Comprehensive review on ultrasound-responsive theranostic nanomaterials: mechanisms, structures and medical applications

• Sepand Tehrani Fateh,
• Lida Moradi,
• Elmira Kohan,
• Michael R. Hamblin and
• Amin Shiralizadeh Dezfuli

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 808–862, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.64

• therapeutic efficacy, and decrease undesirable systemic side effects [2]. Smart DDS (also known as stimulus-responsive drug delivery platforms) can be traced back to the late 1970s when thermosensitive liposomes were introduced. These liposomes could locally release drugs in response to externally applied

• significant advantages of stimuli-responsive DDS is the precise spatial and temporal control of drug release in response to the application of exogenous or endogenous stimuli, including US [3]. Ultrasound is traditionally used in diagnostic medicine but now it is finding a place in drug delivery in

• their cargo in response to locally elevated temperatures [24]. Under some circumstances, small mechanical displacements of the tissue can result in nucleation, growth, and collapse of gas bubbles in a process known as acoustic cavitation, which is responsible for drug release from some structures [27

Silver nanoparticles induce the cardiomyogenic differentiation of bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells via telomere length extension

• Khosro Adibkia,
• Ali Ehsani,
• Asma Jodaei,
• Ezzatollah Fathi,
• Raheleh Farahzadi and
• Mohammad Barzegar-Jalali

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 786–797, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.62

• , which is likely due to complexion of the released silver ions [36]. To explore the effect of Ag-NPs on the cardiomyogenic differentiation of BM-MSCs, we investigated the protein expressions of C-TnI, GATA4, SMA, VEGF, and VWF, as well as those of TERT and cyline D1 in response to Ag-NP treatment. It was

Reducing molecular simulation time for AFM images based on super-resolution methods

• Zhipeng Dou,
• Jianqiang Qian,
• Yingzi Li,
• Rui Lin,
• Jianhai Wang,
• Peng Cheng and
• Zeyu Xu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 775–785, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.61

• molecular dynamics simulation. Zc is the distance between the virtual atom at rest and the sample surface. The dynamic response of the tip is determined by the excitation of the virtual atom and tip–sample interactions. In the simulation the tip is parallel to the sample surface and the scanning is done in

9.1% efficient zinc oxide/silicon solar cells on a 50 μm thick Si absorber

• Rafal Pietruszka,
• Bartlomiej S. Witkowski,
• Monika Ozga,
• Katarzyna Gwozdz,
• Ewa Placzek-Popko and
• Marek Godlewski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 766–774, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.60

• . The obtained solar cell shows response in a wide spectral range from ultraviolet to infrared. Current–voltage and current–voltage–temperature measurements were performed to evaluate basic photovoltaic parameters. At room temperature, the cells efficiency equals to 9.1% for textured structures and 5.4

Recent progress in actuation technologies of micro/nanorobots

• Ke Xu and
• Bing Liu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 756–765, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.59

• MNP concentrations (1%, 3%, and 5%) under a rotating magnetic field. Each dot represents the average velocity for five different ISMEs with hexagram shapes ± standard error of the mean (s.e.m.). (d) a) Images of the ISME with encapsulated MNPs during folding in response to a pH change. Scale bar: 500

• average velocity for five different ISMEs with hexagram shapes ± s.e.m. (f) Images of MNP-loaded ISMEs performing capture, transportation, and release of cell aggregates, separation following release, and eventually dissolution in response to a change of the pH value. Scale bar: 250 µm. Reproduced from

Recent progress in magnetic applications for micro- and nanorobots

• Ke Xu,
• Shuang Xu and
• Fanan Wei

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 744–755, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.58

• according to the alignment and response of magnetic dipoles, magnetic materials can be divided into diamagnetic, paramagnetic [31], ferromagnetic, ferrimagnetic, and antiferromagnetic. Diamagnetism of the material can be attributed to the orbital angular momentum, which is a phenomenon in which

Physical constraints lead to parallel evolution of micro- and nanostructures of animal adhesive pads: a review

• Thies H. Büscher and
• Stanislav N. Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 725–743, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.57

• a response to specific environmental conditions and therefore exhibit convergent traits. The functional constraints that shape systems for the attachment to a surface are general requirements. Different strategies to solve similar problems often follow similar physical principles, hence, the

• variety of surface micro- and nanostructures evolved on the plants. As a response, the insects developed different micro- and nanostructures to walk on those surfaces and attach to them [1]. Consequently, a plethora of different attachment devices has been evolved in insects. Although insects are

• their major radiation [208][209], stick insects evolved in a similar pace [194][198][207][210][211], possibly in response to the burgeoning diversity of plants and corresponding adaptations [194][212][213]. This not only resulted in a strong host-specific mimicry response for many recent phasmids, but

Prediction of Co and Ru nanocluster morphology on 2D MoS₂ from interaction energies

• Cara-Lena Nies and
• Michael Nolan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 704–724, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.56

• smaller size of Co and Ru compared to Cu may promote these distortions when the metal atoms are adsorbed above the hollow site hollow. In response the S atoms can migrate and rearrange to accommodate the additional metal atom. Four-atom adsorption For four-atom adsorption, four different cluster

Nanogenerator-based self-powered sensors for data collection

• Yicheng Shao,
• Maoliang Shen,
• Yuankai Zhou,
• Xin Cui,
• Lijie Li and
• Yan Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 680–693, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.54

• changes through the output response signal. Gas molecules can be adsorbed on the surface of piezoelectric/triboelectric materials, causing changes in the carrier density [95]. Thus, the gas concentration can be obtained from the output voltage of the PENG/TENGs. The output of a PENG based on ZnO NWs is

• (MOS) gas sensors, the PENG/TENG-based self-powered gas sensor has a lower power consumption, requires no heating, and exhibits high stability and high sensitivity. In 2013, Xue et al. proposed a ZnO NWs PENG-based self-powered gas sensor [18]. The response of the unpackaged PENG sensor was studied

• array showed high sensitivity and fast response [19]. At room temperature, the piezoelectric voltage of the NiO/ZnO NW array was reduced from 0.388 V (in dry air) to 0.061 V (at 1000 ppm H2S), and the response was approximately 10 times that of naked the ZnO NW array. An In2O3/ZnO heterostructure was

A review of defect engineering, ion implantation, and nanofabrication using the helium ion microscope

• Frances I. Allen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 633–664, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.52

• , irradiation-induced changes in the optical response of this class of materials has also been investigated using the HIM. This was first performed for few-layer WSe2 [29] and monolayer MoSe2 [30] (for the latter, changes in nanomechanical properties were also probed). In subsequent work on monolayer MoS2 by

• environment, the beam spot sizes are large (typically hundreds of micrometers), preventing study of the irradiation response of individual micro- and nanoscale features. In addition, the large-scale experiments are much less controlled in terms of dose, whereas with the HIM, systematic repeatable studies over

• mechanical response, with the typical swelling also observed [90]. In contrast, studies of both helium and neon ion-irradiated polymers have shown that swelling does not occur at the threshold doses observed for crystalline targets, attributed to the significantly higher diffusion coefficients of the noble

High-yield synthesis of silver nanowires for transparent conducting PET films

• Gul Naz,
• Hafsa Asghar,
• Muhammad Ramzan,
• Muhammad Arshad,
• Rashid Ahmed,
• Muhammad Bilal Tahir,
• Bakhtiar Ul Haq,
• Nadeem Baig and
• Junaid Jalil

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 624–632, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.51

• redshift of the peak positions. An overall hypsochromatic shift of the two plasmonic bands of AgNWs is accompanied by the enhancement of their aspect ratios. The SPR peak at 365 nm may be attributed to the plasmon response along the transverse axis of AgNWs, which is identical to that of bulk silver. The

Nanoporous and nonporous conjugated donor–acceptor polymer semiconductors for photocatalytic hydrogen production

• Zhao-Qi Sheng,
• Yu-Qin Xing,
• Yan Chen,
• Guang Zhang,
• Shi-Yong Liu and
• Long Chen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 607–623, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.50

• ) and triazine (A2) fragments. The photocatalytic activities of CPs with different D/A1 ratios were systematically investigated and compared. For example, P8 (D/A1 = 3:7) (Figure 2) yielded the highest HER (966 μmol·h−1, 50 mg), which was consistent with the highest photocurrent response, smallest

The preparation temperature influences the physicochemical nature and activity of nanoceria

• Robert A. Yokel,
• Wendel Wohlleben,
• Johannes Georg Keller,
• Matthew L. Hancock,
• Jason M. Unrine,
• D. Allan Butterfield and
• Eric A. Grulke

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 525–540, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.43

• of nanoceria dissolution on its biological identity was assessed as the protein carbonyl level in response to partially dissolved nanoceria. The catalytic potential was assessed using a reactivity assay. Experimental Materials NM-211 and NM-212 were obtained from the European Commission Joint

• 7.4, solid squares: with LN resin at pH 4.5, open squares: without LN resin at pH 4.5. Results are the mean of two observations. As-prepared and partially dissolved nanoceria altered cell protein carbonyl production. RAW 264.7 cell protein carbonyl production in response to the as-prepared and

Boosting of photocatalytic hydrogen evolution via chlorine doping of polymeric carbon nitride

• Malgorzata Aleksandrzak,
• Michalina Kijaczko,
• Wojciech Kukulka,
• Daria Baranowska,
• Martyna Baca,
• Beata Zielinska and
• Ewa Mijowska

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 473–484, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.38

• . Figure 9a shows the transient photocurrent response of PCN and Cl-PCN. One can observe two-fold enhancement of the photocurrent response after chlorine doping of PCN. It demonstrates an improved generation of electron–hole pairs and better transportation of the charge carriers after modification. After

• . It further indicates that Cl doping can promote transfer and separation of the photogenerated carriers [55], which agrees with the photoluminescence spectroscopy results and transient photocurrent response. The improved transport and separation can be affected by Cl atoms acting as a charge carrier

• layers. Although Cl doping did not affect the reduction in the bandgap energy, the transient photocurrent response of Cl-PCN was enhanced compared to pristine PCN, indicating a better transport and separation of the photoinduced charges. It indicates that a higher amount of electrons can migrate to the

Rapid controlled synthesis of gold–platinum nanorods with excellent photothermal properties under 808 nm excitation

• Jialin Wang,
• Qianqian Duan,
• Min Yang,
• Boye Zhang,
• Li Guo,
• Pengcui Li,
• Wendong Zhang and
• Shengbo Sang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 462–472, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.37

• heating. The Au@Pt NRs solution exhibits a stronger thermal response than AuNRs with the same amount of Au. Due to the fact that the LSPR of Au@Pt NRs is closer to 808 nm and has a wider band, it absorbs more photon energy and releases more heat. Next, to explore the influence of laser power on the

A review on nanostructured silver as a basic ingredient in medicine: physicochemical parameters and characterization

• Gabriel M. Misirli,
• Kishore Sridharan and
• Shirley M. P. Abrantes

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 440–461, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.36

• adapts over time to recognize specific pathogens more efficiently. By doing so it provides an improved and lasting response to secondary encounters with the same specific pathogen (adaptive immunity) [15]. Conversely, the innate immune system is activated when an immediate response to pathogens is

A stretchable triboelectric nanogenerator made of silver-coated glass microspheres for human motion energy harvesting and self-powered sensing applications

• Hui Li,
• Yaju Zhang,
• Yonghui Wu,
• Hui Zhao,
• Weichao Wang,
• Xu He and
• Haiwu Zheng

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 402–412, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.32

• flexible tactile sensor can generate electrical signals in response to different mechanical stimuli for the self-supply with energy. An S-TENG with an area of 20 × 20 mm2 was placed on each of five fingertips, as exhibited in Figure 6a. When the thumb touches index finger, middle finger, ring finger and

The impact of molecular tumor profiling on the design strategies for targeting myeloid leukemia and EGFR/CD44-positive solid tumors

• Nikola Geskovski,
• Nadica Matevska-Geshkovska,
• Simona Dimchevska Sazdovska,
• Marija Glavas Dodov,
• Kristina Mladenovska and
• Katerina Goracinova

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 375–401, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.31

• restoring the efficacy/response, especially through evading the drug transport resistance mechanisms. In contrast to traditional cytotoxic chemotherapy, targeted therapies, such as tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), are directed towards the molecular aberrations responsible for elevated kinase activity or

Nickel nanoparticle-decorated reduced graphene oxide/WO₃ nanocomposite – a promising candidate for gas sensing

• Ilka Simon,
• Alexandr Savitsky,
• Rolf Mülhaupt,
• Vladimir Pankov and
• Christoph Janiak

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 343–353, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.28

• –carbon composite (Ni@rGO). Previous work with WO3 had used either NiO (as part of the WO3 lattice), solely carbon, Pd-surface decorated WO3 (Pd@WO3), or Pd or Pt@carbon@WO3. We demonstrate the gas response for pure WO3, rGO/WO3 and Ni@rGO/WO3 sensing elements towards NO2 and acetone in air as well as

• towards CO in N2. The addition of 0.35 wt % Ni@rGO composite to WO3 enables the increase of the sensory response by more than 1.6 times for NO2 vapors. The gas response towards acetone using 0.35 wt % Ni@rGO/WO3 composite was 1.5 times greater for 3500 ppm than for 35,000 ppm acetone. For 0.35 wt % Ni@rGO

• /WO3 composite and CO gas, a response time (Tres) of 7 min and a recovery time (Trec) of 2 min was determined. Keywords: gas sensing; magnetic measurements; nickel nanoparticles; reduced graphene oxide; tungsten oxide; Introduction Toxic gases as well as volatile organic compounds (VOC) are known air

Intracranial recording in patients with aphasia using nanomaterial-based flexible electronics: promises and challenges

• Qingchun Wang and
• Wai Ting Siok

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 330–342, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.27

• ][27] and response selection [28]. The LpSTG (or BA 22) is involved in phonemic and rule-based analysis [29][30]. The left angular gyrus (BA 39), the region believed to be a centre for visual word images [31][32][33], is involved in cross-modal tasks such as visual rhyming and auditory spelling tasks

The patterning toolbox FIB-o-mat: Exploiting the full potential of focused helium ions for nanofabrication

• Victor Deinhart,
• Lisa-Marie Kern,
• Jan N. Kirchhof,
• Sabrina Juergensen,
• Joris Sturm,
• Enno Krauss,
• Thorsten Feichtner,
• Sviatoslav Kovalchuk,
• Michael Schneider,
• Dieter Engel,
• Bastian Pfau,
• Bert Hecht,
• Kirill I. Bolotin,
• Stephanie Reich and
• Katja Höflich

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 304–318, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.25

• asymmetric magnetic interactions as in Co/Pt films, enabling the formation of desired spin textures [4]. As the actual device geometry determines the response to external stimuli, the coupling strengths, and the corresponding figures of merit, ultimate control in nanopatterning down to the single-digit

• and the plasmonic excitation at room temperature was achieved [57]. Here, we investigate the influence of the fabrication routine on the resonant response of small ensembles of coupled plasmonic scatterers, namely tetramers of spherical gold discs residing on a glass substrate. Such ensembles may

• feature dipole-forbidden eigenmodes [58] with low damping when being excited by the incidence of structured light [59]. First, we focus on comparable tetramer geometries to assess the influence on geometric fidelity and possible ion-beam induced material/substrate modifications on the plasmonic response

Doxorubicin-loaded gold nanorods: a multifunctional chemo-photothermal nanoplatform for cancer management

• Uzma Azeem Awan,
• Abida Raza,
• Shaukat Ali,
• Rida Fatima Saeed and
• Nosheen Akhtar

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 295–303, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.24

• conversion of absorbed NIR light to heat. In cancer intervention, NIR-mediated photothermal therapy is gaining more attention due to the deep tissue penetration with minimal absorbance by healthy tissues [15][16]. Gold nanorods are potential delivery carriers for sustained drug release in response to an

Characterization, bio-uptake and toxicity of polymer-coated silver nanoparticles and their interaction with human peripheral blood mononuclear cells

• Sahar Pourhoseini,
• Reilly T. Enos,
• Angela E. Murphy,
• Bo Cai and
• Jamie R. Lead

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 282–294, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.23

• , characterization, and study of transformations to obtain a better understanding of NP uptake and toxicity. Statistical analysis indicated that there might be an individual variability in response to NPs, although more research is required. Keywords: human peripheral blood mononuclear cells; silver ions; silver

The nanomorphology of cell surfaces of adhered osteoblasts

• Christian Voelkner,
• Mirco Wendt,
• Regina Lange,
• Max Ulbrich,
• Martina Gruening,
• Susanne Staehlke,
• Barbara Nebe,
• Ingo Barke and
• Sylvia Speller

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 242–256, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.20

• ruffles moving beneath the pipette opening. Slightly higher rms amplitudes may also be due to different temperature because fixed cells are measured at room temperature, while live-cell imaging is carried out at 37 °C. Frequency response behavior Owing to the fact that morphological changes at the cell

Determination of elastic moduli of elastic–plastic microspherical materials using nanoindentation simulation without mechanical polishing

• Hongzhou Li and
• Jialian Chen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 213–221, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.17

• precisely calculate the indentation response from a given set of elastic–plastic properties (forward algorithms), and to extract elastic–plastic properties from a given set of indentation data (reverse algorithms) [8]. Pileup (or sink-in) results in contact areas bigger (or smaller) than the cross-sectional