Exploring the photothermal hot spots of graphene in the first and second biological window to inactivate cancer cells and pathogens

Study of the photothermal capability and inactivation of cancer cells and pathogens by biocompatible RGOPAA under the first and second biological window.</p

Correlation Study of Antioxidant Activity with Phenolic and Flavonoid Compounds in 12 Indonesian Indigenous Herbs

The antioxidant activity (AA), total phenolic content (TPC), and total flavonoid content (TFC) of selected Indonesian Zingiberaceae herbs were determined. An optimization extraction procedure was conducted by using Taguchi L16 orthogonal array. Four chemical assays were applied, including 2,2-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity assay, H2O2 scavenging activity assay, Folin–Ciocalteau (F–C) assay, and NaNO2-AlCl3-NaOH assay, which revealed remarkable differences in AA, TPC, and TFC. The result indicated the diversity of AA composition among the herbs, and C. longa exhibited the highest AA. HPLC-PAD analysis revealed that curcumin was present in five high antioxidant herbs, and the highest amount was in C. longa. Pearson correlation analysis indicated that the identified TPC and TFC were significant contributors to AA, and curcumin was likely the main contributing antioxidant compound. Our approach concluded that C. longa is the greatest source of natural antioxidants among 12 Indonesian indigenous Zingiberaceae herbs. The use of a mixed-method approach to augment the findings of solitary methods might facilitate future researchers to uncover deeper and hidden meanings.</jats:p

Multimodal Imaging and Phototherapy of Cancer and Bacterial Infection by Graphene and Related Nanocomposites

The advancements in nanotechnology and nanomedicine are projected to solve many glitches in medicine, especially in the fields of cancer and infectious diseases, which are ranked in the top five most dangerous deadly diseases worldwide by the WHO. There is great concern to eradicate these problems with accurate diagnosis and therapies. Among many developed therapeutic models, near infra-red mediated phototherapy is a non-invasive technique used to invade many persistent tumors and bacterial infections with less inflammation compared with traditional therapeutic models such as radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and surgeries. Herein, we firstly summarize the up-to-date research on graphene phototheranostics for a better understanding of this field of research. We discuss the preparation and functionalization of graphene nanomaterials with various biocompatible components, such as metals, metal oxides, polymers, photosensitizers, and drugs, through covalent and noncovalent approaches. The multifunctional nanographene is used to diagnose the disease with confocal laser scanning microscopy, magnetic resonance imaging computed tomography, positron emission tomography, photoacoustic imaging, Raman, and ToF-SMIS to visualize inside the biological system for imaging-guided therapy are discussed. Further, treatment of disease by photothermal and photodynamic therapies against different cancers and bacterial infections are carefully conferred herein along with challenges and future perspectives

Correlation Study of Antioxidant Activity with Phenolic and Flavonoid Compounds in 12 Indonesian Indigenous Herbs

The antioxidant activity (AA), total phenolic content (TPC), and total flavonoid content (TFC) of selected Indonesian Zingiberaceae herbs were determined. An optimization extraction procedure was conducted by using Taguchi L16 orthogonal array. Four chemical assays were applied, including 2,2-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity assay, H2O2 scavenging activity assay, Folin–Ciocalteau (F–C) assay, and NaNO2-AlCl3-NaOH assay, which revealed remarkable differences in AA, TPC, and TFC. The result indicated the diversity of AA composition among the herbs, and C. longa exhibited the highest AA. HPLC-PAD analysis revealed that curcumin was present in five high antioxidant herbs, and the highest amount was in C. longa. Pearson correlation analysis indicated that the identified TPC and TFC were significant contributors to AA, and curcumin was likely the main contributing antioxidant compound. Our approach concluded that C. longa is the greatest source of natural antioxidants among 12 Indonesian indigenous Zingiberaceae herbs. The use of a mixed-method approach to augment the findings of solitary methods might facilitate future researchers to uncover deeper and hidden meanings

Green Synthesis of Blue-Emitting Graphene Oxide Quantum Dots for In Vitro CT26 and In Vivo Zebrafish Nano-Imaging as Diagnostic Probes

Graphene oxide quantum dots (GOQDs) are prepared using black carbon as a feedstock and H2O2 as a green oxidizing agent in a straightforward and environmentally friendly manner. The process adopted microwave energy and only took two minutes. The GOQDs are 20 nm in size and have stable blue fluorescence at 440 nm. The chemical characteristics and QD morphology were confirmed by thorough analysis using scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), atomic force microscope (AFM), Fourier transmission infra-red (FT-IR), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The biocompatibility test was used to evaluate the toxicity of GOQDs in CT26 cells in vitro and the IC50 was found to be 200 µg/mL with excellent survival rates. Additional in vivo toxicity assessment in the developing zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryo model found no observed abnormalities even at a high concentration of 400 μg/mL after 96 h post fertilization. The GOQDs luminescence was also tested both in vitro and in vivo. They showed excellent internal distribution in the cytoplasm, cell nucleus, and throughout the zebrafish body. As a result, the prepared GOQDs are expected to be simple and inexpensive materials for nano-imaging and diagnostic probes in nanomedicine.</jats:p