Now showing 1 - 10 of 19
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    Graphene oxide increases corneal permeation of ciprofloxacin hydrochloride from oleogels: A study with cocoa butter-based oleogels
    (2020-12-01)
    Qureshi, Dilshad
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    Choudhary, Barbiee
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    Mohanty, Biswaranjan
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    Sarkar, Preetam
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    Anis, Arfat
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    Cerqueira, Miguel A.
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    Maji, Samarendra
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    Pal, Kunal
    In this work, oleogels of cocoa butter (CB), rice bran oil (RBO), and graphene oxide (GO) were prepared. The prepared oleogels were subjected to various characterization techniques such as bright-field microscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), crystallization kinetics, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and mechanical studies. The influence of increasing GO content on the in vitro drug release and ex vivo corneal permeation of the model drug (ciprofloxacin HCl—CPH) from the oleogels was also investigated. Bright-field micrographs showed that increment in GO content reduced the size of the globular particles of CB. XRD analysis revealed that CB was crystallized in its β’ and β polymorphic forms in the oleogels, which was in agreement with thermal studies. The mechanical characterization demonstrated that the presence of GO improved the elastic nature and stress-bearing properties of the oleogels. Moreover, GO altered the crystallization kinetics of CB in the oleogels in a composition-dependent manner. The in vitro release of CPH from the oleogels occurred through either Fickian diffusion or fat network relaxation or a combination thereof. Furthermore, the inclusion of GO enhanced the ex vivo permeation of CPH molecules across the caprine cornea. Hence, we concluded that the prepared oleogels could be explored as potential delivery systems for ophthalmic applications.
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    AI in angiogenesis: moving towards designer vasculature
    (2023-01-01)
    Pradhan, Bikash K.
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    Saha, Sahely
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    Pal, Kunal
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    The present approach of creating vasculature inside the scaffold or engineered tissue majorly relies on the use of cues from angiogenesis or vasculogenesis. In the recent years, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) have emerged as very powerful tool to analyze and predict various complex biological processes. In tissue engineering also, people have started using AIML extensively for material discovery and selection, scaffold designing, material composition, and process parameter optimization and for predicting the performance of the engineered tissue. This chapter provides a comprehensive picture of the potential application of AI in creating customized vasculature through angiogenesis and vasculogenesis. We also discussed the different models of AI that are used for the designing and developing of engineered tissue for analyzing vasculature and angiogenesis. Subsequently, we presented the concepts of designer vasculature and technical advances in this area with a conclusion on future directives for the research.
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    Review of Photoresponsive Plasmonic Nanoparticles That Produce Reactive Chemical Species for Photodynamic Therapy of Cancer and Bacterial Infections
    (2023-02-10)
    Singh, Shubham Kumar
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    Mazumder, Sarmistha
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    Vincy, Antony
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    Hiremath, Netra
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    Kumar, Rahul
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    Increased use of classical drug therapy, including the administration of antibiotics and anticancer drugs, has led to multidrug resistance. Overcoming this resistance requires alternative therapies. Photodynamic therapy is used extensively to combat numerous ailments by killing cells by producing reactive chemical species (RCS). Plasmonic nanomaterials are excellent candidates for bactericidal and neoplastic agents due to their specialized optical properties and capacity to generate RCS. Plasmonic nanomaterials are in great demand for drug delivery, medical diagnostic applications, electronic semiconductors, biomolecular sensing, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, enhancement of materials, and catalysis. This review focuses on plasmonic nanoparticle therapy for bacterial infections and cancers. In particular, mechanisms for RCS formation, toxicity, immunogenicity, and biodegradability of plasmonic nanomaterials are discussed. These materials may become important agents for treating bacterial infections and cancer in the near future, in combination with proper targeting agents and conjugation with biocompatible molecules.
    Scopus© Citations 21
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    Analysis of heart rate variability to understand the effect of cannabis consumption on Indian male paddy-field workers
    (2020-09-01)
    Nayak, Suraj K.
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    Pradhan, Bikash K.
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    Pal, Kunal
    The consumption of cannabis-based products is increasing worldwide day-by-day because of their euphoric effects. Numerous studies have reported the incidence of cardiovascular diseases and even mortality in people consuming cannabis. However, not much attention has been paid to understand the cannabis-induced alteration in the autonomic nervous system (ANS) activity, which can help in the early diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases. The current study investigated the alteration in the ANS activity of 200 Indian male volunteers due to the consumption of bhang (a cannabis-based product) using heart rate variability (HRV) analysis. The results suggested a reduction in the variability of the heart rate, increased sympathetic dominance, and a corresponding reduction in the parasympathetic activity in the bhang consuming population, which may lead to various cardiovascular diseases. These inferences can act as evidence for counseling people to stop consuming cannabis. The study further proposes a machine learning model for automated identification of the bhang consuming population. The HRV parameters were subjected to weight-based feature ranking and dimension reduction methods to select suitable inputs for the machine learning models. After comparing the performances of the Naïve Bayes (NB), Generalized Linear Model (GLM), Linear Regression (LR), Fast Large Margin (FLM), Deep Learning (DL), Decision Tree (DT), Random Forest (RF), Gradient Boosted Tree (GBT), and Support Vector Machine (SVM), a GBT model was finally chosen as the best model.
    Scopus© Citations 12
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    Graphene oxide reinforced nanocomposite oleogels improves corneal permeation of drugs
    (2020-12-01)
    Hasda, Anand Mohan
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    Vuppaladadium, Shanmuga Sharan Rathnam
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    Qureshi, Dilshad
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    Prasad, Girija
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    Mohanty, Biswaranjan
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    Shaikh, Hamid
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    Anis, Arfat
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    Sarkar, Preetam
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    Pal, Kunal
    The research on ocular drug delivery (ODD) has attracted a continual interest of researchers in the last decade. Herein, we propose to develop oleogel-based formulations for ODD applications. A series of novel nanocomposite oleogels of groundnut oil (GNO) and stearic acid (SA) were prepared, which contained graphene oxide (GO) in the concentration range of 0.00 wt% and 0.05 wt%. The pristine oleogel appeared yellowish-white. However, an increment in the GO content correspondingly imparted a black color hue to the oleogels. Confocal microscopy suggested a considerable branching of the fibrillar network of the fat crystals at lower concentrations of GO. FTIR spectroscopy revealed that GO did not tailor the interactions among the functional groups that are present within the different components of the oleogels. The X-ray diffraction study suggested that the oleogel with the highest GO content was the most crystalline in nature and had a low lattice strain. The mechanical stability of the oleogels was significantly increased when the GO concentration was >0.015 wt%. Thermal analysis of the oleogels confirmed the crystallization of SA in different polymorphic forms. Furthermore, the thermal stability of the fat network structure was higher in the nanocomposite oleogels. The rate of crystallization of SA was higher in the GO-containing oleogels. In general, the in vitro release and ex vivo corneal permeation of the model antibacterial drug (Ciprofloxacin HCl) from the prepared oleogels was Fickian diffusion mediated. Oleogel that contained 0.015% of GO exhibited a ~2.00 fold increase in the cumulative percentage of drug release. The cumulative percentage of drug permeation through caprine cornea was increased by ~2.00 folds in the oleogel that contained 0.05% of GO. The prepared oleogels were cytocompatible with human mesenchymal stem cells. The drug-loaded oleogels showed good bactericidal activity against E. coli. In conclusion, GNO/SA/GO-based nanocomposite oleogels were found to have the potential to be explored for ODD applications.
    Scopus© Citations 14
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    Gum tragacanth modified nano-hydroxyapatite: An angiogenic- osteogenic biomaterial for bone tissue engineering
    (2022-05-15)
    Dixit, Krishna
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    Kulanthaivel, Senthilguru
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    Agarwal, Tarun
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    Pal, Kunal
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    Giri, Supratim
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    Maiti, T. K.
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    Bone tissue engineering (BTE) is an evolving domain and provides encouraging solution to address the current demands in the orthopaedic healthcare system. However, even a well-exploited biomaterial such as synthetic hydroxyapatite (nHAp) fails to induce ideal bone regeneration in the complex in vivo conditions owing to its poor angiogenic potential. Hence, in addition to the osteogenic property, designing smart biomaterials with intrinsic angiogenic property is key for the success of bone tissue engineering implants. Recently, gum tragacanth (TG) has been testified to imbibe both angiogenic and osteogenic characteristics. In this context, TG functionalized nano-hydroxyapatite (TG-HAp) would be an ideal angiogenic-osteogenic material for BTE application. Here, we have reported the biofunctionalization of nHAp with TG through a silanized nHAp intermediate, and its osteogenic and angiogenic properties. X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed the crystalline apatite phase of HAp. Biofunctionalization of nHAP with TG was confirmed both qualitatively and quantitatively by FTIR and TGA analysis respectively. TEM analysis confirmed the formation of needle shaped nanoparticles having size range (100–300 nm). Biofunctionalization lead to a change in zetapotential of nHAp from – 8.1 mV to 0.1 mV. The existence of multi-layered gum tragacanth on nHAp was confirmed by BET analysis. TG-HAp was found osteogenic when tested invitro using MG-63, (human osteoblast cells) and hMSCs, (human mesenchymal stem cells). Further, TG-HAp was found to increase the cellular VEGF expression in MG-63. Angiogenic property of TG-HAp was confirmed by in vitro tube formation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). The study altogether indicates about the angiogenic and osteogenic potential of synthesized TG-HAp, which may be used as a new biomaterial in bone tissue engineering.
    Scopus© Citations 11
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    Sugarcane Bagasse-Derived Cellulose Nanocrystal/Polyvinyl Alcohol/Gum Tragacanth Composite Film Incorporated with Betel Leaf Extract as a Versatile Biomaterial for Wound Dressing
    (2023-01-01)
    Diem, Luong Ngoc
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    Torgbo, Selorm
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    Pal, Kunal
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    Sukatta, Udomlak
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    Rugthaworn, Prapassorn
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    Sukyai, Prakit
    In this study, nanocomposite film was fabricated using cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) as nanofiller in a polymer matrix of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and gum tragacanth (GT) via solution casting. CNCs were extracted from sugarcane bagasse using a steam explosion technique followed by acid hydrolysis. Initial analysis of CNCs by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) showed nanosized particles of 104 nm in length and 7 nm in width. Physical and chemical characteristics of neat PVA, PVA/GT, and PVA/GT/CNC films with varying concentrations of CNCs (from 2% to 10%) were analyzed by the scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometry, mechanical test, and swelling test. The SEM analysis showed cluster formation of CNCs in the polymer matrix at high concentration. The developed films were transparent. FTIR spectrometry analysis confirmed the chemical functional groups of the various components in the film. The presence of GT and CNCs in the polymer matrix improved the characteristics of films as evident in the prolonged stability for 7 days and increased mechanical properties. The highest elastic modulus of 1526.11 ± 31.86 MPa and tensile strength of 80.39 MPa were recorded in PVA/GT/CNC2 film. The swelling ability, however, decreased from 260% to 230%. Cytotoxicity analysis of the PVA/GT/CNC film showed that it is nontoxic to mouse fibroblast cells L929 with 95% cell viability. Films loaded with betel leaf extract exhibited excellent antibacterial activities against Staphylococcus aureus DMST 8840 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa TISTR 781 with 28.20 ± 0.84 mm and 23.60 ± 0.55 mm inhibition zones, respectively. These results demonstrate that PVA/GT/CNC loaded with the betel leaf extract could act as promising and versatile wound dressings to protect the wound surface from infection and dehydration.
    Scopus© Citations 2
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    Additive manufacturing of polyetheretherketone and its composites: A review
    (2022-09-01)
    Francis, Justy N.
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    Chugh, Ankita
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    Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) is a high-performance plastic with favorable physical, mechanical, chemical, and biological properties for various industrial applications. Most PEEK substrates/components are manufactured using traditional methods like milling, compression molding, injection molding, pressure sintering, and so forth. With the advent of various additive manufacturing (AM) techniques, researchers have been working on optimizing the processing parameters for AM of PEEK. Furthermore, several PEEK composites with improved properties have also been developed, and efforts have also been made to use these PEEK composites in AM. Since AM of PEEK and its composites is a relatively new area of the advanced manufacturing process, the field faces many challenges. There is a dearth of comprehensive reports on this topic. Keeping this perspective in mind, we have tried to collate the relevant information on the composites and AM of PEEK in this review. The review highlighted the influence of variation in composition on material properties and performance of PEEK and showed the correlation with AM processability of such composites. A detailed analysis of the various reports on fused deposition modeling and selective laser sintering based processing of PEEK composites is included in the review. Critical barriers to the AM of these high-performance polymer composites are pointed out. We have also included the outcome of some interesting studies about the coating of PEEK with various materials/compounds to provide a broader perspective. This review will help the researcher to design and develop additively manufactured PEEK-based structures with improved and customized properties.
    Scopus© Citations 21
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    Synthesis of novel poly (vinyl alcohol)/tamarind gum/bentonite-based composite films for drug delivery applications
    (2021-03-20)
    Qureshi, Dilshad
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    Behera, Kiran Prava
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    Mohanty, Debashish
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    Mahapatra, Santosh K.
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    Verma, Sarika
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    Sukyai, Prakit
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    Pal, Sumit K.
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    Mohanty, Biswaranjan
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    Kim, Doman
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    Pal, Kunal
    In this study, a series of novel composite films comprised of poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA), tamarind gum (TG), and bentonite clay particles were prepared using the solvent casting method. The prepared composite films appeared colorless and transparent. Ultraviolet-visible (UV–vis) spectroscopy revealed that the prepared films showed higher absorption in the UV region as compared to the visible region. Bright-field microscopy analysis showed that the matrix of the films contained globular architectures. The analysis of the surface topological features of the prepared films suggested the agglomeration of clay particles in the PVA/TG matrix when the bentonite content was higher. Bentonite-containing films had higher %swelling as compared to the control (PVA/TG) film. FTIR spectroscopy indicated that the incorporation of the bentonite clay enhanced the hydrogen bonding among the components of the films. X-ray diffraction analysis of the films suggested the intercalation of polymer chains within the bentonite clay layers when the bentonite content was lower. However, the filler particles assumed agglomerated forms as the loading concentration of bentonite was increased, which was in agreement with SEM analysis. On the other hand, mechanical studies suggested that above a critical amount (i.e., 20 mg), bentonite weakened the network structure of the films. The resistive component of the films showed a gradual increment with a corresponding rise in the bentonite content. The in vitro release study confirmed that the films loaded with ciprofloxacin HCl supported the sustained diffusion of the drug molecules and hence, can be utilized for controlled drug delivery applications. Moreover, the drug-loaded films showed an effective antimicrobial effect against Gram-positive and Gram-negative microbes as compared to the control films. In gist, the above analyses suggested that the prepared PVA/TG/bentonite films have promising potential to be utilized as drug delivery systems.
    Scopus© Citations 34
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    Smart polymers for biomedical applications
    (2022-01-01)
    Bharti, Deepti
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    Sarkar, Preetam
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    Kim, Doman
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    Pal, Kunal
    Smart polymers (SP) are a class that differs from conventional polymers due to rapid transition in their physicochemical state in response to the external environment. The focused attention of SPs is due to their tunable structural and functional potential. The classification of these polymers is based upon the variety of environmental stimuli. This includes temperature, pH, light, enzymatic reaction, pressure, electric/magnetic field, etc. The properties of SPs can be modified during polymer synthesis through alteration in the chain structure. The smart behavior of these polymers allows their exploration in wide applications, including drug delivery, tissue engineering, tissue repair, and various sensors. Although significant advancements have taken place with SP, there are still a few limitations associated with their use that need to be addressed before their successful utilization. This includes fast responsiveness under in vivo conditions, dose quantification in case of drug delivery applications, biocompatibility, and biodegradability. The current chapter consists of a detailed section of temperature, pH, light, enzymatic sensitive polymer. The selected stimuli are based upon their maximum utilization in the research area, ease of polymer designing, and better effectiveness for placement under in vivo conditions. The chapter also includes the vast application and potential outcomes of these SPs.
    Scopus© Citations 1