RESUMO
Therapeutic drug delivery systems using polymeric materials is an emerging field of research. However, the use of certain polymers has gained much-needed attention by the researchers due to their low toxic nature. In recent years, chitosan has gained popularity as a potential biodegradable polymer that can be used as a component in drug delivery systems. In this study, we synthesized a chitosan derivative that is composed of both folic acid and zinc and may serve as a viable component of a drug delivery system. The results of Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), solid-state 13C Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (NMR) and UV-visible Spectroscopy demonstrated a substantial difference between chitosan and ZnS/Chitosan-Folic acid derivative. The results were also confirmed using Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) and Scanning Electron Microscopy/Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) techniques. The average particle size of the ZnS/Chitosan-Folic acid system was measured to be 463.67 ± 5.76 nm, showing that the product is within the nano-size range.
RESUMO
Prostate Cancer (CaP) is rapidly becoming a worldwide health issue. While CaP mortality has decreased in recent years, coincident with the widespread use of Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) screening, it remains the most common solid tumor in men and is the second leading cause of cancer death in the United States. The frequency of CaP is growing not only in western cultures, but also its incidence is dramatically increasing in eastern nations. Recently, examination of data from long-term trials and follow up has cast a shadow on the effectiveness of employing PSA as a primary screening tool for CaP. In this review, we not only summarize opinions from this examination and synthesize recommendations from several groups that suggest strategies for utilizing PSA as a tool, but also call for research into biomarkers for CaP diagnosis and disease progression. We also describe our recent work that identified a smooth muscle contractile protein in prostate epithelia, namely smooth muscle gamma actin, and indicate the potential for this molecule as a new unique footprint and as a CaP marker.
RESUMO
The single walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were effectively functionalized through grafting with chitosan (CTS) and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA). Prior to grafting reaction, the carboxylated SWNCTs (SWNCTs-COOH) were obtained by treating pristine CNTs with a mixture of 3:1 (v/v) H(2)SO(4) and HNO(3), and the successive treatment of SWNCTs-COOH with SOCl(2) yielded the acylated CNTs (CNTs-COCl). The functionalized derivatives of CNTs were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. Both CTS and PMMA grafted CNTs showed better dispersability in acetic acid and tetrahydrofuran, in addition to higher stability in solution.
