Realizing active targeting in cancer nanomedicine with ultrasmall nanoparticles

• André F. Lima,
• Giselle Z. Justo and
• Alioscka A. Sousa

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1208–1226, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.98

• inorganic core, exemplified by the S–Au bond formed between cysteine-containing molecules and gold NPs [90][91][92]. Actively targeted AuNCs can also be prepared using bioactive peptides or proteins via a one-step biomineralization process, in which case the peptide or protein serves the purpose of both

• prostate cancer targeting and radiotherapy enhancement (Figure 5A,B) [129]. In this design, the PSMA-1 ligand was modified to contain additional Cys and Tyr residues to promote nanocluster formation through a biomineralization process. Binding of the targeted AuNCs to PSMA-expressing cells was evaluated

Hydroxyapatite–bioglass nanocomposites: Structural, mechanical, and biological aspects

• Olga Shikimaka,
• Mihaela Bivol,
• Bogdan A. Sava,
• Marius Dumitru,
• Christu Tardei,
• Beatrice G. Sbarcea,
• Daria Grabco,
• Constantin Pyrtsac,
• Daria Topal,
• Andrian Prisacaru,
• Vitalie Cobzac and
• Viorel Nacu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1490–1504, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.123

• types of composites (HAGCs and HAPCs). The Ca/P ratio of stoichiometric hydroxyapatite is 1.67. Lower values of Ca/P ratio at the early stages of biomineralization are in agreement with the results obtained in other works for Bioglass®-type glasses, hydroxyapatite, and A-W glass ceramics [7][52][53][54

• ][55] and can be explained by the formation of CaO-P2O5 or other calcium deficient phases. At the later stages of biomineralization, that is, after longer soaking times, the precipitate undergoes structural and chemical transformation resulting in the formation of carbonate-hydroxyapatite (CHA). The

• (solubility and biomineralization) and biocompatibility (98.5% of cell viability). Annex Ethical approval and the protocol used for the isolation of the mesenchymal stem cells The mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) for the MTT test were isolated from the bone marrow of six-months-old Wistar rats at the Laboratory

Bioselectivity of silk protein-based materials and their bio-inspired applications

• Hendrik Bargel,
• Vanessa T. Trossmann,
• Christoph Sommer and
• Thomas Scheibel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 902–921, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.81

• flat films (Figure 3A) [150]. In another study, eADF4(C16) was modified with biomineralization and collagen-binding peptides, yielding an increased osteoblast attachment on these functionalized variants [149]. Genetic modification of 4RepCT led to recombinant spider silk proteins containing linear RGD

Self-assembly of amino acids toward functional biomaterials

• Huan Ren,
• Lifang Wu,
• Lina Tan,
• Yanni Bao,
• Yuchen Ma,
• Yong Jin and
• Qianli Zou

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1140–1150, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.85

• performance [58]. In addition, Liu et al. [59], inspired by the cystine pathological biomineralization process, developed a zinc-directed cystine assembly to mimic chloroplast photosynthesis. Zn2+ promotes rapid nucleation of cystine crystals and regulates crystal morphology through splitting growth

Bio-imaging with the helium-ion microscope: A review

• Matthias Schmidt,
• James M. Byrne and
• Ilari J. Maasilta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1–23, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.1

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

• ], in vivo cell tracking [43][44], in vivo labeling using iron isotopes [45], tissue repair [46][47][48], and tissue enhancement [49]. The principal property that makes SPIONs very attractive is that the same type of nanoparticles is produced and stored naturally by biomineralization and can be found in

Three-dimensional solvation structure of ethanol on carbonate minerals

• Hagen Söngen,
• Ygor Morais Jaques,
• Peter Spijker,
• Christoph Marutschke,
• Stefanie Klassen,
• Ilka Hermes,
• Ralf Bechstein,
• Lidija Zivanovic,
• John Tracey,
• Adam S. Foster and
• Angelika Kühnle

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 891–898, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.74

• experimental studies exist addressing the interfacial arrangement of other solvent molecules [8][9][10]. This is unfortunate given the relevance of the interaction between organic molecules and carbonate surfaces, for example, in the field of biomineralization [11]. Moreover, by changing the solvent molecule

Liquid-crystalline nanoarchitectures for tissue engineering

• Baeckkyoung Sung and
• Min-Ho Kim

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 205–215, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.22

• , preosteoblasts and fibroblasts, which has a potential for the treatment of spinal cord injuries [91][92]. Osteogenesis and biomineralization can be induced by using 2D substrate matrices made of M13 phages and M13-based peptide amphiphiles, which are in hierarchical nematic, cholesteric, and smectic-like

• local alignments, which resulted in directed and oriented growth of human mesenchymal stem cells and their osteogenic differentiation [105]. Additionally, biomineralization-mimicking hybrid materials, using chitin nanowhisker gel matrices in a nematic phase as templates for CaCO3 crystallization, have

Recombinant DNA technology and click chemistry: a powerful combination for generating a hybrid elastin-like-statherin hydrogel to control calcium phosphate mineralization

• Mohamed Hamed Misbah,
• Mercedes Santos,
• Luis Quintanilla,
• Christina Günter,
• Matilde Alonso,
• Andreas Taubert and
• José Carlos Rodríguez-Cabello

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 772–783, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.80

• calcium phosphate (ACP) phase [9][12][13] remains a challenge due to the fast nucleation, aggregation and subsequent anisotropic growth of the crystal faces. Biomineralization-inspired “soft chemistry” routes provide simple and often rather cheap protocols for the synthesis of complex CP-based hybrid

Influence of hydrothermal synthesis parameters on the properties of hydroxyapatite nanoparticles

• Sylwia Kuśnieruk,
• Jacek Wojnarowicz,
• Agnieszka Chodara,
• Tadeusz Chudoba,
• Stanislaw Gierlotka and
• Witold Lojkowski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1586–1601, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.153

• multiplication in order to optimize biological functionality, a property which is highly dependent on particle size [8]. The above mentioned findings play an important role in the comprehension of nano-HAp biological activity and cytophilicity during biomineralization. Its ability to circulate in blood and its

Surface coating affects behavior of metallic nanoparticles in a biological environment

• Darija Domazet Jurašin,
• Marija Ćurlin,
• Ivona Capjak,
• Tea Crnković,
• Marija Lovrić,
• Michal Babič,
• Daniel Horák,
• Ivana Vinković Vrček and
• Srećko Gajović

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 246–262, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.23

• [68]. The most common process is the biomineralization of bones and shells [69]. It is interesting that the shape of these bionanomaterials is usually induced by an engulfing organic matrix [69]. Different microorganisms, such as magnetotactic bacteria or diatoms, are also able to produce nanocrystals

Template-controlled mineralization: Determining film granularity and structure by surface functionality patterns

• Nina J. Blumenstein,
• Jonathan Berson,
• Stefan Walheim,
• Petia Atanasova,
• Johannes Baier,
• Joachim Bill and
• Thomas Schimmel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1763–1768, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.180

• -guided self-assembly, which plays an important role in biological processes relevant for biomineralization [7][8][9][10][11][12]. There are numerous approaches to harness and use this principle for artificial processes, which may be of great technological significance [13][14][15]. Recently, we reported

Towards multifunctional inorganic materials: biopolymeric templates

• Claudia Steinem and
• Joachim Bill

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1698–1699, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.172

• aforementioned manufacturing methods, biomineralization leads to fascinating, complex-structured, inorganic materials under ambient conditions. The corresponding processes have been evolutionarily optimized over millions of years and involve biopolymeric templates, which control the mineralization and the

• multifunctional features and an expanded spectrum of properties as compared to those of the pure inorganic components. Although the composition of biominerals comprises only a limited number of chemical elements, the principles of biomineralization and the obtained structures can be considered archetypes for the

Peptide-equipped tobacco mosaic virus templates for selective and controllable biomineral deposition

• Klara Altintoprak,
• Axel Seidenstücker,
• Alexander Welle,
• Sabine Eiben,
• Petia Atanasova,
• Nina Stitz,
• Alfred Plettl,
• Joachim Bill,
• Hartmut Gliemann,
• Holger Jeske,
• Dirk Rothenstein,
• Fania Geiger and
• Christina Wege

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1399–1412, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.145

• shell thickness were achieved. Keywords: biomineralization; charge-relay system; peptide; silica; tobacco mosaic virus (TMV); Introduction Amorphous silica (SiO2) precipitated from silicate precursor sols comprises a wide range of versatile materials applied in various technological approaches, for

• outer TMV–CP surface charge and the introduction of specific amino acid motifs, guiding the nucleation and growth of mineral coatings around the TMV core. This is in analogy to natural biomineralization-directing protein domains identified for various organisms [55][56][57][58][59]. Direct genetic

• have an enhancing effect on TEOS hydrolysis. This is especially true if they are closely adjacent to positive charges, where such combinations may act as charge-relay systems [61][75]. Effective peptides may resemble motifs found in natural silica biomineralization-directing proteins (in both their

Morphology control of zinc oxide films via polysaccharide-mediated, low temperature, chemical bath deposition

• Florian Waltz,
• Hans-Christoph Schwarz,
• Andreas M. Schneider,
• Stefanie Eiden and
• Peter Behrens

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 799–808, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.83

• such as polysaccharides for the preparation of technologically relevant materials and devices. In bio-inspired synthetic approaches, such polymers can act in a similar way as in biomineralization processes, influencing the growth and controlling the morphology and arrangement of the resulting

Multifunctional layered magnetic composites

• Maria Siglreitmeier,
• Baohu Wu,
• Tina Kollmann,
• Martin Neubauer,
• Gergely Nagy,
• Dietmar Schwahn,
• Vitaliy Pipich,
• Damien Faivre,
• Dirk Zahn,
• Andreas Fery and
• Helmut Cölfen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 134–148, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.13

• certain increase in the stiffness of the composite material. Keywords: bio-inspired mineralization; biomineralization; chitin; ferrogel; hybrid materials; magnetite; nacre; Introduction Biominerals, which are organic–inorganic hybrids and highly sophisticated materials with optimal assimilated

• biomineralization mechanisms are still not fully understood due to their complexity. Recent work underlines the importance of amorphous precursor phases [17] and also nonclassical crystallization mechanisms in biomineralization [18][19]. In this manuscript we report a synthesis method to combine the favorable

• organic structure can be visualized working in pure D2O. This technique is a standard tool in various fields such as biomineralization [37][38]. Figure 6 demonstrates two SANS–VSANS scattering profiles of magnetite in a chitin–gelatin composite (top) and as a reference in a gel matrix (bottom). The

Functionalization of α-synuclein fibrils

• Simona Povilonienė,
• Vida Časaitė,
• Virginijus Bukauskas,
• Arūnas Šetkus,
• Juozas Staniulis and
• Rolandas Meškys

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 124–133, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.12

• tissue engineering [27][28], as well as use as a template for fibril metallization [29][30][31][32][33][34][35] or for the biomineralization of fibrils [36]. Nanostructures are usually designed by modifying proteins or peptides prior to fibril assembly [21][37][38][39][40][41]. Although post-assembly

Chemoselective silicification of synthetic peptides and polyamines

• Maryna Abacilar,
• Fabian Daus and
• Armin Geyer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 103–110, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.10

• precipitate silica (Figure 2). Three amines with increasing number of nitrogen atoms, a basic peptide, and a toxin [14] that is not involved in biomineralization but stands exemplary for other amines capable of silica precipitation. Synthetic methods Figure 3 shows the synthetic strategies used to access the

Biopolymer colloids for controlling and templating inorganic synthesis

• Laura C. Preiss,
• Katharina Landfester and
• Rafael Muñoz-Espí

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 2129–2138, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.222

• biomineralization, biogenic macromolecules are not only present in the crystallization medium, but play a crucial role in the mineral formation. Biomacromolecules, (e.g., polysaccharides, proteins, and nucleic acids) can have thereby two main functions: (i) a controlling effect on nucleation and growth of the

• find starch [13][14], different cellulose derivatives [15], dextran [16], pectin [17], alginate [18], and poly(amino acids) or proteins [19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29]. Researchers in the biomineralization field very often extract proteins from biological matter and use them for the ex

• only present in nature (biomineralization), but is also a versatile strategy for the design of inorganic and inorganic/organic hybrid materials in the laboratory. On one hand, biopolymers may assemble forming structures that serve as confining spaces or scaffolds in which the formation of the inorganic

Real-time monitoring of calcium carbonate and cationic peptide deposition on carboxylate-SAM using a microfluidic SAW biosensor

• Anna Pohl and
• Ingrid M. Weiss

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1823–1835, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.193

• acoustic wave biosensors to significantly expand our experimental capabilities for studying the principles underlying biomineralization in vitro. Keywords: biomineralization; calcium carbonate; love-type surface acoustic wave; poly-cationic peptide; Introduction Biomineralization is a natural process of

• global significance that involves the deposition of mineral ions under the control of biological organisms [1][2][3][4][5][6][7]. The interaction of proteins with minerals is one of the key regulatory elements in biomineralization processes, and many proteins involved in biomineralization exhibit

• multiple interactions between the proteins are fine-tuned in relationship to the forming mineral phases [17][18][19][20]. Dissecting each single interaction event in a given biomineralization process poses some experimental challenges [21][22][23][24]. An investigation of biomolecular interactions, in such

Ionic liquid-assisted formation of cellulose/calcium phosphate hybrid materials

• Ahmed Salama,
• Mike Neumann,
• Christina Günter and
• Andreas Taubert

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1553–1568, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.167

• the ionic liquid-based process yields materials that are potentially useful as scaffolds for regenerative therapies. Keywords: biomineralization; calcium phosphate; carbohydrates; cellulose; hybrid materials; ionic liquid; Introduction One of the key advantages of carbohydrates, especially cellulose

Near-field photochemical and radiation-induced chemical fabrication of nanopatterns of a self-assembled silane monolayer

• Ulrich C. Fischer,
• Carsten Hentschel,
• Florian Fontein,
• Linda Stegemann,
• Christiane Hoeppener,
• Harald Fuchs and
• Stefanie Hoeppener

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1441–1449, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.156

• templates are found in catalysis [9], biochemical surface engineering [10], cell adhesion [11], and biomineralization [12]. It has been shown previously that chemically nanostructured surfaces can be used as platforms for the graphoepitaxial growth of block-copolymer nanostructures [13] and to control the

Biocalcite, a multifunctional inorganic polymer: Building block for calcareous sponge spicules and bioseed for the synthesis of calcium phosphate-based bone

• Xiaohong Wang,
• Heinz C. Schröder and
• Werner E. G. Müller

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 610–621, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.72

• conditions the major processes of biomineralization of bone, teeth and otoconia proceeding in vertebrates mainly occur extracellularly, while intracellular mineral deposits are predominantly assembled during pathological calcifications of soft tissues [24]. Bone formation is based on a tightly controlled

Magnesiothermic conversion of the silica-mineralizing golden algae Mallomonas caudata and Synura petersenii to elemental silicon with high geometric precision

• Janina Petrack,
• Steffen Jost,
• Jens Boenigk and
• Matthias Epple

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 554–560, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.65

• petersenii into elementary silicon by magnesium vapour, nanostructured defined replicates were produced which were clearly seen after removal of the formed magnesium oxide with acid. Keywords: biomineralization; golden algae; magnesiothermic conversion; silica; silicon; Introduction In nature, there are

Oriented attachment explains cobalt ferrite nanoparticle growth in bioinspired syntheses

• Annalena Wolff,
• Walid Hetaba,
• Marco Wißbrock,
• Stefan Löffler,
• Nadine Mill,
• Katrin Eckstädt,
• Axel Dreyer,
• Inga Ennen,
• Norbert Sewald,
• Peter Schattschneider and
• Andreas Hütten

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 210–218, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.23

• , Austria 10.3762/bjnano.5.23 Abstract Oriented attachment has created a great debate about the description of crystal growth throughout the last decade. This aggregation-based model has successfully described biomineralization processes as well as forms of inorganic crystal growth, which could not be

• monomers as the smallest aggregates from which nuclei form. Coarsening, in which smaller crystals dissolve in favor of bigger ones, often occurs at later stages of the crystal growth. Throughout the last decades, several studies of nanoparticle growth and biomineralization processes showed a different

• matches the description of an oriented attachment process. Crystal growth via oriented attachment as well as mesocrystal formation have been described previously for biomineralization and biomimetic syntheses [19][25]. A schematic of this multistep process can be found in Figure 5. Nanoparticle growth via