1,721,037 research outputs found
Biopolymeric Carriers for Nanomedical Applications
No full textNanomedicine offers the opportunity to develop novel nano and microcarriers for targeted drug therapy, reducing the undesirable side effects. This communication will discuss about multifunctional, highly biodegradable and biocompatible, (natural) biopolymeric drug carriers, having the following functionalities: 1) protection of drugs from chemical and biological degradation; 2) control of in vivo and in vitro distribution; 3) specific cell targeting. Several type of carriers will be examined. The first type is composed of biodegradable polyelectrolyte pairs (e.g. polysaccharides) with opposite charges, subsequently dissolved to obtain hollow capsules ready to encapsulate drugs [1, 2]. Selected fluorophores and magnetic nanoparticles have been included in the coating to allow in vitro and in vivo monitoring of microcapsule fate. In order to obtain cellular targeting, specific ligands can also be conjugated to the coating layers. The second type of carriers is represented by novel monodisperse micro and nanogels [3]. These are challenging drug delivery systems for the release of bioactive molecules, able to undergo reversible volume transition, when triggered by environmental factors such as temperature, ionic strength, or pH [4]. Nanogels, internalised inside cells through phagocytic pathways, release natural or synthetic drugs inside endosomes by pH-induced polymer removal. Biomolecules and biopolymers are therefore protected and released in a controlled manner. The third category of carriers discussed is the naturally “green” and cytocompatible halloysite nanotubes [5], used as novel hydrophobic drug carriers for targeted delivery into neoplastic cells. The internalisation and cytotoxicity of drug-loaded carriers has been evaluated in vitro on different cell lines.
Acknowledgments: “Con il contributo del Ministero degli Affari Esteri, Direzione Generale per la promozione e la Cooperazione Sociale ” (Large Scale ITA –USA Bilateral Project “Nano-trasportatori per la terapia del cancro”). G.L. thanks Regione Puglia for "Ritorno al Futuro" Fellowship INCANTO.
References
[1] V. Vergaro, F. Scarlino, C. Bellomo, R. Rinaldi, D. Vergara, M. Maffia, F. Baldassarre, G. Giannelli, X. Zhang, Y. M. Lvov and S. Leporatti Advanced Drug Delivery Review (2011), 63, 847-864.
[2] I.E Palamà, S. Leporatti, E. de Luca, N. Di Renzo, M. Maffia, C. Gambacorti-Passerini, R.Rinaldi, G. Gigli, R. Cingolani, A.ML Coluccia Nanomedicine Future Medicine Lt (2010) 5(3), 419-431.
[3] S. Argentiere, L. Blasi, G. Ciccarella, G. Barbarella, A. Cazzato, R. Cingolani, G. Gigli Small (2009) 4101-4103.
[4] S. Argentiere, L. Blasi, G. Ciccarella, G.Barbarella, R.Cingolani, G. Gigli Journal of Applied Polymer Science (2010), 116(5), 2808-2815.
[5] V.Vergaro, E.Abdullayev, Y.M. Lvov, A.Zeitoun, R. Cingolani, R. Rinaldi and S. Leporatti Biomacromolecules (2010) 11, 820–826
Characterization of seed oil components from Nephelium lappaceum L.
No full textThe chem. compn. of the oil extd. from the seeds of Nephelium lappaceum L., commonly known as rambutan, has been investigated. The oil from this plant, similar to other members of the Sapindaceae, typically contained triglycerides (83%) and cyanolipids (17%). The latter consisted of type III cyanolipids, 1-cyano-2-hydroxymethylprop-1-en-3-ol diesters. Structural investigation of the oil components was carried out using chem., chromatog. and spectroscopic methods. Oleic and arachidic acids were the two dominant esterified fatty acyl chains in both triglycerides and cyanolipids. Eicosenoic acids (cis-vaccenic and paullinic acid) were present in higher amts. in the cyanolipid fraction of the oil
Quantification of Arsenic in Soil Samples Collected in an Industrial Area of Brindisi (Apulia, Italy): Speciation Analysis and Availability
Full text linkArsenic (As) is a well-known toxic metalloid, but environmental risks due to excessive As content in soils or sediments depend on the chemical forms present and their relative mobility. Long-term exposure to arsenic may cause several diseases. In order to assess the possible risks in the heavily impacted Consorzio per lo Sviluppo Industriale e di Servizi Reali alle Imprese (Consortium for Industrial Development and Effective Services for Business, S.I.S.R.I.) industrial area of Brindisi (Apulia, southern Italy), 38 soil samples were collected in the area, from 18 sampling points previously determined as outliers. Total As determination, speciation analysis, and a cession test with acetic acid were performed. Speciation analysis was performed by HPLC coupled to hydride generation-atomic absorption spectroscopy (HG-AAS). Total As determination obtained by mineralization showed a concentration range between 51.8 and 169.6 mg kg-1, which is higher than the limit of 50 mg kg-1 established by D.M. (Ministerial Decree) 471/99 for industrial areas. The highest concentrations of extracted As were obtained in the top-soil layers. As(III) and As(V) were detected in all the samples, while the concentrations of the organic species monomethyl arsonic acid (MMAA) and dimethyl arsenic acid (DMAA) were always under the detection limit. The samples releasing the highest As quantities in the acetic acid cession test were in every circumstance collected from the superficial soil levels. The different amounts of As determined in the sampling sites could depend on the distance from the specific sources of pollution, even if it is very difficult to identify them in a very complex industrial zone such as the S.I.S.R.I. area of Brindisi. In this study, As occurs mainly as relatively immobile or slowly exchangeable forms: for this reason, it is more abundant in the top-soil and is little affected by the action of rainwater, which transports only reduced quantities of As into the deeper layers
5-(4-Chlorophenyl)-<i>N</i>,1-di-<i>o</i>-tolyl-1<i>H</i>-imidazole-2-amine
Full text linkA new 2-amino imidazole derivative, 5-(4-chlorophenyl)-N,1-di-o-tolyl-1H-imidazole-2-amine (3), has been synthesized using a green approach. The reaction was conducted in a ChCl (cholinium chloride)/urea eutectic mixture, which is a nature-inspired and environmentally friendly reaction medium. The proposed reaction mechanism involves the preliminary regioselective alkylation of the Nsp2 of guanidine (2), followed by an intramolecular condensation between the carbonyl moiety and the secondary N′sp3. Finally, a tautomerization/aromatization step furnished the final product (3). Notably, 2-amino imidazole (3) could be isolated in high yield (91%), just by filtration from the DES/water mixture and subsequent crystallization; the remaining ChCl/urea could be recycled, after water removal, for four consecutive reactions without any significant drop in the (3) yield. The product has been fully characterized by 1H, 13C, 2D 1H-13C HSQC, and 2D 1H-13C HMBC NMR; FT-IR spectroscopy; and EI-MS spectrometry
Structural studies of cisplatin-DNA interaction using NMR spectroscopy and molecular dynamics simulations
No full textB-DIKETONATE PLATINUM(II) COMPLEXES SHOWING HIGHER CYTOTOXIC ACTIVITY THAN CISPLATIN ON CANCER CELLS.
No full textLigand Substitution Reactions in β-Diketonate Platinum(II) Complexes with Cytotoxic Activity
No full textFive-coordinate Pt(II) complexes with extra virgin olive oil triglycerides: a potential device for unsaturated oil components characterization and platinum delivery to hydrophobic targets
No full textSelective Substitution Reactions in beta-diketonate Pt(II) Complexes with Hard/Soft Nucleophiles
No full textFirst Examples of beta-Diketonate Platinum(II) Complexes with Sulfoxide Ligands
No full textNew platinum(II) complexes have been prepared as models
for explaining the coordination of multiple β-diketonate ligands
to give [Pt(O,O'-acac)(γ-acac)L] species. The new compounds
containing both an O,O'-chelated acetylacetonate
ligand and a sulfoxide in the platinum coordination sphere,
[PtCl(O,O'-acac)(DMSO)] (1) and [Pt(O,O'-acac)(γ-acac)
(DMSO)] (2), have been synthesised and characterised by 1H,
13C, 195Pt 1-D and 2-D NMR heteronuclear correlation spectroscopy and, in the case of 2, by X-ray crystal structure analysis also. Moreover, a new synthetic pathway to obtain
the previously reported complex K[Pt(O,O'-acac)(γ-acac)2]
(3) has been developed. The data presented herein are consistent
with a reaction mechanism which explains the subsequent steps of the coordination of multiple β-diketonate ligands to platinum(II) complexes, where the first species formed contains one O,O'-chelated acac group
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