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Photocatalytic Inactivation of Pathogenic Viruses Using Metal Oxide and Carbon-Based Nanoparticles
Published in Devarajan Thangadurai, Saher Islam, Charles Oluwaseun Adetunji, Viral and Antiviral Nanomaterials, 2022
Lan Ching Sim, Wei Qing Wee, Shien Yoong Siow, Kah Hon Leong, Jit Jang Ng, Pichiah Saravanan
The use of a photocatalyst is environmental-friendly and sustainable because of the employment of renewable energy as the energy source of the photocatalytic viral inactivation. This chapter provides a review on the development of photocatalytic inactivation of viruses using metal oxide NPs and carbon-based NPs. Despite recent advances, some potential research is yet to be explored to overcome new challenges provoked by viral pandemic cases. Future work should explore the coating of photocatalysts on face masks or other surfaces to control the viral spread of Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) via fomite and aerosol. Further, molecular imprinting could be used to selectively adsorb viruses and concentrate them near photocatalytic sites for inactivation. It has been proven to be effective in waterborne viral inactivation. There is lack of investigation on the viral inactivation mechanism using a combination of quantitative analytical tools since the foremost discovery by Wigginton et al. (2012). This approach helps to identify and quantify the extent of modifications in the virus genome or proteins by measuring the damage at well-defined levels of inactivation (Wigginton et al. 2012). Most of the viral inactivation methods are reported by using UVC light at 254 nm, which is harmful to skin and eyes. Hence, it is suggested to use far-UVC light (207–222 nm) or visible light (390–750 nm) to reduce the negative effects of UVC light. And for that, it will be necessary to develop a photocatalyst material that could harvest more visible light.
The Precision Medicine Approach in Oncology
Published in David E. Thurston, Ilona Pysz, Chemistry and Pharmacology of Anticancer Drugs, 2021
A revolution in the various “-omics” fields is imminent due to the evolution of microfluidics and multiplexing technologies. Through these developments, the frequently limited sample volumes of biological fluids available can be reduced. This should lead to a saving in both costs and time as the amount of reagents used can be significantly reduced, and several biomarkers can be analyzed simultaneously thus increasing throughput. The other advantage of microfluidics is that it can help to overcome the problem in traditional multiplexing of requiring the same conditions by integrating multiple single-controlled assays on a chip. Very promising microfluidics technologies are currently being developed for RT-PCR assays and multiformat immunoassays. The further evolution of microfluidics lies in nanotechnology which still has to translate from the academic research laboratory to practical applications (e.g., nanoparticles, nanoarrays, nanotubes, quantum dots, molecular imprinting, etc.). These techniques are expected to lead to promising applications in diagnostics in the future.
Ecology
Published in Paul Pumpens, Single-Stranded RNA Phages, 2020
Concerning the potential antiviral treatment of patients, Sankarakumar and Tong (2013) suggested an original method of preventing viral infections with polymeric virus catchers. This novel approach used high-affinity polymeric receptors prepared by a molecular imprinting technique to “catch” viruses. The virucidal action of the imprinted particles was rapid, dose dependent on virus and polymer concentration, and occurred due to the specific adsorption. The fabricated nanoparticles displayed remarkable positive antiviral results that significantly hindered viral infections as compared to the controls. This work was performed with the phage fr as a model (Sankarakumar and Tong 2013).
Therapeutic applications of contact lens-based drug delivery systems in ophthalmic diseases
Published in Drug Delivery, 2023
Lianghui Zhao, Jike Song, Yongle Du, Cong Ren, Bin Guo, Hongsheng Bi
Molecular imprinting is a polymer synthesis technology that uses a template-mediated polymerization mechanism to synthesize macromolecular networks with tailored affinities, capacities, and selectivity for template molecules (White & Byrne, 2010). The drug is first polymerized with the functional monomer and then extracted after polymerization, leaving a high-affinity drug-recognition cavity in the polymer network. While reloading, drugs can bind with high-affinity cavities to increase the partition coefficient and interact with functional groups in the polymer network to reduce the diffusivity and prolong the release time (Lanier et al.,2020; Zhang et al., 2020). Currently, this technology is widely used to produce drug-loaded contact lenses with sustained release time. Tieppo et al. demonstrated that the residence time of ketotifen for imprinted lenses was 4 and 50 fold greater than non-imprinted lenses and eye drops, respectively (Tieppo et al., 2012). Omranipour et al. studied the binding and release characteristics of brimonidine imprinted soft contact lenses and found that all imprinted polymers had higher affinity for brimonidine than non-imprinted polymers, demonstrating the positive effect of the molecular imprinting technique on improving the capacity for drug loading and sustained release (Omranipour et al., 2015).
Commercialization challenges for drug eluting contact lenses
Published in Expert Opinion on Drug Delivery, 2020
Olivia L. Lanier, Keith G. Christopher, Russell M. Macoon, Yifan Yu, Poorvajan Sekar, Anuj Chauhan
Molecular imprinting is a technique that involves manipulation of the hydrogel structure to create higher affinity for the drug of interest [52]. To produce molecularly imprinted hydrogels, the template molecule (i.e. the drug of interest for release) is polymerized with functional monomers and crosslinkers which can interact with the template molecule (Figure 1) [53]. The monomers and crosslinkers can be chosen to mimic the interaction between the drug and the target receptor in the body because it is already known to have a strong binding interaction and results [54,55]. Once polymerized, the unreacted monomer and template molecule are extracted to leave behind the high-affinity pockets. The lenses are then soaked in a template molecule solution to load the drugs of interest. Some of the most common monomers and crosslinkers used to customize the gel matrix are acrylic acid (AA), acetic acid (HAc), acrylamide (AC), N,N-diethylacrylamide (DEAA), methacrylic acid (MAA), methyl methacrylate (MMA), N-vinyl 2-pyrrolidine (NVP), 4-vinyl-pyridine (VP), N-(3-aminopropyl) methacrylamide (APMA), hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), N,N-diethylaminoethyl methacrylate (DEAEM), poly(ethylene glycol) (200) dimethacrylate (PEG200DMA), and N,N’-methylenebisacrylamide (NN-MBA) [55–58].
Design, synthesis and characterization of enzyme-analogue-built polymer catalysts as artificial hydrolases
Published in Artificial Cells, Nanomedicine, and Biotechnology, 2019
Divya Mathew, Benny Thomas, Karakkattu Subrahmanian Devaky
Bio-recognition through molecular imprinting technique has been a time-honoured goal in the biochemistry and materials science in recent years [1]. The intriguing and exacting guest-host chemistry that drives bio-recognition (enzyme-substrate and antibody-antigen specificities) has inspired the researchers. The molecularly imprinted macromatric polymers exhibit high specificity to bind target molecules in the 3 D memory cavity through “lock and key” type fit [2]. Molecular imprinting is a microscopic moulding process in which the print molecule fabricates substrate-selective 3D-recognition sites in the macromolecular polymer matrix [3]. The template molecule bearing one or more specific functionalities, form stable pre-polymerization complex by means of covalent linkages or non-covalent interactions [4] with the functional monomers. The template molecule directs the molecular positioning and orientation of the catalytic functionalities and the crosslinks ensure polymer rigidity that freezes the 3 D molecular architecture of the substrate binding cavity by the subsequent removal of the template. A large number of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) have been investigated and reported over the last few decades with potential applications. Beyond catalysis, the potential of MIPs continues to impact and revolutionize separation [5], adsorption [6], sensing [7], etc.