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Polymers
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Multifunctional Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications
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Multifunctional Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications

A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Biobased and Biodegradable Polymers".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 March 2022) | Viewed by 33820

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Marzia Marciello

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Nanobiotechnology for Life Sciences Laboratory, Department of Chemistry in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), Plaza Ramón y Cajal s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Interests: nano-biotechnology; pharmaceutical technology; molecular diagnostic; bio-nanocatalysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear colleagues,

In the last few decades, research on nanomaterials for biomedical application underwent an impressive growth; a lot of research studies have been focused on their design, safety and application in human cells and animals. This enormous interest stems from the nanometric size of particles and their intrinsic/unique characteristics.

Carbon nanotubes, dendrimers, liposomes, nanoemulsions, and polymeric and inorganic nanoparticles represent some of the most representative examples of the main nanosystems designed for their use in biomedicine.

Great efforts have been made in order to develop new functional nanomaterials useful for bio-applications, such as diagnosis, therapy, drug delivery, tissue engineering, antimicrobial devices, etc. To reach this goal, nanoparticle surfaces can be opportunely tuned in order to improve their bio-compatibility and their performances in specific conditions and/or targets. The use of biocompatible, biodegradable natural or synthetic polymers together with the functionalization with specific ligands and/or biomolecules is an elegant manner to improve the targeted activity of nanoparticles.

The aim of this Special Issue is to publish high quality research papers focusing on the design and application of opportune and novel functional nanosystems for biomedical applications. A particular focus should be addressed, but not limited, to nanoparticles design, coating, and surface functionalization to improve their specific application in biomedicine.

Dr. Marzia Marciello
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Nanoparticles
  • bio- polymers
  • synthesis
  • bio-medicine
  • surface functionalization
  • drug-targeting
  • diagnosis
  • therapy
  • nanobiotechnology

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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17 pages, 2354 KiB  
Article
Ionotropic Gelation-Based Synthesis of Chitosan-Metal Hybrid Nanoparticles Showing Combined Antimicrobial and Tissue Regenerative Activities
by Laura Lozano Chamizo, Yurena Luengo Morato, Karina Ovejero Paredes, Rafael Contreras Caceres, Marco Filice and Marzia Marciello
Polymers 2021, 13(22), 3910; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13223910 - 12 Nov 2021
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3203
Abstract
The treatment of skin wounds poses significant clinical challenges, including the risk of bacterial infection. In particular due to its antimicrobial and tissue regeneration abilities chitosan (a polymeric biomaterial obtained by the deacetylation of chitin) has received extensive attention for its effectiveness in [...] Read more.
The treatment of skin wounds poses significant clinical challenges, including the risk of bacterial infection. In particular due to its antimicrobial and tissue regeneration abilities chitosan (a polymeric biomaterial obtained by the deacetylation of chitin) has received extensive attention for its effectiveness in promoting skin wound repair. On the other hand, due to their intrinsic characteristics, metal nanoparticles (e.g., silver (Ag), gold (Au) or iron oxide (Fe3O4)) have demonstrated therapeutic properties potentially useful in the field of skin care. Therefore, the combination of these two promising materials (chitosan plus metal oxide NPs) could permit the achievement of a promising nanohybrid with enhanced properties that could be applied in advanced skin treatment. In this work, we have optimized the synthesis protocol of chitosan/metal hybrid nanoparticles by means of a straightforward synthetic method, ionotropic gelation, which presents a wide set of advantages. The synthesized hybrid NPs have undergone to a full physicochemical characterization. After that, the in vitro antibacterial and tissue regenerative activities of the achieved hybrids have been assessed in comparison to their individual constituent. As result, we have demonstrated the synergistic antibacterial plus the tissue regeneration enhancement of these nanohybrids as a consequence of the fusion between chitosan and metallic nanoparticles, especially in the case of chitosan/Fe3O4 hybrid nanoparticles. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multifunctional Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications)
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Review

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34 pages, 130463 KiB  
Review
Recent Advances in Multimodal Molecular Imaging of Cancer Mediated by Hybrid Magnetic Nanoparticles
by Yurena Luengo Morato, Karina Ovejero Paredes, Laura Lozano Chamizo, Marzia Marciello and Marco Filice
Polymers 2021, 13(17), 2989; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13172989 - 3 Sep 2021
Cited by 35 | Viewed by 9167
Abstract
Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the world, which is why it is so important to make an early and very precise diagnosis to obtain a good prognosis. Thanks to the combination of several imaging modalities in the form of [...] Read more.
Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the world, which is why it is so important to make an early and very precise diagnosis to obtain a good prognosis. Thanks to the combination of several imaging modalities in the form of the multimodal molecular imaging (MI) strategy, a great advance has been made in early diagnosis, in more targeted and personalized therapy, and in the prediction of the results that will be obtained once the anticancer treatment is applied. In this context, magnetic nanoparticles have been positioned as strong candidates for diagnostic agents as they provide very good imaging performance. Furthermore, thanks to their high versatility, when combined with other molecular agents (for example, fluorescent molecules or radioisotopes), they highlight the advantages of several imaging techniques at the same time. These hybrid nanosystems can be also used as multifunctional and/or theranostic systems as they can provide images of the tumor area while they administer drugs and act as therapeutic agents. Therefore, in this review, we selected and identified more than 160 recent articles and reviews and offer a broad overview of the most important concepts that support the synthesis and application of multifunctional magnetic nanoparticles as molecular agents in advanced cancer detection based on the multimodal molecular imaging approach. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multifunctional Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications)
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17 pages, 8832 KiB  
Review
Functionalized Chitosan Nanomaterials: A Jammer for Quorum Sensing
by Moupriya Nag, Dibyajit Lahiri, Dipro Mukherjee, Ritwik Banerjee, Sayantani Garai, Tanmay Sarkar, Sujay Ghosh, Ankita Dey, Sougata Ghosh, Smaranika Pattnaik, Hisham Atan Edinur, Zulhisyam Abdul Kari, Siddhartha Pati and Rina Rani Ray
Polymers 2021, 13(15), 2533; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13152533 - 30 Jul 2021
Cited by 35 | Viewed by 5679
Abstract
The biggest challenge in the present-day healthcare scenario is the rapid emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance due to the rampant use of antibiotics in daily therapeutics. Such drug resistance is associated with the enhancement of microbial virulence and the acquisition of the [...] Read more.
The biggest challenge in the present-day healthcare scenario is the rapid emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance due to the rampant use of antibiotics in daily therapeutics. Such drug resistance is associated with the enhancement of microbial virulence and the acquisition of the ability to evade the host’s immune response under the shelter of a biofilm. Quorum sensing (QS) is the mechanism by which the microbial colonies in a biofilm modulate and intercept communication without direct interaction. Hence, the eradication of biofilms through hindering this communication will lead to the successful management of drug resistance and may be a novel target for antimicrobial chemotherapy. Chitosan shows microbicidal activities by acting electrostatically with its positively charged amino groups, which interact with anionic moieties on microbial species, causing enhanced membrane permeability and eventual cell death. Therefore, nanoparticles (NPs) prepared with chitosan possess a positive surface charge and mucoadhesive properties that can adhere to microbial mucus membranes and release their drug load in a constant release manner. As the success in therapeutics depends on the targeted delivery of drugs, chitosan nanomaterial, which displays low toxicity, can be safely used for eradicating a biofilm through attenuating the quorum sensing (QS). Since the anti-biofilm potential of chitosan and its nano-derivatives are reported for various microorganisms, these can be used as attractive tools for combating chronic infections and for the preparation of functionalized nanomaterials for different medical devices, such as orthodontic appliances. This mini-review focuses on the mechanism of the downregulation of quorum sensing using functionalized chitosan nanomaterials and the future prospects of its applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multifunctional Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications)
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34 pages, 2812 KiB  
Review
Potential Role of Nanoparticles in Treating the Accumulation of Amyloid-Beta Peptide in Alzheimer’s Patients
by Mohamed Abbas
Polymers 2021, 13(7), 1051; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13071051 - 27 Mar 2021
Cited by 37 | Viewed by 7019
Abstract
The disorder of Alzheimer’s is marked by progressive pathophysiological neurodegeneration. The amino acid peptides in the amyloid plaques found in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are known as amyloid-beta (Aβ). Current treatments are not curative, and the effects associated with [...] Read more.
The disorder of Alzheimer’s is marked by progressive pathophysiological neurodegeneration. The amino acid peptides in the amyloid plaques found in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are known as amyloid-beta (Aβ). Current treatments are not curative, and the effects associated with AD are reduced. Improving treatment results involved the targeting of drugs at optimum therapeutic concentration. Nanotechnology is seen as an unconventional, modern technology that plays a key role in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. Using nanoparticles, molecular detection, effective drug targeting, and their combination offer high sensitivity. The aim of this review is to shed light on the function and successful role of nanoparticles to resolve Aβ aggregation and thus to help cure Alzheimer’s disease. The analysis divides these nanoparticles into three categories: polymer, lipid, and gold nanoparticles. A thorough comparison was then made between the nanoparticles, which are used according to their role, properties, and size in the procedure. The nanoparticles can prevent the accumulation of Aβ during the efficient delivery of the drug to the cells to treat Alzheimer’s disease. Furthermore, this comparison demonstrated the ability of these nanoparticles to deal efficiently with Alzheimer’s disease. The role of these nanoparticles varied from delivering the drug to brain cells to dealing with the disease-causing peptide. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multifunctional Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications)
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41 pages, 6052 KiB  
Review
Polymer Nanoparticles and Nanomotors Modified by DNA/RNA Aptamers and Antibodies in Targeted Therapy of Cancer
by Veronika Subjakova, Veronika Oravczova and Tibor Hianik
Polymers 2021, 13(3), 341; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13030341 - 21 Jan 2021
Cited by 41 | Viewed by 7564
Abstract
Polymer nanoparticles and nano/micromotors are novel nanostructures that are of increased interest especially in the diagnosis and therapy of cancer. These structures are modified by antibodies or nucleic acid aptamers and can recognize the cancer markers at the membrane of the cancer cells [...] Read more.
Polymer nanoparticles and nano/micromotors are novel nanostructures that are of increased interest especially in the diagnosis and therapy of cancer. These structures are modified by antibodies or nucleic acid aptamers and can recognize the cancer markers at the membrane of the cancer cells or in the intracellular side. They can serve as a cargo for targeted transport of drugs or nucleic acids in chemo- immuno- or gene therapy. The various mechanisms, such as enzyme, ultrasound, magnetic, electrical, or light, served as a driving force for nano/micromotors, allowing their transport into the cells. This review is focused on the recent achievements in the development of polymer nanoparticles and nano/micromotors modified by antibodies and nucleic acid aptamers. The methods of preparation of polymer nanoparticles, their structure and properties are provided together with those for synthesis and the application of nano/micromotors. The various mechanisms of the driving of nano/micromotors such as chemical, light, ultrasound, electric and magnetic fields are explained. The targeting drug delivery is based on the modification of nanostructures by receptors such as nucleic acid aptamers and antibodies. Special focus is therefore on the method of selection aptamers for recognition cancer markers as well as on the comparison of the properties of nucleic acid aptamers and antibodies. The methods of immobilization of aptamers at the nanoparticles and nano/micromotors are provided. Examples of applications of polymer nanoparticles and nano/micromotors in targeted delivery and in controlled drug release are presented. The future perspectives of biomimetic nanostructures in personalized nanomedicine are also discussed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multifunctional Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications)
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