Curcuminoid Co-Loading Platinum Heparin-Poloxamer P403 Nanogel Increasing Effectiveness in Antitumor Activity

Nanosized multi-drug delivery systems provide synergistic effects between drugs and bioactive compounds, resulting in increased overall efficiency and restricted side effects compared to conventional single-drug chemotherapy. In this study, we develop an amphiphilic heparin-poloxamer P403 (HP403) nanogel that could effectively co-load curcuminoid (Cur) and cisplatin hydrate (CisOH) (HP403@CisOH@Cur) via two loading mechanisms. The HP403 nanogels and HP403@CisOH@Cur nanogels were closely analyzed with 1H-NMR spectroscopy, FT-IR spectroscopy, TEM, and DLS, exhibiting high stability in spherical forms. In drug release profiles, accelerated behavior of Cur and CisOH at pH 5.5 compared with neutral pH was observed, suggesting effective delivery of the compounds in tumor sites. In vitro studies showed high antitumor activity of HP403@CisOH@Cur nanogels, while in vivo assays showed that the dual-drug platform prolonged the survival time of mice and prevented tail necrosis. In summary, HP403@CisOH@Cur offers an intriguing strategy to achieve the cisplatin and curcumin synergistic effect in a well-designed delivery platform that increases antitumor effectiveness and overcomes undesired consequences caused by cisplatin in breast cancer treatment.

Star-Shaped Polydimethylsiloxanes with Organocyclotetrasilsesquioxane Branching-Out Centers: Synthesis and Properties

New non-crystallizable low-dispersity star-shaped polydimethylsiloxanes (PDMS) containing stereoregular cis-tetra(organo)(dimethylsiloxy)cyclotetrasiloxanes containing methyl-, tolyl- and phenyl-substituents at silicon atoms and the mixture of four stereoisomers of tetra[phenyl(dimethylsiloxy)]cyclotetrasiloxane as the cores were synthesized. Their thermal and viscous properties were studied. All synthesized compounds were characterized by a complex of physicochemical analysis methods: nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), FT-IR spectroscopy, gel permeation chromatography (GPC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), viscometry in solution, rheometry, and Langmuir trough study.

Synthesis, characterization of Ag-doped CdS-WO2 nanocomposite and effects of photocatalytic degradation in RhB under visible light irradiation

In this paper, the highly stable Ag/CdS-WO2 nanocomposite was fabricated by a facile and capping agent-free hydrothermal technique. The fabricated Ag doped CdS-WO2 nanocomposite were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and UV-vis diffuse reflectance (DRS) spectroscopy. The photocatalytic performance of synthesized photocatalysts was evaluated for the photodegradation of rhodamine B (Rh B) under visible light irradiation (VLI). The parameters used for the optimization of the photocatalyst were pH, catalyst dose, oxidant dose, and irradiation time. Based on this, a possible reaction mechanism for the enhancement of photocatalytic activity of Ag/CdS-WO2 has been proposed. Hence, we have a tendency to believe it might be a promising material that may be used for the photodegradation of organic pollutants present in wastewater.

Synthesis, characterization of Ag doped CdS-WO2 nanocomposite and effects of photocatalytic degradation in RhB under visible light irradiation

In this paper, the highly stable Ag/CdS-WO2 nanocomposite was fabricated by a facile and capping agent-free hydrothermal technique. The fabricated Ag-doped CdS-WO2 nanocomposite was characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, and UV-vis diffuse reflectance (DRS) spectroscopy. The photocatalytic performance of synthesized photocatalysts was evaluated for the photodegradation of rhodamine B (RhB) under visible light irradiation (VLI). The parameters used for the optimization of the photocatalyst were pH, catalyst dose, oxidant dose, and irradiation time. Based on this, a possible reaction mechanism for the enhancement of the photocatalytic activity of Ag/CdS-WO2 has been proposed. Hence, we have a tendency to believe it might be a promising material that may be used for the photodegradation of organic pollutants present in wastewater.

Study on the Evaluation of Thermal Damage According to the Manufacturing Conditions of Korean Paper

In this study, we aimed to analyze the chemical changes that occur in Korean paper in an accelerated deterioration environment of 105℃. We selected the Korean paper produced with different types of cooking agents (plant lye, Na2CO3) and during different manufacturing seasons (winter, summer). The degree of deterioration of the Korean paper was confirmed by measuring the brightness, yellowness, and pH level, and the degree of change in each vibrational region of cellulose as deterioration progressed through infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. The FT-IR analysis showed that, as deterioration progressed, the absorbance of the amorphous region in cellulose decreased, whereas the absorbance of the crystalline region slightly increased. X-Ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and Raman spectroscopy were performed to verify the changes in the crystalline and amorphous regions in cellulose indicated by the FT-IR results. Furthermore, the crystallinity index (CI) was calculated; it showed a slight increase after deterioration; therefore, CI was confirmed to follow the same trend as that observed for absorbance in the FT-IR results. In addition, as a result of Raman spectroscopic analysis, the degree of decomposition of the amorphous region in the cellulose under the manufacturing conditions was confirmed by the fluorescence measured after the deterioration.

Detection of adulteration in market ghee using FT-IR Spectroscopy

Dairy ghee is a prominent synergistic fat product that is comprised of various health benefiting compounds such as milk fat globule membrane, conjugated linoleic acid, and short-chain free fatty acids. It emanates numerous beneficial actions on human heath are anticancer, antidiabetic, anticholesterolemic, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antiatherogenic and anitadipogenic properties. In order to increase the quantity for marketing purposes, ghee is adulterated with low quality fats. These adulterated low quality fats have long-chain fatty acids and trans-fats which causes cardiac diseases, obesity and renal dysfunction. Hence, the present study aimed to detect the adulterant in ghee by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy method. It also shows the quantitative increase of adulterated animal body fat with ghee. The peak C=C increases with the raise of alkene concentration. The N-H bend peak, which represents amines, determines the trans-fat adulteration, causes health-related issues. Thus, FT-IR technique proved the ideal tools for detecting and estimating the degree of ghee adulteration. Keywords: FT-IR, Ghee, Adulteration, Commercial brands, Beef fat.

Multicomponent Materials to Improve Solubility: Eutectics of Drug Aminoglutethimide

Here, we report the synthesis and experimental characterization of three drug-drug eutectic mixtures of drug aminoglutethimide (AMG) with caffeine (CAF), nicotinamide (NIC) and ethenzamide (ZMD). The eutectic mixtures i.e., AMG-CAF (1:0.4, molar ratio), AMG-NIC (1:1.9, molar ratio) and AMG-ZMD (1:1.4, molar ratio) demonstrate significant melting point depressions ranging from 99.2 to 127.2 °C compared to the melting point of the drug AMG (151 °C) and also show moderately higher aqueous solubilities than that of the AMG. The results presented include the determination of the binary melt phase diagrams and accompanying analytical characterization via X-ray powder diffraction, FT-IR spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy.

Application of Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy and Multivariate Analysis Methods for the Non-Destructive Evaluation of Phenolics Compounds in Moringa Powder

This study performed non-destructive measurements of phenolic compounds in moringa powder using Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy within a spectral range of 3500–700 cm−1. Three major phenolic compounds, namely, kaempferol, benzoic acid, and rutin, were measured in five different varieties of moringa powder, which was approved with respect to the high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method. The prediction performance of three different regression methods, i.e., partial least squares regression (PLSR), principal component regression (PCR), and net analyte signal (NAS)-based methodology, called hybrid linear analysis (HLA/GO), were compared to achieve the best prediction model. The obtained results for the PLS regression method resulted in better performance for the prediction analysis of phenolic compounds in moringa powder. The PLSR model attained a correlation coefficient () value of 0.997 and root mean square error of prediction (RMSEP) of 0.035 mg/g, respectively, which is comparatively higher than the other two regression models. Based on the results, it can be concluded that FT-IR spectroscopy in conjugation with a suitable regression analysis method could be an effective analytical tool for the non-destructive prediction of phenolic compounds in moringa powder.

Arabidopsis thaliana Plant Natriuretic Peptide Active Domain Forms Amyloid-like Fibrils in a pH-Dependent Manner

Plant natriuretic peptides (PNPs) are hormones that have been extracted from many different species, with the Arabidopsis thaliana PNP (AtPNP-A) being the most studied among them. AtPNP-A is a signaling molecule that consists of 130 residues and is secreted into the apoplast, under conditions of biotic or abiotic stress. AtPNP-A has distant sequence homology with human ANP, a protein that forms amyloid fibrils in vivo. In this work, we investigated the amyloidogenic properties of a 34-residue-long peptide, located within the AtPNP-A sequence, in three different pH conditions, using transmission electron microscopy, X-ray fiber diffraction, ATR FT-IR spectroscopy, Congo red and Thioflavin T staining assays. We also utilize bioinformatics tools to study its association with known plant amyloidogenic proteins and other A. thaliana proteins. Our results reveal a new case of a pH-dependent amyloid forming peptide in A. thaliana, with a potential functional role.