Detection of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and investigation of efficient visible-light-responsive photocatalysis via nanoscale PbSe sensitized TiO2

Photocatalytic degradation of acid yellow 36 with calcined titania-hydroxyapatite-cuo xerogels

Advanced oxidation processes (AOP), using semiconductor (SC) and hydroxyapatite (HA) composites, are promising due to the synergy of photocatalytic and adsorption properties. Still, dye removal efficiency of composites based on HA-SC remains low, because most of the research reported consider single SC materials. In this work, nanocrystalline xerogels of titanium oxide (TiO2) with copper oxide (CuO) and HA were synthesized by the sol-gel process. HA was obtained by the precipitation method without heat treatment and calcined in the range of 200-1000 °C. TiO2 and copper precursors were added to a sol containing HA in a 12:1 mol ratio, obtaining HA-TiO2 and HA-CuO-TiO2 nanomaterials. The xerogels were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, emission field scanning electron microscopy and photoresponse. Their performance in the photocatalytic discoloration of an aqueous solution acid yellow dye 36 (AY36) was evaluated, using visible and UV light. The best discoloration was achieved with HA-CuO-TiO2 xerogels with HA calcined at 600 °C, showing a degradation kinetic constant of 0.24 min-1. In contrast, HA-TiO2 materials showed little or no photocatalytic activity, but strong dye adsorption/desorption. The thermal treatment of HA determines the filament-like morphology and degree of compaction of the nanomaterials, which are relevant in the crystallite size and sensitization of the SC matrix. Further studies must address the surface chemistry and rectifying properties of the best SC composite to have a more complete understanding of the mechanisms involved.

Boosting of Antibacterial Performance of Cellulose Based Paper Sheet via TiO2 Nanoparticles

Here, we aimed to boost antibacterial performance of cellulose fibers for paper sheet application. Therefore, TiO₂ nanoparticles have been used with controlled loading onto the surface of the fibers. A simple and facile composite preparation route based on ultrasound and mechanical assisted stirring has been developed. We tested cellulose paper enriched by TiO₂ from 1.0 wt% to 8.0 wt%, respectively. Antibacterial performance has been studied against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli bacteria. Studies showed that all composites exhibit significant capability to reduce living cells of S. aureus and E. coli bacteria at least 60%. The simplicity, low cost, and reproducibility of the prepared method indicates the potential to be scaled up for industrial applications.

Study of mitochondrial swelling, membrane fluidity and ROS production induced by nano-TiO2 and prevented by Fe incorporation

The potential impact of TiO2 and Fe incorporated TiO2 nanoparticles at the organelle level has been reported. The toxicity of the samples on mitochondria isolated from chicken liver tissue has been examined through mitochondrial swelling, membrane fluidity, ROS generation capacity, and activity of complex II. The toxic effect of TiO2 was prevented by incorporating Fe into the TiO2 matrix at different concentrations. The activity of the succinate dehydrogenase enzyme complex was affected and permeabilization of the mitochondrial inner membrane to H+ and K+ and its alteration in membrane fluidity at 100 μg mL-1 of nano-TiO2 dosage were investigated, which showed significant changes in the anisotropy of DPH-labeled mitochondria. Fe incorporation into the TiO2 matrix makes it more biocompatible by changing its structure and morphology.

Effect of TiO2 and Fe doped TiO2 nanoparticles on mitochondrial membrane potential in HBL-100 cells

Titanium dioxide (TiO₂) nanoparticles (NPs) have made unbelievable progress in the field of nanotechnology and biomedical research. The proper toxicological assessment of TiO₂ NPs and the reduction of its cytotoxicity need to be addressed. Fe doping in TiO₂ has been investigated to reduce the toxic effects of TiO₂ NPs. Fe doped TiO₂ powder samples were synthesized by sol-gel methods. The prepared samples were characterized by x-ray diffractometer (XRD), transmission electron microscope (TEM), and Raman spectroscopy to study their structure, morphology, and molecular conformation. XRD results revealed the coexistence of anatase (A) and rutile (R) phases of TiO₂. The A-R transformation was observed with an increase in Fe doping along with the formation of α-Fe₂O₃ phase. TEM showed changes in morphology from spherical nanoparticles to elongated rod-shaped nanostructures with increasing Fe content. Shape variation of TiO₂ nanoparticles after incorporation of Fe is a key reason behind the toxicity reduction. The authors observed that the toxicity of TiO₂ nanoparticles was rescued upon Fe incorporation. The effect of NPs on the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) was assessed using flow cytometry. The MMP (%) decreased in TiO₂ treated cells and increased by 1% Fe doped TiO₂ NPs treated cells. Confocal imaging revealed the presence of functional mitochondria upon the exposure of Fe doped TiO₂ NPs. The goal of the present study was to decrease the toxic effects induced by TiO₂ NPs on mitochondrial potential and its prevention by Fe doping.

Photo-Fenton-like Metal-Protein Self-Assemblies as Multifunctional Tumor Theranostic Agent

Emerging Fenton-like activity of copper ions has inspired great exploration for tumor microenvironment-activated tumor therapy due to the toxic ·OH production for chemodynamic therapy and extra oxygen generation for photodynamic therapy (PDT). Still, the ·OH produced by copper ions is not satisfied even when copper ions are placed in a low pH environment (pH ≈ 5.0). To amplify its Fenton-like activity, in this work, one kind of Cu²⁺ -protein self-assemblies (C-m-ABs) loaded with photosensitizer indocyanine green (ICG) is constructed, which can catalyze H₂ O₂ generating more amounts of ·OH under light irradiation once Cu²⁺ is reduced to Cu⁺ by glutathione. Such fantastic phenomena confirms that C-m-ABs can act as a photo-Fenton-like agent. Furthermore, C-m-ABs can dramatically accelerate O₂ generation (catalase activity) to enhance the PDT of ICG. After loading with the anticancer drug doxorubicin, C-m-ABs are further self-assembled into novel nanobelts, which simultaneously exhibit superior photo-heat conversion effects, enhanced r1 relaxation (21.416 s^-1 mm^-1 ) and stimuli-responsive drug release behaviors. High cytotoxicity in vitro, effective tumor accumulation capacity observed by fluorescence/photoacoustic/magnetic resonance imaging, and enhanced chemo-/photodynamic/photothermal therapeutic performance are achieved. Based on these results, a photo-Fenton-like metal-protein self-assemblies demonstrate great potential for tumor theranostics.

Investigation of reactive oxygen species produced by microwave electrodeless discharge lamp on oxidation of dimethyl sulfide

Microwave electrodeless discharge lamp (MEDL) has been regarded as a powerful light source of photoreaction. Four kinds of chemicals, nitrogen (N₂), oxygen (O₂), water (H₂O) and dimethyl sulfide (DMS), were used as molecular probes to explore the generation process of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and their photo-oxidation performances on the photodegradation of organic pollutants with application of an exterior MEDL system. ROS such as O (³P), O₃, O (¹D) and ¹O₂ were generated via irradiation of O₂ and H₂O except dry N₂ by MEDL. They were transformed to other ROS including ·OH and H₂O₂ with increase of relative humidity. The ROS productivity was inhibited evidently by humidity and ·OH became the major active species at high humidity. An optimal mineralization rate of 23.6% for DMS photodegradation was reached in dry air compared with 8.74% at high humidity, which indicated that O (¹D) and ¹O₂ were more powerful oxidants than O₃ and OH. The results showed that the higher mineralization rate of organic pollutants was obtained by increasing the generation efficiency of ROS of O (¹D) and ¹O₂. Furthermore, the results provided an alternative to develop intensification technology on photodegadation of organic pollutants with MEDL system and an optimal operation process including photocatalyst and humidity.

Mechanistic processes of resveratrol in inhibiting the oxidative damage of guanine, as evidenced by UHPLC-MS2

Resveratrol, as one of the stilbenoids, is present in abundance in wine grapes and has been shown to selectively quench ¹O₂. DNA is oxidized by ¹O₂ causing irreparable functional damage, and of the nucleic acids, guanine is the most susceptible. An agarose gel electrophoresis assay demonstrated that DNA was damaged by ¹O₂ with less than 5 min of UVA irradiation, and also that 5 mM resveratrol dissolved in MeOH could relieve the observed oxidation stress. Ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry was performed to reveal the mechanism. Four guanine oxidation products at m/z 140.0334 [M-H]^-(1), DGh, 8-oxoG, Sp and two conjugates at m/z 377.1104 [M-H]^- and 391.0907 [M-H]^- were identified and quantified. Thus, we propose the mechanism that the phenol ring of resveratrol links with the free amino groups (NH) of guanine at the beginning of ¹O₂ attack to form m/z 377.1104 [M-H]^-, however, as ¹O₂ is able to attack the amino groups continuously, resveratrol can efficiently react with ¹O₂ prior to damage, and form m/z 391.0907 [M-H]^- thereby protecting guanine.