Magnetite/dextran-functionalized graphene oxide nanosheets for in vivo positive contrast magnetic resonance imaging

In vivo positive contrast MRI by magnetite/dextran-functionalized graphene oxide (SPIO-Dex-FGO) as compared to Magnevist® (the right rat).

Polyphenols attached graphene nanosheets for high efficiency NIR mediated photodestruction of cancer cells

Green tea-reduced graphene oxide (GT-rGO) sheets have been exploited for high efficiency near infrared (NIR) photothermal therapy of HT29 and SW48 colon cancer cells. The biocompatibility of GT-rGO sheets was investigated by means of MTT assays. The polyphenol constituents of GT-rGO act as effective targeting ligands for the attachment of rGO to the surface of cancer cells, as confirmed by the cell granularity test in flow cytometry assays and also by scanning electron microscopy. The photo-thermal destruction of higher metastatic cancer cells (SW48) is found to be more than 20% higher than that of the lower metastatic one (HT29). The photo-destruction efficiency factor of the GT-rGO is found to be at least two orders of magnitude higher than other carbon-based nano-materials. Such excellent cancer cell destruction efficiency provided application of a low concentration of rGO (3 mg/L) and NIR laser power density (0.25 W/cm(2)) in our photo-thermal therapy of cancer cells.

Wrapping bacteria by graphene nanosheets for isolation from environment, reactivation by sonication, and inactivation by near-infrared irradiation

Bioactivity of Escherichia coli bacteria (as a simple model for microorganisms) and interaction of them with the environment were controlled by their capturing within aggregated graphene nanosheets. The oxygen-containing functional groups of chemically exfoliated single-layer graphene oxide nanosheets were reduced by melatonin as a biocompatible antioxidant. While each one of the graphene (oxide) suspension and melatonin solution did not separately show any considerable inactivation effects on the bacteria, aggregation of the sheets in the melatonin-bacterial suspension resulted in trapping the bacteria within the aggregated sheets, i.e., a kind of inactivation. The bacteria trapped within the aggregated sheets were biologically disconnected from their environment, because they could not proliferate in a culture medium and consume the glucose of their environment. However, after removing the sheets from the surface of the microorganisms by using sonication, they could again interact with their environment. The reactivated bacteria consumed glucose and could be proliferated; i.e., they were alive within the aggregated graphene sheets (here, at least for 24 h). The trapped alive bacteria could be photothermally inactivated forever by near-infrared irradiation at 808 nm. These results suggest that graphene nanosheets may potentially serve as an encapsulating material for delivery of such microorganisms and as an effective photothermal agent for inactivation of the graphene-wrapped microorganisms.

Lasting antibacterial activities of Ag-TiO2/Ag/a-TiO2 nanocomposite thin film photocatalysts under solar light irradiation

Photodegradation of Escherichia coli bacteria in presence of Ag-TiO(2)/Ag/a-TiO(2) nanocomposite film with an effective storage of silver nanoparticles was investigated in the visible and the solar light irradiations. The nanocomposite film was synthesized by sol-gel deposition of 30 nm Ag-TiO(2) layer on approximately 200 nm anatase(a-)TiO(2) film previously doped by silver nanoparticles. Both Ag/a-TiO(2) and Ag-TiO(2)/Ag/a-TiO(2) films were transparent with a SPR absorption band at 412 nm. Depth profile X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy showed metallic silver nanoparticles with diameter of 30 nm and fcc crystalline structure were self-accumulated on the film surface at depth of 5 nm of the TiO(2) layer and also at the interface of the Ag-TiO(2) and a-TiO(2) films (at depth of 30 nm). Both OH(-) bounds and H(2)O contents were concentrated on the film surface and at the interface, as a profit in releasing more ionic (not metallic) silver nanoparticles. Antibacterial activity of the nanocomposite film against E. coli bacteria was 5.1 times stronger than activity of the a-TiO(2), in dark. Photo-antibacterial activity of the nanocomposite film exposed by the solar light was measured 1.35 and 6.90 times better than activity of the Ag/a-TiO(2) and a-TiO(2), respectively. The main mechanism for silver ion releasing was inter-diffusion of water and silver nanoparticles through pores of the TiO(2) layer. Durability of the nanocomposite film was at least 11 times higher than the Ag/a-TiO(2) film. Therefore, the Ag-TiO(2)/Ag/a-TiO(2) photocatalyst can be nominated as one of the effective and long-lasting antibacterial nanocomposite materials.