Journal of Functional Biomaterials

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Kristiana Kandere-Grzybowska

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

1. Center for Soft and Living Matter, Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Ulsan 44919, Republic of Korea
2. Department of Biomedical Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), 50 UNIST-gil, Ulsan 44919, Republic of Korea
Interests: mixed-charge nanoparticles; selective anticancer effects; targeting lysosome in cancer

Dr. Marta Siek

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Center for Soft and Living Matter, Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Ulsan 44919, Republic of Korea
Interests: electrostatics at all scales; mixed-charge nanomaterials and their interactions with proteins

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The electrostatic properties of nanomaterials, and, thus, their interactions with charged biological interfaces, can be optimized by engineering their surface charge. This Special Issue will collect research articles and high-quality review papers reporting preparation methods, characterization techniques, computational modeling studies, and biological applications of synthetic or biologically derived nanoparticles with tunable surface charge. Concise perspectives defining emerging research questions or teaching new insights from previously published work in the area are also considered.

Materials of interest are those whose surfaces are covered—by covalent functionalization, supramolecular self-assembly, nanoprecipitation, and other methods—with precisely defined mixtures of at least two macromolecules/ligands from which at least one is charged, thus controlling the nanoparticles’ surface charge magnitude, density, distribution, or the balance of on-nanoparticle [+] to [-] functional groups. Authors are encouraged to submit papers of selective interactions of such nanoparticles with the biological system(s), including complex protein mixtures in extracellular fluids (e.g., formation of the biomolecular corona), organelle-specific targeting, or biological effects in in vivo systems, as well as selective anticancer, antibacterial, or antiviral effects.

Some examples of materials of interest include but are not limited to:

Mixed-charge nanoparticles (with various core materials: gold, silver, iron oxide, mesoporous silica, and others);
Surface-charge engineered protein nanoparticles;
Protein-like nanoparticles from mixtures of oppositely charged polymers;
Hybrid nanosystems;
Patchy, striped, Janus nanoparticles;
Catanionic liposomes;
Mixed-charge exosomes.

Dr. Kristiana Kandere-Grzybowska
Dr. Marta Siek
Guest Editors

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. Journal of Functional Biomaterials is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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

pH-responsive nanoparticles
nanosystems
mixed-charge nanocarriers
charge-tunable nanoparticles
nanomaterials
protein corona
biomolecular corona
anticancer
antibacterial
organelle-targeting
antiviral

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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25 pages, 5435 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Adsorption and Release Properties of Drug Delivery System Naproxen-SBA-15: Effect of Surface Polarity, Sodium/Acid Drug Form and pH

by Ľuboš Zauška, Eva Beňová, Martina Urbanová, Jiří Brus, Vladimír Zeleňák, Virginie Hornebecq and Miroslav Almáši

J. Funct. Biomater. 2022, 13(4), 275; https://doi.org/10.3390/jfb13040275 - 5 Dec 2022

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 1771

Abstract

Mesoporous silica SBA-15 was prepared via sol-gel synthesis and functionalized with different types of organosilanes containing various organic functional groups: (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (SBA-15-NH₂), (3-mercaptopropyl)triethoxysilane (SBA-15-SH), triethoxymethylsilane (SBA-15-CH₃), triethoxyphenylsilane (SBA-15-Ph), and (3-isocynatopropyl)triethoxysilane (SBA-15-NCO). The prepared materials were investigated as drug delivery systems for naproxen. As model drugs, naproxen acid (HNAP) and its sodium salt (NaNAP) were used. Mentioned medicaments belong to the group of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). The prepared materials were characterized by different analytical methods such as transmission electron microscopy (TEM), infrared spectroscopy (IR), nitrogen adsorption/desorption analysis (N₂), thermogravimetric analysis (TG), ¹H, ¹³C and ²³Na solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (¹H, ¹³C and ²³Na ss-NMR). The abovementioned analytical techniques confirmed the successful grafting of functional groups to the SBA-15 surface and the adsorption of drugs after the impregnation process. The BET area values decreased from 927 m² g⁻¹ for SBA-15 to 408 m² g⁻¹ for SBA-15-NCO. After drug encapsulation, a more significant decrease in surface area was observed due to the filling of pores with drug molecules, while the most significant decrease was observed for the SBA-15-NH₂ material (115 m² g⁻¹ for NaNAP and 101 m² g⁻¹ for HNAP). By combining TG and nitrogen adsorption results, the occurrence of functional groups and the affinity of drugs to the carriers’ surface were calculated. The dominant factor was the volume of functional groups and intermolecular interactions. The highest drug affinity values were observed for phenyl and amine-modified materials (SBA-15-Ph = 1.379 μmol m⁻² mmol⁻¹ for NaNAP, 1.761 μmol m⁻² mmol⁻¹ for HNAP and SBA-15-NH₂ = 1.343 μmol m⁻² mmol⁻¹ for NaNAP, 1.302 μmol m⁻² mmol⁻¹ for HNAP) due to the formation of hydrogen bonds and π-π interactions, respectively. Drug release properties and kinetic studies were performed at t = 37 °C (normal human body temperature) in different media with pH = 2 as simulated human gastric fluid and pH = 7.4, which simulated a physiological environment. Determination of drug release quantity was performed with UV-VIS spectroscopy. The surface polarity, pH and naproxen form influenced the total released amount of drug. In general, naproxen sodium salt has a higher solubility than its acid form, thus significantly affecting drug release from surface-modified SBA-15 materials. Different pH conditions involved surface protonation and formation/disruption of intermolecular interactions, influencing both the release rate and the total released amount of naproxen. Different kinetic models, zero-order, first-order, Higuchi and Hixson–Crowell models, were used to fit the drug release data. According to the obtained experimental results, the drug release rates and mechanisms were determined. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomedical Applications of Mixed-Charge Nanomaterials)

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18 pages, 3753 KiB

Open AccessPerspective

Tuning the Extracellular Vesicles Membrane through Fusion for Biomedical Applications

by Mamata Karmacharya, Sumit Kumar and Yoon-Kyoung Cho

J. Funct. Biomater. 2023, 14(2), 117; https://doi.org/10.3390/jfb14020117 - 19 Feb 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3549

Abstract

Membrane fusion is one of the key phenomena in the living cell for maintaining the basic function of life. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have the ability to transfer information between cells through plasma membrane fusion, making them a promising tool in diagnostics and therapeutics. This study explores the potential applications of natural membrane vesicles, EVs, and their fusion with liposomes, EVs, and cells and introduces methodologies for enhancing the fusion process. EVs have a high loading capacity, bio-compatibility, and stability, making them ideal for producing effective drugs and diagnostics. The unique properties of fused EVs and the crucial design and development procedures that are necessary to realize their potential as drug carriers and diagnostic tools are also examined. The promise of EVs in various stages of disease management highlights their potential role in future healthcare. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomedical Applications of Mixed-Charge Nanomaterials)

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