Nanomedicine Research Journal
Volume:3 Issue: 2, Spring 2018

Curcumin, a plant alkaloid from Curcuma longa, possess antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Recently, the antidepressant activities of curcumin were reported. Nevertheless, bioavailability of curcumin limits its therapeutic utility. Nanotechnology is a developing field that potentially enhances bioavailability and the plasma concentration of curcumin. This study investigates effect of acute intraperitoneal (i.p.) curcumin C3 complex nanoparticles on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced depressive-like behavior in a mouse model. Depression-like behavior was induced by LPS (0.83 mg/kg, i.p.). Twenty four hrs later, immobility time in forced-swimming test (FST) and tail suspension test (TST) was recorded as depression-like index. Locomotor activity also was evaluated in open field test (OFT). Curcumin and nanocurcumin were administered 75 min prior to the behavioral assessments. LPS-treated mice remained considerably more immobile in FST and TST (P<0.01). On the other hand, nanocurcumin at doses 40 and 80 mg/kg, i.p., P Acute administration of nanocurcumin and curcumin reduced the index of immobility in FST and TST without influencing the general locomotor activity in OFT. Notably, nanocurcumin at lower doses compared with curcumin decreased the immobility figure in a dose-dependent manner. This neuroprotive effect of nanocurcumin would be related to its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties as well as modulation of neurotransmitter levels in the brain.

Due to nanocomposites antimicrobial properties, one of the most extensive usages of nano-products is in packing industry. Thus, the production of packages with nanotechnology can effectively prevent against a variety of microorganisms. In this study, the silicon dioxide nanoparticles the poly (lactic acid) PLA films on antimicrobial and permeability was investigated. In order to measure the effect of antibacterial nano-covers, the direct contact of 1%, 3% and 5% silicon dioxide nanoparticles was used. Furthermore, the sample was contaminated with standard strains of gram-negative (Escherichia coli –code of 1399 (ATCC 25992)) and bacteria gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus–code of 1431 (ATCC 25923)) provided. Diameters of inhibition zones were measured after 24 h incubation of plates at 37 °C, by using Digital Caliper. Also, the water vapor permeability was investigated according to ASTM E96 and oxygen standards according to ASTM D 3985 standard from film surface. Comparison the mean diameter of the inhibition zone of Escherichia coli, PLA containing 3% silicon dioxide with PLA film containing 5% silica showed no significant difference between the two groups (P> 0.05) as well as, the average diameter of Staphylococcus aureus (P> 0.05). The results showed that the permeability compared to water vapor and oxygen vapor in pure PLA films with PLA containing 1%, 3% and 5% silicon dioxide showed a significant difference (P <0.05). PLA /nanocomposite SiO2 films have been identified as the most efficient cover in reducing the microbial load and have been useful as active antimicrobial nanopackaging.

In this work, Ginkgo biloba extract (GBE) loaded solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) were synthesized via high pressure homogenization method and their physicochemical properties, as well as cytotoxicity and antibacterial activities were evaluated. Ginkgo biloba extract SLNs (GBE-SLNs) were prepared using high pressure homogenization method. The morphology and size of SLNs were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS) techniques. The drug release of SLNs was also investigated using synthetic dialysis membrane. The antibacterial activity of nanoparticles was tested against both gram negative and gram positive bacteria strains. The probability of having toxicity of SLNs was studied on the rabbits. The spherical structure of GBE-SLNs was confirmed by SEM images. The mean particle size of the obtained SLNs was ranging from 104 to 621 nm for different formulations using DLS technique. An in-vitro study of synthesized SLNs illustrated that the percentage of ginkgo biloba released from the solid lipid nanoparticles was 85% of loaded GBE after 72 hours. There was no report of significant skin toxicity via in-vivo studies. According to the above results, SLNs loaded with ginkgo extract showed acceptable particle size and shape, suitable loading of active substance and sustained release profile as well as appropriate antimicrobial effects without any significant skin toxicity.

This study was aimed to evaluate the effect of chitosan-zinc oxide (CH-ZnO) film containing pomegranate peel extract (PPE; 0.5, 1 and 1.5%) on survival of Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus in raw rainbow trout fillets during refrigerated storage for 12 days. Total polyphenolic contents of CH-ZnO films containing different concentrations of methanolic PPE were determined with Folin-Ciocalteu reagent. In order to enumerate the inoculated pathogenic bacteria in raw rainbow trout fillets, Palcam Listeria selective agar (L. monocytogenes, incubated at 30 °C for 48 h) and Baird Parker agar (S. aureus, incubated at 37 °C for 48 h) were used. Total phenolic content of CH-ZnO enriched with PPE was recorded to be 72-139 mg gallic acid/g film. For un-treated samples, the initially recorded population of 5 log CFU/g of L. monocytogenes and S. aureus were reached 5.36 and 3.03 log CFU/g at the end of designated study period, respectively. There were significant differences between samples packed with CH-ZnO films enriched with different concentrations of PPE (0.5, 1 and 1.5%) and untreated ones (P < 0.05). In both samples treated with 1 and 1.5% PPE, the final bacterial population were reached below 1 log CFU/g at the end of storage period. The results of the present study indicate a potential use of CH-ZnO film enriched with PPE as an effective type of antimicrobial packaging to inhibit the growth of L. monocytogenes and S. aureus in raw rainbow trout fillets.

The purpose of this study was investigation of the protein corona formation on the surface of zwitterionic nanoparticles when they exposed to bio-fluid like human plasma. Silica nanoparticles with zwitterionic surface coating, cysteine and sulfobetaine were employed as zwitterionic ligands, were synthesized and characterized in terms of physicochemical properties. To probe protein corona formation, synthesized nanoparticles were incubated at 37 °C for 1h in human plasma solutions (10 and 55% (v/v)). Our results show no significant changes in size and zeta potential of nanoparticles after treatment with human plasma and elimination of loosely attached proteins. The size of zwitterionic nanoparticles after incubation with human plasma remained around 100 nm and their zeta potential was near zero. The results from gel-electrophoresis and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry of nanoparticles after incubation with plasma proved that zwitterionic nanoparticles are non-interacting with proteins. Our observations confirm the hypothesis that zwitterionic surface modified nanoparticles could provide the potential to regulate the interaction of the nanomaterials with biological systems and successfully overcome the protein corona issue in the field of nanomedicine.

Nowadays, tendency to use green materials can reduce environmental pollution and plastic waste. Poly (lactic Acid) PLA is one of the natural biodegradable polymers mainly used in the production of bioplastics for packaging which is made of non-toxic compounds and is easily biodegradable. In this research, the effect of 1, 3 and 5% nanocomposite zinc oxide on the morphological, mechanical properties and chemicals interaction of poly-lactic acid films was investigated. To study morphological structure of nanocomposites, scanning electron microscope (SEM) was used. For evaluating the mechanical properties of films, tensile strength, elongation at break and young's modulus were measured by the ASTM D882 standard. Also, The Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) spectrum of films with PERKIN ELMER 1650, FT-IR spectrophotometer was recorded. Morphological shows that zinc oxide nanoparticles are well distributed in polymer matrix in all nanocomposite samples. It is clear from the result of mechanical properties that the Young’s modulus was increased significantly (p<0.05) when the percentage of zinc oxide in the poly-lactic acid film increased from 1% to 5%. The tensile strength values of films zinc oxide nanocomposites were significantly (p <0.05) less than the control film. Also, elongation at break was no statistically significant. In the investigation of FTIR spectra, the percentage of created bonds between nanozinc oxide and poly lactic acid are increased by enhancing the percentage of nanozinc oxide. Due to the good functional mechanical and morphological properties of PLA-nanozinc oxide films, they can be employed for various packaging.

In this paper, a fast and sensitive localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) based biosensor was developed and the optimization of gold – antibody conjugates through investigation of different parameters were performed. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) with a size of ~20 nm were synthesized via chemical reduction of HAuCl4 with trisodium citrate as reducing and stabilizing agent. The impacts of pH of gold colloids and antibody concentrations on conjugation of electrostatically absorbed antibodies on the AuNPs surface were evaluated. The diverse amounts of antigens were added to the selected gold – antibody conjugate and the calibration curve and limit of detection of the system were successfully obtained. The UV- Vis and DLS outputs were utilized to prove the efficiency and repeatability of the system. As a result, the designed biosensor shows a convincing LOD of 400 ng/ml of antigen. It is suggested that electrostatic absorption strategy of AuNPs with negative charge to the positively charged antibodies can be an efficient methodology. Results showed an effective LSPR system for detection of small amounts of antigen in short time as well as with high accuracy.

The aim of this study was to improve different characteristics including antibacterial, antioxidant and physical properties of nanochitosan film by incorporating Mentha spicata essential oil (EO) and methanolic pomegranate peel and grape seed extracts. The determination of the chemical composition of M. spicata EO was conducted by means of gas chromatography with mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Thickness, color, in-vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of prepared films were evaluated.      The most abundant constituents of M. spicata EO were carvone (78.76%), limonene (11.50%) and β-bourbonene (11.23%). The thickness of designated films and straight chitosan film were similar, however, the increasing value was observed for films containing M. spicata EO, pomegranate peel and grape seed extracts (P > 0.05). The lower lightness, higher redness and consequently a darker color was found in film incorporated with methanolic pomegranate peel and grape seed extracts. The highest antioxidant activity was found in nanochitosan enriched with the EO and grape seed extract. The antibacterial activities of all extracts and the EO were in the order: M. spicata EO > grape extract > pomegranate peel extract. The nanochitosan film incorporated with EO and extracts have shown good antibacterial and antioxidant activities which can be barrier against microbial and chemical contamination in food industries.