Microfluidic Synthesis of Rigid Nanovesicles for Hydrophilic Reagents Delivery

Self-assembly of peptide nanocapsules by a solvent concentration gradient

Biological systems can create materials with intricate structures and specialized functions. In comparison, precise control of structures in human-made materials has been challenging. Here we report on insect cuticle peptides that spontaneously form nanocapsules through a single-step solvent exchange process, where the concentration gradient resulting from the mixing of water and acetone drives the localization and self-assembly of the peptides into hollow nanocapsules. The underlying driving force is found to be the intrinsic affinity of the peptides for a particular solvent concentration, while the diffusion of water and acetone creates a gradient interface that triggers peptide localization and self-assembly. This gradient-mediated self-assembly offers a transformative pathway towards simple generation of drug delivery systems based on peptide nanocapsules.

Towards principled design of cancer nanomedicine to accelerate clinical translation

Nanotechnology in medical applications, especially in oncology as drug delivery systems, has recently shown promising results. However, although these advances have been promising in the pre-clinical stages, the clinical translation of this technology is challenging. To create drug delivery systems with increased treatment efficacy for clinical translation, the physicochemical characteristics of nanoparticles such as size, shape, elasticity (flexibility/rigidity), surface chemistry, and surface charge can be specified to optimize efficiency for a given application. Consequently, interdisciplinary researchers have focused on producing biocompatible materials, production technologies, or new formulations for efficient loading, and high stability. The effects of design parameters can be studied in vitro, in vivo, or using computational models, with the goal of understanding how they affect nanoparticle biophysics and their interactions with cells. The present review summarizes the advances and technologies in the production and design of cancer nanomedicines to achieve clinical translation and commercialization. We also highlight existing challenges and opportunities in the field.

Preparation, Functionalization, Modification, and Applications of Nanostructured Gold: A Critical Review

Gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) play a significant role in science and technology because of their unique size, shape, properties and broad range of potential applications. This review focuses on the various approaches employed for the synthesis, modification and functionalization of nanostructured Au. The potential catalytic applications and their enhancement upon modification of Au nanostructures have also been discussed in detail. The present analysis also offers brief summaries of the major Au nanomaterials synthetic procedures, such as hydrothermal, solvothermal, sol-gel, direct oxidation, chemical vapor deposition, sonochemical deposition, electrochemical deposition, microwave and laser pyrolysis. Among the various strategies used for improving the catalytic performance of nanostructured Au, the modification and functionalization of nanostructured Au produced better results. Therefore, various synthesis, modification and functionalization methods employed for better catalytic outcomes of nanostructured Au have been summarized in this review.

Structure-aided ACEI-capped remdesivir-loaded novel PLGA nanoparticles: toward a computational simulation design for anti-SARS-CoV-2 therapy

The sudden arrival of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has stunned the world with its rapidly spreading virus. Remdesivir, a broad spectrum anti-viral drug, is now under in vitro and in vivo investigation as a potential agent against SARS-CoV-2. However, the results of this therapy were recently equivocal due to no significant benefit in the clinical trial. Herein, combination molecular docking with dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) simulations is used to theoretically design angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI)-containing remdesivir-loaded PLGA nanoparticles (NPs) for anti-SARS-CoV-2 therapy. Based on the therapeutic and lung protective effect of ACEI, the classical lisinopril molecule covalently grafted onto PLGA (L-PLGA) has been used to encapsulate remdesivir. A binding model is used to confirm the interactions between lisinopril and ACE on the surface of cells, as well as remdesivir and its intracellular targeting protein (RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp)). Furthermore, DPD simulations are applied to study the nano-aggregation of drug-free L-PLGA, and remdesivir loaded in L-PLGA. The lisinopril molecules were directly demonstrated to be on the surface of L-PLGA NPs. Molecular docking proved that hydrogen bonding was decisive for the encapsulation of remdesivir. With an increase in concentration, remdesivir loaded L-PLGA formed spherical NPs, and then underwent precipitation. Similar to the above conditions, high remdesivir loading was also observed to cause precipitation formation. Thus, the optimized remdesivir NPs in our study give insights into a rational platform for formulation design against this global pandemic.

Recent Advances in Microfluidics for the Preparation of Drug and Gene Delivery Systems

Drug delivery systems (DDSs) have great potential for improving the treatment of several diseases, especially microbial infections and cancers. However, the formulation procedures of DDSs remain challenging, especially at the nanoscale. Reducing batch-to-batch variation and enhancing production rate are some of the essential requirements for accelerating the translation of DDSs from a small scale to an industrial level. Microfluidic technologies have emerged as an alternative to the conventional bench methods to address these issues. By providing precise control over the fluid flows and rapid mixing, microfluidic systems can be used to fabricate and engineer different types of DDSs with specific properties for efficient delivery of a wide range of drugs and genetic materials. This review discusses the principles of controlled rapid mixing that have been employed in different microfluidic strategies for producing DDSs. Moreover, the impact of the microfluidic device design and parameters on the type and properties of DDS formulations was assessed, and recent applications in drug and gene delivery were also considered.

Continuous and scalable fabrication of stable and biocompatible MOF@SiO2 nanoparticles for drug loading

A novel thermal-assisted microfluidic system was developed for the continuous and scalable production of drug@MOFs@SiO₂ nanoparticles for in vivo anti-tumor therapy.