Construction of highly stable selenium nanoparticles embedded in hollow nanofibers of polysaccharide and their antitumor activities

Nanotechnologies have been exploited to develop safe and effective medicines and pharmaceuticals.In the present study,a novel functional nanomedicine constructed from a bioactive polysaccharide and selenium nanoparficles （SeNPs） was developed.A highly-branched [3-（1→3）-D-glucan （AF1） with high anti-tumor activity was used to self-assemble hollow nanofibers with an apparent average diameter of 92 nm;Se nanopartides were synthesized via the reduction of sodium selenite.The results of light scattering,transmission electron microscopy,and X-ray diffraction demonstrated that the spherical SeNPs with a mean diameter of 46 nm were entrapped in the cavities of the AF1 hollow nanofibers through the formation of Se-O bonds between SeNPs and AF1,leading to the good dispersion and high stability in water for over 16 months.In vitro and in vivo assays indicated that the AF1-Se nanocomposite had higher anti-tumor activities against breast cancer.Furthermore,AF1-Se displayed a broad-spectrum inhibition against human cancers with low half maximal inhibitory concentration （IC50） values and low toxicity to normal cells.Particularly,the inhibition ratio of AF1-Se against MCF-7 cancer cells reached 75% at a concentration of 200 μg.mL-1 with 29 μM Se content,much higher than that by treatment with AF1 alone,suggesting a strong synergic effect and nano impact.Overall,we developed a method for increasing the stability,anti-tumor activity,and safety of SeNPs by wrapping with bioactive polysaccharides.

Effect of Porous Activated Charcoal Reinforcement on Mechanical and In-Vitro Biological Properties of Polyvinyl Alcohol Composite Scaffolds

The present work focused on developing an innovative composite material by reinforcing polymer matrix with highly porous activated charcoal. Polyvinyl alcohol-activated charcoal（PVA-AC） composite scaffolds were developed by varying the AC concentrations（0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2 and 2.5 wt%） in PVA matrix by freeze drying method. The developed scaffolds were characterized for their physicochemical, mechanical and in-vitro biological properties. In addition, the effect of AC on the attachment, proliferation and differentiation of osteoblast MG 63 cells was evaluated by scanning electron microscopy（SEM）, 3-（4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl）-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide（MTT） assay, alkaline phosphatase（ALP） activity assay and alizarin red stain-based（ARS） assay. All the PVA-AC composite scaffolds exhibited good bioactivity, hemocompatibility and protein adsorption properties. The scaffolds with high AC concentration（2.5 wt%） showed controlled drug release kinetics that are suitable for long term healing. The mechanical properties of all the PVA-AC composite scaffolds were improved when compared to the pure PVA scaffold. The high porosity, swelling degree and hydrophilicity of PVA-AC composite scaffolds facilitated cell attachment and proliferation. This is due to porous AC present in the sample that supported the osteoblast differentiation and formed mineralized nodules without the addition of any extra agents. From the above studies, it can be concluded that PVA-AC composite scaffolds are promising biomaterials for bone tissue engineering applications.