Nanoporous hydrogel absorbent based on salep: Swelling behavior and methyl orange adsorption capacity.

This study used the gas-blowing method to develop a nanoporous hydrogel using poly (3-sulfopropyl acrylate-co-acrylic acid-co-acrylamide) grafted onto salep. The synthesis of the nanoporous hydrogel was optimized by various parameters for maximum swelling capacity. The nanoporous hydrogel was characterized using FT-IR, TGA, XRD, TEM, and SEM analyses. Images from SEM showed numerous pores and channels in the hydrogel with an average size of about 80 nm, forming a honeycomb-like shape. The change in surface charge was investigated by zeta potential and revealed that the surface charge of the hydrogel ranged from 20 mV at acidic conditions to -25 mV at basic conditions. The swelling behavior of optimum superabsorbent hydrogel was determined under different environmental conditions, such as different pH values, ionic strengths of the environment, and solvents. In addition, the swelling kinetics and the absorbance under loading of the hydrogel sample in different environments were investigated. Moreover, Methyl Orange (MO) dye was removed from aqueous solutions using the nanoporous hydrogel as an adsorbent. The adsorption behavior of the hydrogel was examined under various conditions, and the adsorption capacity of the hydrogel was found tobe 400 mg g-1. The maximum water uptake was obtained under the following conditions: Salep weight = 0.01 g, AA = 60 µL, MBA = 300 µL, APS = 60 µL, TEMED = 90 µL, AAm = 600 µL, and SPAK = 90 µL. Lastly, the adsorption kinetics was studied by employing pseudo-first-order, pseudo-second-order, and intra-particle diffusion models.

Capability of novel fluorescence DNA-conjugated CdTe/ZnS quantum dots nanoprobe for COVID-19 sensing.

Urgent identification of COVID-19 in infected patients is highly important nowadays. Förster or fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) is a powerful and sensitive method for nanosensing applications, and quantum dots are essential materials in FRET-based nanosensors. The QDs are conjugated to DNA or RNA and used in many applications. Therefore, in the present study, novel fluorescence DNA-conjugated CdTe/ZnS quantum dots nanoprobe designed for detection of Covid-19 after extracting their RNA from saliva of hesitant people. For achieving this purpose, the water-soluble CdTe/ZnS QDs-DNA prepared via replacing the thioglycolic acid (TGA) on the surface of QDs with capture DNA (thiolated DNA) throw a ligand-exchange method. Subsequently, by adding the different concentrations of complementary (target DNA) in a mixture of quencher DNA (BHQ2-labeled DNA) and the QDs-DNA conjugates at different conditions, sandwiched hybrids were formed. The results showed that the fluorescence intensity was decreased with increasing the concentration of target DNA (as a positive control). The linear equation and regression (Y = 40.302 X  + 1 and R2 = 0.98) were obtained by using the Stern-Volmer relationship. The Limit of detection (LOD) was determined 0.000823 µM. The achieved results well confirm the outcomes of the RT-PCR method in real samples.

Fabrication of a nanomaterial-based fluorescence sensor constructed from ligand capped CdTe quantum dots for ultrasensitive and rapid detection of silver ions in aqueous samples.

In this study, CdTe QDs were prepared in aqueous medium and then capped with a synthetic heterocycle ligand (CdTe/L QDs) via surface modification method. Characterization of synthesized CdTe/L QDs was carried out through various analytical techniques including fluorescence spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), UV-Vis spectrophotometry, thermo-gravimetric (TG) analysis and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR). The fluorescence intensity of the CdTe/L QDs at 520 nm (excitation at 380 nm) was selectively quenched in the presence of trace amounts of silver ions. CdTe/L QDs were utilized as an ultrasensitive and selective fluorescent sensor for determination of trace concentrations of silver ions with a detection limit of 6.12 ±â€¯0.11 × 10-10 mol L-1 and a linear range of 2.04 ±â€¯0.10 × 10-9 mol L-1-3.63 ±â€¯0.12 × 10-7 mol L-1. The fabricated optical sensor was also used for the measurement of silver ions in real water samples which yielded satisfactory analytical results. These results were also evaluated with inductively coupled plasma emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). This study shows that CdTe/L QDs could have potential applications in selective and sensitive analysis of different water samples for detection of silver ions.

Ligand-Capped CdTe Quantum Dots as a Fluorescent Nanosensor for Detection of Copper Ions in Environmental Water Sample.

In this work, as a novel fluorescent nano-sensor, a ligand-capped CdTe QDs (CdTe-L QDs) was designed for the detection and quantification of Cu2+ ions in environmental water samples. The synthesized QDs were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), thermo-gravimetric (TG) analysis, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), UV-Vis spectrophotometry and fluorescence spectroscopy. Optical properties of the produced nanosensor were monitored by UV-Vis and fluorescence spectrophotometry. It was observed that fluorescence intensity of the produced nano-sensor selectively quenched by adding Cu2+ ions in comparison to other metal ions tested. Using CdTe-L QDs, a rapid and facile analytical method was developed to determine Cu2+ ions in the concentration range of 5.16 ± 0.07 × 10- 8 mol L- 1-1.50 ± 0.03 × 10- 5 mol L- 1 with a detection limit of 1.55 ± 0.05 × 10- 8 mol L- 1. The nanosensor was successfully applied for the determination of Cu2+ ions in various water samples, and the results were compared with the standard method. Graphical Abstract.

Investigation of Size and Morphology of Chitosan Nanoparticles Used in Drug Delivery System Employing Chemometric Technique.

The polymeric nanoparticles are prepared from biocompatible polymers in size between 10-1000 nm. Chitosan is a biocompatible polymer that - can be utilized as drug delivery systems. In this study, chitosan nanoparticles were synthesized using an optimized spontaneous emulsification method. Determining particle size and morphology are two critical parameters in nanotechnology. The aim of this study is to introduce methodology based on relation between particle size and diffuse reflectance infrared fourier transform (DRIFT) spectroscopy technique. Partial least squares (PLS) technique was used to estimate the average particle size based on DRIFT spectra. Forty two different chitosan nanoparticle samples with different particle sizes were analyzed using DRIFT spectrometry and the obtained data were processed by PLS. Results obtained from the real samples were compared to those obtained using field emission scanning electron microscope(FE-SEM) as a reference method. It was observed that PLS could correctly predict the average particle size of synthesized sample. Nanoparticles and their morphological state were determined by FE-SEM. Based on morphological characteristics analyzing with proposed method the samples were separated into two groups of "appropriate" and "inappropriate". Chemometrics methods such as principal component analysis, cluster analysis (CA) and linear discriminate analysis (LDA) were used to classify chitosan nanoparticles in terms of morphology. The percent of correctly classified samples using LDA were 100 %and 90% for training and test sets, respectively.

Preparation and optimization of chitosan nanoparticles and magnetic chitosan nanoparticles as delivery systems using Box-Behnken statistical design.

Chitosan nanoparticles and magnetic chitosan nanoparticles can be applied as delivery systems for the anti-Alzheimer drug tacrine. Investigation was carried out to elucidate the influence of process parameters on the mean particle size of chitosan nanoparticles produced by spontaneous emulsification. The method was optimized using design of experiments (DOE) by employing a 3-factor, 3-level Box-Behnken statistical design. This statistical design is used in order to achieve the minimum size and suitable morphology of nanoparticles. Also, magnetic chitosan nanoparticles were synthesized according to optimal method. The designed nanoparticles have average particle size from 33.64 to 74.87nm, which were determined by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM). Drug loading in the nanoparticles as drug delivery systems has been done according to the presented optimal method and appropriate capacity of drug loading was shown by ultraviolet spectrophotometry. Chitosan and magnetic chitosan nanoparticles as drug delivery systems were characterized by Diffuse Reflectance Fourier Transform Mid Infrared spectroscopy (DR-FTMIR).