@MNs and SiQDs@Isoc@MNs@PEG2, were successfully synthetized and characterized by SEM, TEM, XRD, N₂ nitrogen isotherms, ¹H NMR, IR, absorption, and emission spectroscopy. Cytotoxic evaluation of these nanoparticles was performed in relevant in vitro cell models, such as human hepatoma HepG2, human brain endothelial (hCMEC/D3), and human epithelial colorectal adenocarcinoma (Caco-2) cell lines. None of the tested nanoparticles showed significant cytotoxicity in any of the three performed assays (MTT/NR/ LDH) compared with the respective solvent and/or coating controls, excepting for CdTeQDs@MNs@PEG1 nanoparticles, where significant toxicity was noticed in hCMEC/D3 cells. The results presented reveal that SiQDs-based mesoporous silica nanoparticles are promising nanoplatforms for cancer treatment, with a pH-responsive drug release profile and the ability to load 80% of doxorubicin. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterials and Materials for Translational Research)

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15 pages, 28230 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Prolonged Silver Nanoparticle Exposure on the Contextual Cognition and Behavior of Mammals

by Anna Antsiferova, Marina Kopaeva and Pavel Kashkarov

Materials 2018, 11(4), 558; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11040558 - 5 Apr 2018

Cited by 38 | Viewed by 5264

Abstract

Silver nanoparticles have been widely used in the lighting and food industries, in medicine, and in pharmaceutics as an antiseptic agent. Recent research demonstrates that, after prolonged oral administration, silver nanoparticles may cross the blood-brain barrier and accumulate in the brain in rather high amounts. In ex vivo experiments, it has also been shown that silver nanoparticles demonstrate neurotoxicity. The objective of this work was to answer the questions whether silver nanoparticles change cognitive and behavioral functions of mammals after prolonged administration if silver nanoparticles have accumulated in the brain. C57Bl/6 male mice were orally exposed to PVP-coated silver nanoparticles daily for 30, 60, 120 and 180 days. Control mice were exposed to distilled water. After that they were tested in the Open Field, Elevated Plus Maze, Light-Dark Box and contextual fear conditioning task. The data have shown that the experimental mice went through three periods of switching in the behavior caused by adaptation to the toxic silver nanoparticles: anxiety, appearance of research instinct and impairment of long-term memory. This provides evidence of the hazardous effect of silver nanoparticles, which appears after long periods of silver nanoparticle oral administration. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterials and Materials for Translational Research)

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21 pages, 40813 KiB

Open AccessArticle

New Pyrazolium Salts as a Support for Ionic Liquid Crystals and Ionic Conductors

by María Jesús Pastor, Ignacio Sánchez, José A. Campo, Rainer Schmidt and Mercedes Cano

Materials 2018, 11(4), 548; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11040548 - 3 Apr 2018

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 4379

Abstract

Ionic liquid crystals (ILCs) are a class of materials that combine the properties of liquid crystals (LCs) and ionic liquids (ILs). This type of materials is directed towards properties such as conductivity in ordered systems at different temperatures. In this work, we synthesize five new families of ILCs containing symmetrical and unsymmetrical substituted pyrazolium cations, with different alkyl long-chains, and anions such as Cl⁻, BF₄⁻, ReO₄⁻, p-CH₃-₆H₄SO₃⁻ (PTS) and CF₃SO₃⁻ (OTf). We study their thermal behavior by polarized light optical microscopy (POM) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). All of them, except those with OTf as counteranion, show thermotropic mesomorphism. The observations by POM reveal textures of lamellar mesophases. Those agree with the arrangement observed in the X-ray crystal structure of [H₂pz^R(4),R(4)][ReO₄]. The nature of the mesophases is also confirmed by variable temperature powder X-ray diffraction. On the other hand, the study of the dielectric properties at variable temperature in mesomorphic (Cl⁻ and BF₄⁻) and non-mesomorphic (OTf) salts indicates that the supramolecular arrangement of the mesophase favors a greater ionic mobility and therefore ionic conductivity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterials and Materials for Translational Research)

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16 pages, 3640 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Application of Silver Nanostructures Synthesized by Cold Atmospheric Pressure Plasma for Inactivation of Bacterial Phytopathogens from the Genera Dickeya and Pectobacterium

by Anna Dzimitrowicz, Agata Motyka, Piotr Jamroz, Ewa Lojkowska, Weronika Babinska, Dominik Terefinko, Pawel Pohl and Wojciech Sledz

Materials 2018, 11(3), 331; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma11030331 - 25 Feb 2018

Cited by 23 | Viewed by 6324

Abstract

Pectinolytic bacteria are responsible for significant economic losses by causing diseases on numerous plants. New methods are required to control and limit their spread. One possibility is the application of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) that exhibit well-established antibacterial properties. Here, we synthesized AgNPs, stabilized by pectins (PEC) or sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS), using a direct current atmospheric pressure glow discharge (dc-APGD) generated in an open-to-air and continuous-flow reaction-discharge system. Characterization of the PEC-AgNPs and SDS-AgNPs with UV/Vis absorption spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and selected area electron diffraction revealed the production of spherical, well dispersed, and face cubic centered crystalline AgNPs, with average sizes of 9.33 ± 3.37 nm and 28.3 ± 11.7 nm, respectively. Attenuated total reflection-Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy supported the functionalization of the nanostructures by PEC and SDS. Antibacterial activity of the AgNPs was tested against Dickeya spp. and Pectobacterium spp. strains. Both PEC-AgNPs and SDS-AgNPs displayed bactericidal activity against all of the tested isolates, with minimum inhibitory concentrations of 5.5 mg∙L⁻¹ and 0.75–3 mg∙L⁻¹, respectively. The collected results suggest that the dc-APGD reaction-discharge system can be applied for the production of defined AgNPs with strong antibacterial properties, which may be further applied in plant disease management. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanomaterials and Materials for Translational Research)

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