High permittivity, breakdown strength, and energy storage density of polythiophene-encapsulated BaTiO₃ nanoparticles

• Adnanullah Khan,
• Amir Habib and
• Adeel Afzal

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1190–1197, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.103

• dielectric capacitors. To overcome these problems, BTO-polymer composite-based dielectric materials have been developed and extensively investigated. Organic polymers offer many advantages including higher breakdown strength, lighter mass, greater flexibility, processability, and cost efficiency [8]. However

• , they are inherently poor dielectrics with very low permittivity (values in the range of 2–10) [2]. Thus, organic polymers are often reinforced with ceramic-based dielectric materials such as BTO. The dielectric properties of BTO–polymer composites are known to improve considerably with the inclusion of

Gram-scale synthesis of splat-shaped Ag–TiO₂ nanocomposites for enhanced antimicrobial properties

• Mohammad Jaber,
• Asim Mushtaq,
• Kebiao Zhang,
• Jindan Wu,
• Dandan Luo,
• Zihan Yi,
• M. Zubair Iqbal and
• Xiangdong Kong

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1119–1125, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.96

• based on polymers and layer-by-layer coating to prevent pathogenic bacteria. Antibacterial agents, such as antibiotics, quaternary ammonium compounds and metal ions have been widely used. However, the extensive use of antibiotics against some bacteria might increase the bacterial resistance to these

Straightforward synthesis of gold nanoparticles by adding water to an engineered small dendrimer

• Sébastien Gottis,
• Régis Laurent,
• Vincent Collière and
• Anne-Marie Caminade

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1110–1118, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.95

• using larger (but more expensive) dendrimers and polymers to synthesize NPs with different shapes/sizes and degrees of polydispersity. In addition, other metals should also be considered as alternatives to synthesize NPs. Experimental General synthesis and characterization procedures Girard’s T reagent

Applications of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles in drug and therapeutic delivery, and biotechnological advancements

• Maria Suciu,
• Corina M. Ionescu,
• Alexandra Ciorita,
• Septimiu C. Tripon,
• Dragos Nica,
• Hani Al-Salami and
• Lucian Barbu-Tudoran

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1092–1109, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.94

• of iron oxides in the form of magnetite (Fe3O4) or maghemite (Fe2O3) and are easy to produce through a few well-documented synthesis methods yielding different forms and structures (e.g., round, cubic, hexagonal, clusters, core–shell with gold, silica, polymers, or surfactants). A lot of research is

• commonly used for SPION coating, yielding good nanoparticle stability and no cytotoxicity. It is currently the preferred coating for MRI nanoparticles [54][76][84]. Depending on the type of emulsifier used, the coating can be hydrophilic or hydrophobic, but it is common to use hydrophilic polymers, such as

• PVA or PEG, for drug release studies [33][76] because the hydrophobic polymers are rapidly uptaken by macrophages [85]. SPIONs coated with a mixture of PVA and polyvinyl amine were shown to induce very active mitochondrial and endocytic processes in cells and to be highly toxic to cells due to the

Wet-spinning of magneto-responsive helical chitosan microfibers

• Dorothea Brüggemann,
• Johanna Michel,
• Naiana Suter,
• Matheus Grande de Aguiar and
• Michael Maas

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 991–999, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.83

• usual requirements for tissue engineering materials (i.e., full biocompatibility, integration, and stimulation of the respective tissues), motion-activated cell support should also exhibit mechanical compliance with the surrounding tissue environment [13][14][15]. Natural polymers, in particular

• organic templates are examples of alternative ways to synthesize helical nano- or microfibers from various materials like carbon nanotubes (CNTs), ZnO or different polymers [8][48][49]. Here, we present a simple method for synthesizing helical chitosan microfibers with embedded magnetic nanoparticles

A 3D-polyphenylalanine network inside porous alumina: Synthesis and characterization of an inorganic–organic composite membrane

• Jonathan Stott and
• Jörg J. Schneider

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 938–951, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.78

• polymerized and dense layer of amino silanes (see Figure 1) [36]. A "grafting-from" process of the hydrophobic polymers was then achieved by surface-initiated ring-opening polymerization (SI-ROP) of activated NCA-monomers. NCA-monomers were synthesized via a modified Fuchs–Farthing method, employing the

• of THF and DCM. The functionalized ALOX-membranes were subsequently washed with fresh solvent mixtures followed by a treatment with a mixture of chloroform (CHCl3) and dichloroacetic acid (DCA) (80/20 vol %) to remove weakly bonded polymers [13]. Noncovalently bonded polymer chains can result from

• polymer films at the outer surface. Thermogravimetric measurements were used to determine the amount of strong and weakly bonded polymers inside the ALOX-membrane. Finally, SEM was used to investigate the microstructure and morphology of the grafted polymers at the outer surface as well the inner surface

Key for crossing the BBB with nanoparticles: the rational design

• Sonia M. Lombardo,
• Marc Schneider,
• Akif E. Türeli and
• Nazende Günday Türeli

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 866–883, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.72

• , nanoparticles are considered as solid colloidal particles with a size between 1 and 1000 nm [23]. They can be produced from a variety of different materials including polymers, lipids or inorganic materials such gold or iron oxide [21]. The first reported nanoparticles able to pass the BBB were poly(butyl

• polymeric nanoparticles prepared with PBCA and polymers from the poly(ethylene) family such as poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) [25][26]. Liposomes and other lipidic nanoparticles have also been reported as able to pass the BBB [27], as well as protein-based nanoparticles

• particles as it was shown to be able to increase the apolipoprotein–nanoparticle interaction for a wide range of polymers without any toxicity to the BBB. However, alternatives, such as P188, exist. Furthermore, the efficacy of the coating is also influenced by the composition of the nanoparticle core, i.e

Exfoliation in a low boiling point solvent and electrochemical applications of MoO₃

• Matangi Sricharan,
• Bikesh Gupta,
• Sreejesh Moolayadukkam and
• H. S. S. Ramakrishna Matte

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 662–670, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.52

• either by ultrasonic vibrations or shearing in a liquid medium that facilitates the exfoliation. To influence the energies relevant for the exfoliation in aqueous media, additives such as surfactants and polymers are used [8]. However, their removal is quite tedious and the remnants are detrimental for

Preparation, characterization and photocatalytic performance of heterostructured CuO–ZnO-loaded composite nanofiber membranes

• Wei Fang,
• Liang Yu and
• Lan Xu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 631–650, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.50

• . Carbonized PVDF/PAN CNFs have excellent mechanical properties due to the partial melting of PVDF after carbonization leading to point bonding. Therefore, blends of these two polymers were used as precursor for preparing the heterostructured CuO–ZnO-loaded CNF membranes (CNFMs) in our studies. In our previous

Adsorptive removal of bulky dye molecules from water with mesoporous polyaniline-derived carbon

• Hyung Jun An,
• Jong Min Park,
• Nazmul Abedin Khan and
• Sung Hwa Jhung

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 597–605, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.47

• ]. Moreover, highly porous carbon materials, especially with high nitrogen content, have been produced from various precursors including organic polymers [29][30][31][32][33] and MOFs [34][35][36][37][38]. Polyaniline (PANI), prepared from aniline, is a useful polymer in various fields because of its facile

Luminescent gold nanoclusters for bioimaging applications

• Nonappa

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 533–546, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.42

• an exact number of metal atoms and surface ligands (Figure 1A,B). Therefore, NCs are considered as colloidal molecules. Similar to plasmonic nanoparticles, the stability of NCs can be controlled by ligand passivation using small molecules, synthetic polymers or biomacromolecules. A significant

• decay channel resulting in highly emissive aggregates [72]. The AIE phenomenon has been observed in several organic compounds of low molecular weight and in polymers [73]. The aggregation-induced luminescence of NCs has been achieved either using solvent-induced aggregation or addition of additives such

• as ionic polymers, proteins or peptides [74][75][76]. Recently, Dichiarante et al. reported NIR-luminescent AuNCs bearing superfluorinated (SF) ligands with strong emission at 1050 nm with a quantum yield of 12% [77]. An extensive account of the PL of NCs is beyond the scope of this review and has

Multilayer capsules made of weak polyelectrolytes: a review on the preparation, functionalization and applications in drug delivery

• Varsha Sharma and
• Anandhakumar Sundaramurthy

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 508–532, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.41

• developed by Iller [2] and Decher et al. [3], but it was brought into the limelight by systematic and extensive research by various research groups. The encapsulation of various macromolecules inside the hollow capsules was carried out by adjusting the physiochemical properties of the polymers in order to

• manipulate the shell permeability [4]. However, most of the work uses strong PEs such as polystyrene sulfonate (PSS) as one of the polymers, and thus, in order to release the payload, a disturbance in the intermolecular forces (e.g., covalent binding, hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interactions) guarding

• to the chemical nature of the polymers used and the assembly conditions [11]. Many studies have shown successful permeability changes for encapsulation and release via changes in pH or ionic strength for weak PE systems. The chemical nature of the polymers used along with the type of the core

Preparation and in vivo evaluation of glyco-gold nanoparticles carrying synthetic mycobacterial hexaarabinofuranoside

• Gennady L. Burygin,
• Polina I. Abronina,
• Nikita M. Podvalnyy,
• Sergey A. Staroverov,
• Leonid O. Kononov and
• Lev A. Dykman

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 480–493, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.39

• serological identification of microorganisms and are also widely used as antigenic components of vaccines. The use of gold nanoparticles as carriers for glyco-epitopes is becoming an important alternative to the traditional conjugation with proteins and synthetic polymers. In this study, we aimed to prepare

• ][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48] to the traditional conjugation with proteins, synthetic polymers and other carriers [15][17][38][49][50][51][52][53][54][55]. Immunological properties of GNPs [25][56][57] and their use in vaccine development [58] have

• typically characterized by a fairly developed structure and include proteins, polysaccharides, and a number of synthetic polymers. A significant part of biologically active substances, including glycosides, has a relatively small molecular mass. Low-molecular-mass antigens belong to the category of so

Current measurements in the intermittent-contact mode of atomic force microscopy using the Fourier method: a feasibility analysis

• Berkin Uluutku and
• Santiago D. Solares

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 453–465, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.37

• , regardless of the material). For example, in our experiments with conductive polymers we often observe current magnitudes on the order of tens of picoamperes in C-AFM measurements. Frequency-based, amplified data acquisition systems for measurements involving a large number of harmonics have already been

Brome mosaic virus-like particles as siRNA nanocarriers for biomedical purposes

• Alfredo Nuñez-Rivera,
• Pierrick G. J. Fournier,
• Danna L. Arellano,
• Ana G. Rodriguez-Hernandez,
• Rafael Vazquez-Duhalt and
• Ruben D. Cadena-Nava

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 372–382, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.28

• ]. The accumulation of nanoparticles in tumors, either passively or directed, is extensively documented [14]. Thus, there are multiple efforts to design nanoparticles that function as nanovehicles, mainly composed of liposomes, synthetic polymers, dendrimers, and virus-like particles (VLPs) [13][15

• the capsid [25][27]. Similarly, VLPs from the closely related cowpea chlorotic mottle virus (CCMV) have been loaded with different cargos, including gold nanoparticles, negatively charged chromophores, and polymers [22]. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) is a promising therapeutic solution to address gene

Poly(1-vinylimidazole) polyplexes as novel therapeutic gene carriers for lung cancer therapy

• Gayathri Kandasamy,
• Elena N. Danilovtseva,
• Vadim V. Annenkov and
• Uma Maheswari Krishnan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 354–369, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.26

• attempted to investigate the DNA complexation efficiency of poly(4-vinylimidazole) polymers that also possesses low cytotoxicity and good endosomal escape properties [20]. To our knowledge, only few proof-of-concept studies have been carried out to explore the potential of PVI as a cyto-compatible gene

Interactions at the cell membrane and pathways of internalization of nano-sized materials for nanomedicine

• Valentina Francia,
• Daphne Montizaan and
• Anna Salvati

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 338–353, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.25

• to reduce protein adsorption and corona formation. This can be achieved for instance by grafting hydrophilic polymers such as polyethylene glycol (PEG) on the surface of nanomedicines, or by introducing zwitterionic modifications to make nanomaterials almost neutral [42][43][44][45]. These

Implementation of data-cube pump–probe KPFM on organic solar cells

• Benjamin Grévin,
• Olivier Bardagot and
• Renaud Demadrille

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 323–337, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.24

• presented. For a comprehensive introduction to this field, the reader may refer to [25]. Solution-processed organic solar cells [25] rely on the combination of electron donor (D) and acceptor (A) π-conjugated polymers and/or molecules that display a type-II energy offset between their highest occupied

Understanding nanoparticle flow with a new in vitro experimental and computational approach using hydrogel channels

• Armel Boutchuen,
• Dell Zimmerman,
• Abdollah Arabshahi,
• John Melnyczuk and
• Soubantika Palchoudhury

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 296–309, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.22

• reliably represent the flow and adhesion during drug delivery, it is essential to construct mimics of human vascular network. Hydrogels are unique three-dimensional (3D) networks of insoluble polymers formed from two or more hydrophilic monomers that can absorb large quantities of water. The hydrogels

• developing the soft, 3D vascular structures. Hydrogels, soft biocompatible polymers with synthetically tunable physical and chemical properties and a chemical structure capable of retaining high volumes of water similar to the extracellular microenvironments, are considered highly promising materials for 3D

Using gold nanoparticles to detect single-nucleotide polymorphisms: toward liquid biopsy

• María Sanromán Iglesias and
• Marek Grzelczak

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 263–284, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.20

• or the use of antifouling polymers such as polyethylene glycol. Finally, the availability of whole-genome sequencing as offered by recently established private companies (e.g., Veritas Genetics and Novogene) allows for the determination of hundreds of mutations from a single sample at relatively low

Rational design of block copolymer self-assemblies in photodynamic therapy

• Maxime Demazeau,
• Laure Gibot,
• Anne-Françoise Mingotaud,
• Patricia Vicendo,
• Clément Roux and
• Barbara Lonetti

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 180–212, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.15

• , regarding the block copolymers used as nanovectors for the delivery of the photosensitizer. In particular, we describe the chemical nature and structure of the block copolymers showing a very large range of existing systems, spanning from natural polymers such as proteins or polysaccharides to synthetic

• bodies and taken care of by opsonins, leading to their handling by the mononuclear phagocyte system. Carriers avoiding detection by opsonins had then to be developed and very common polymers, namely poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) or poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO), were found to fulfil this requirement [6]. In

• controlled radical polymerization in the 1990’s provided polymer scientists with a range of chemical tools to synthesize polymers and copolymers exhibiting various architectures, from block and gradient to grafted polymers [7]. Designing new nanocarriers exhibiting an external shell based on PEG and a core

Size effects of graphene nanoplatelets on the properties of high-density polyethylene nanocomposites: morphological, thermal, electrical, and mechanical characterization

• Tuba Evgin,
• Alpaslan Turgut,
• Georges Hamaoui,
• Zdenko Spitalsky,
• Nicolas Horny,
• Matej Micusik,
• Mihai Chirtoc,
• Mehmet Sarikanat and
• Maria Omastova

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 167–179, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.14

• electrical conductivity of 4.68 × 10−17 S/cm, which was typical for polymers. For all GnP loadings, the HDPE/G1 nanocomposites were insulating, while it could clearly be seen that at GnP concentrations higher than 5.52 vol % for G2 and 7.38 vol % for G3, respectively, the HDPE-based nanocomposites became

Internalization mechanisms of cell-penetrating peptides

• Ivana Ruseska and
• Andreas Zimmer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 101–123, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.10

A review of demodulation techniques for multifrequency atomic force microscopy

• David M. Harcombe,
• Michael G. Ruppert and
• Andrew J. Fleming

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 76–91, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.8

• theoretical foundations for determining secondary sample properties such as Young’s modulus [13][22]. Applications include the imaging of secondary properties of proteins [23] and polymers [24]. Intermodulation AFM actively drives the cantilever slightly below and above resonance with a two-tone drive

The different ways to chitosan/hyaluronic acid nanoparticles: templated vs direct complexation. Influence of particle preparation on morphology, cell uptake and silencing efficiency

• Arianna Gennari,
• Julio M. Rios de la Rosa,
• Erwin Hohn,
• Maria Pelliccia,
• Enrique Lallana,
• Roberto Donno,
• Annalisa Tirella and
• Nicola Tirelli

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2594–2608, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.250

• Arianna Gennari Julio M. Rios de la Rosa Erwin Hohn Maria Pelliccia Enrique Lallana Roberto Donno Annalisa Tirella Nicola Tirelli Laboratory of Polymers and Biomaterials, Fondazione Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, 16163 Genova, Italy NorthWest Centre for Advanced Drug Delivery (NoWCADD), School

• , typically an inorganic anion of low molecular weight, such as triphosphate (TPP) is used, while in the latter negatively charged polymers, e.g., hyaluronic acid (HA) [11][12] or alginate [13], are commonly used. HA is a particularly interesting component, since its presence allows for a reduced serum

• (1,000 kDa) completely removes soluble HA (Figure 1B, right). When analysing the particles before and after dialysis, we saw no significant difference in HA nanoparticle incorporation (always at least 80 wt % of the feed) between the two chitosan polymers of different MW or the two preparative methods