Giovanna Bruni

University of Pavia | UNIPV · Department of Chemistry

The NASICON-structured Na3MnZr(PO4)3 compound is a promising high-voltage cathode material for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). In this study, an easy and scalable electrospinning approach was used to synthesize self-standing cathodes based on Na3MnZr(PO4)3 loaded into carbon nanofibers (CNFs). Different strategies were applied to load the active mater...

Scientific and industrial reasons dictate the study of the solid state of imepitoin, a highly safe and tolerable anticonvulsant drug used in the therapy of epileptic dogs that was approved in the Europe Union in 2013. Our investigations allowed us to discover the existence of a new polymorph of imepitoin, which finds itself in a monotropic relation...

The study focuses on the synthesis and characterization of Meloxicam–halloysite nanotube (HNT) composites as a viable approach to enhance the solubility and dissolution rate of meloxicam, a poorly water-soluble drug (BCS class II). Meloxicam is loaded on commercial and modified halloysite (acidic and alkaline etching, or APTES and chitosan function...

Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) is a polymer used in a variety of fields, including medical applications. Here, we aimed to verify if the brush and bar coater deposition techniques did not alter TPU properties. The topography of the TPU-modified surfaces was studied via AFM demonstrating no significant differences between brush and bar coater-modi...

Poorly water-soluble drugs represent a challenge for the pharmaceutical industry because it is necessary to find properly tuned and efficient systems for their release. In this framework, organic–inorganic hybrid systems could represent a promising strategy. A largely diffused inorganic host is hydroxyapatite (HAP, Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2), which is easily...

The design, production, and characterisation of tissue-engineered scaffolds made of polylactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA), polycaprolactone (PCL) and their blends obtained through electrospinning (ES) or solvent casting/particulate leaching (SC) manufacturing techniques are presented here. The polymer blend composition was chosen to always obtain a pr...

Staphylococci are among the most frequent bacteria known to cause biofilm-related infections. Pathogenic biofilms represent a global healthcare challenge due to their high tolerance to antimicrobials. In this study, water soluble polyethylene glycol (PEG)-coated gold nanospheres (28 ppm) and nanostars (15 ppm) with electrostatically adsorbed photos...

Background: To make the regenerative process more effective and efficient, tissue engineering (TE) strategies have been implemented. Three-dimensional scaffolds (electrospun or 3D-printed), due to their suitable designed architecture, offer the proper location of the position of cells, as well as cell adhesion and the deposition of the extracellul...

Hypertrophic scars (HTSs) are pathological structures resulting from chronic inflammation during the wound healing process, particularly in complex injuries like burns. The aim of this work is to propose Biofiber PF (biodegradable fiber loaded with Pirfenidone 1.5 w/w), an electrospun advanced dressing, as a solution for HTSs treatment in complex w...

Vascular graft infections are a severe complication in vascular surgery, with a high morbidity and mortality. Prevention and treatment involve the use of antibiotic- or antiseptic-impregnated artificial vascular grafts, but currently, there are no commercially available infection-proof small-diameter vascular grafts (SDVGs). In this work we investi...

The search for effective systems to facilitate the release of poorly bioavailable drugs is a forefront topic for the pharmaceutical market. Materials constituted by inorganic matrices and drugs represent one of the latest research strategies in the development of new drug alternatives. Our aim was to obtain hybrid nanocomposites of Tenoxicam, an in...

Carvedilol is a poorly water-soluble drug employed to treat chronic heart failure. In this study, we synthesize new carvedilol-etched halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) composites to enhance solubility and dissolution rate. The simple and feasible impregnation method is used for carvedilol loading (30–37% weight). Both the etched HNTs (acidic HCl and H2SO...

ZnS–graphene composites (ZnSGO) were synthesized by a hydrothermal process and loaded onto carbon nanofibers (CNFs) by electrospinning (ZnS–GO/CNF), to obtain self-standing anodes for SIBs. The characterization techniques (XRPD, SEM, TEM, EDS, TGA, and Raman spectroscopy) confirm that the ZnS nanocrystals (10 nm) with sphalerite structure covered b...

Hypertrophic scars (HTSs) are aberrant structures that develop where skin is injured complexly and represent the result of a chronic inflammation as a healing response. To date, there is no satisfactory prevention option for HTSs, which is due to the complexity of multiple mechanisms behind the formation of these structures. The present work aimed...

The zaltoprofen-LDH hybrid was successfully synthesized by coprecipitation method, and its dissolution profile and solubility in different fluids, that simulate the gastro-intestinal environment, were investigated. The zaltoprofen-LDH hybrid stoichiometry was determined by EDS and TGA, and the Zn0.70Al0.30(OH)2Z0.30·0.76H2O chemical formula was obt...

The check of the solid phase in which the active principles crystallize is an activity of primary importance, both in the preformulation studies and in the quality control of pharmaceutical products. Indeed, it is necessary to ensure that only the polymorph of interest is present in the dosage form, as well as in the various stages leading to its p...

Injectable calcium phosphate cements (CPCs) represent promising candidates for the regeneration of complex-shape bone defects, thanks to self-hardening ability, bioactive composition and nanostructure offering high specific surface area for cell attachment and conduction. Such features make CPCs also interesting for functionalization with various b...

The present work aimed at decorating halloysite nanotubes (HNT) with magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles through different synthetic routes (co-precipitation, hydrothermal, and sol-gel) to test the efficiency of three magnetic composites (HNT/Fe3O4) to remove the antibiotic ofloxacin (OFL) from waters. The chemical–physical features of the obtained materi...

Background: In end-stage chronic liver disease, transplantation represents the only curative option. However, the shortage of donors results in the death of many patients. To overcome this gap, it is mandatory to develop new therapeutic options. In the present study, we decellularised pig livers and reseeded them with allogeneic porcine mesenchyma...

This study is a proof of concept performed to evaluate process parameters affecting shape memory effect of copolymer poly- l -lactide-co-poly-ε-caprolactone (PLA:PCL) 70:30 ratio based nanofibrous scaffolds. A design of experiment (DOE) statistical approach was used to define the interaction between independent material and process variables relate...

Biofiber is a new generation of highly absorbent, and textured bandage with patented fiber technology. Biofiber has a sophisticated texture that provides an optimum balance of moisture, flexibility, and conformability, and it has been developed with specific properties to treat complex injuries like burns. The dressing has been designed to be compl...

Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) titanium composite (PTC) is a novel interbody fusion device that combines a PEEK core with titanium alloy (Ti6Al4V) endplates. The present study aimed to investigate the in vitro biological reactivity of human bone-marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hBM-MSCs) to micro- and nanotopographies produced by an acid-etching...

In the pharmaceutical market, the need to find effective systems for the efficient release of poorly bioavailable drugs is a forefront topic. The inorganic-organic hybrid materials have been recognized as one of the most promising systems. In this paper, we developed new Hydroxypapatite@Furosemide hybrids with improved dissolution rates in differen...

A challenge in the pharmaceutical sector is the development of controlled release dosage forms for oral administration of poorly soluble drugs, in particular, drugs characterized by pH-dependent solubility through the gastrointestinal tract, which itself shows wide variability in terms of environmental pHs. The best approach is to increase the diss...

Neural tube defects (NTDs) represent the second most common cause of congenital malformations in the children. Aim of the work is the development of a shape memory engineered scaffold (SMES) focused to potentially improve Myelomeningocele (most common type of spina bifida defect) repair in fetus. Copolymer poly-l-lactide-co-ε-caprolactone (PLA-PCL)...

In the pharmaceutical market, the need to find effective systems for the efficient release of poorly bioavailable drugs is a forefront topic. The inorganic–organic hybrid materials have been recognized as one of the most promising systems. In this paper, we developed new Hydroxypapatite@Furosemide hybrids with improved dissolution rates in differen...

Many parameters are involved in electrospun fibers development; depending on application field fibers have to exhibit defined properties regarding fibers diameter and mechanical properties. A valid method to study and predict electrospinning parameters interactions is Design of Experiment (DOE) approach. DOE method takes into account the interactio...

Peripheral artery occlusive disease is an emerging cardiovascular disease characterized by the blockage of blood vessels in the limbs and is associated with dysfunction, gangrene, amputation, and a high mortality risk. Possible treatments involve by-pass surgery using autologous vessel grafts, because of the lack of suitable synthetic small-diamete...

A simple not solvent and time consuming Fe3O4@MIL-100(Fe), synthesized in the presence of a small amount of magnetite (Fe3O4) nanoparticles (27.3 wt%), is here presented and discussed. Layer-by-layer alone (20 shell), and combined layer-by-layer (5 shell)/reflux or /hydrothermal synthetic procedures were compared. The last approach (Fe3O4@MIL-100_H...

This study investigated the ability of hydrophilic electrospun nanofibers to enhance the dissolution rate of poorly soluble drug Meloxicam (MLX). The drug was loaded into polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), polyvinyl caprolactam–polyvinyl acetate–polyethylene glycol (Soluplus®), sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) nanofibers using electrospinning as fibers fabrica...

The Zaltoprofen/4,4′-Bipyridine system gives rise to two co-crystals of different compositions both endowed - in water and in buffer solution at pH 4.5 - with considerably higher solubility and dissolution rate than the pure drug. The qualitative and quantitative analysis of the DSC measurements, carried out on samples made up of mixtures prepared...

This work aimed at formulating tubular grafts electrospun with a size < 6 mm and incorporating vancomycin as an antimicrobial agent. Compared to other papers, the present study succeeded in using medical healthcare-grade polymers and solvents permitted by ICH Topic Q3C (R4). Vancomycin (VMC) was incorporated into polyester synthetic polymers (poly-...

The present work is a concrete example of how physico-chemical studies, if performed in depth, are crucial to understand the behavior of pharmaceutical solids and constitute a solid basis for the control of the reproducibility of the industrial batches. In particular, a deep study of the thermal behavior of glipizide, a hypoglycemic drug, was carri...

Contrast Induced Nephropathy is the most severe side-effect arising after non-ionic iodinated contrast agents (CAs) intravenous administration. The use of antioxidants (i.e., N-Acetylcysteine; NAC) is one of the attempted prevention approaches. Herein, we describe the microfluidic-assisted synthesis of iodinated polymeric nanoparticles (NPs) as new...

Two different zinc-based metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) were investigated to remove one of the most used fluoroquinolone antibiotic, Ofloxacin (OFL), from polluted water. The most common zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) and the green Zn(II) and benzene-1,3,5-tri-carboxylate (Zn3(BTC)2) were prepared through a facile synthetic route and cha...

Polymeric tubular vascular grafts represent a likely alternative to autologous vascular grafts for treating peripheral artery occlusive disease. This preliminary research study applied cutting-edge electrospinning technique for manufacturing prototypes with diameter ≤ 6 mm and based on biocompatible and biodegradable polymers such as polylactide-po...

Thanks to the continuous progress of tissue engineering, the opportunity to overcome the main limits of traditional medicine is becoming more and more concrete. By a targeted study of biomaterials and their properties, it is possible to find ad hoc solutions for the fabrication of tissue engineered scaffolds. More in details, poly(butylene succinat...

Layered double hydroxides (LDHs) are widely used as inorganic hosts for different applications, in particular for drug delivery. Piretanide, a poorly soluble diuretic drug, could benefit of the association with LDH for improving the dissolution rate and also for limiting the gastric irritation after its repeated administration thanks to natural ant...

In coatings technology, the possibility of introducing specific characteristics at the surface level allows for the manufacture of medical devices with efficient and prolonged antibacterial properties. This efficiency is often achieved by the use of a small amount of antibacterial molecules, which can fulfil their duty while limiting eventual relea...

Pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) has drawn attention as a potential tool to improve the ability of bone biomaterials to integrate into the surrounding tissue. We investigated the effects of PEMF (frequency, 75 Hz; magnetic induction amplitude, 2 mT; pulse duration, 1.3 ms) on human osteoblast-like cells (SAOS-2) seeded onto wool keratin scaffold...

Electrospun scaffolds made of nano- and micro-fibrous non-woven mats from biodegradable polymers have been intensely investigated in recent years. In this field, polymer-based materials are broadly used for biomedical applications since they can be managed in high scale, easily shaped, and chemically changed to tailor their specific biologic proper...

The osteoinductive property of strontium was repeatedly proven in the last decades. Compelling $\textit{in vitro}$ data demonstrated that strontium hydroxyapatite nanoparticles exert a dual action, by promoting osteoblasts-driven matrix secretion and inhibiting osteoclasts-driven matrix resorption. Recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein 2 (rh...

The osteoinductive property of strontium was repeatedly proven in the last decades. Compelling in vitro data demonstrated that strontium hydroxyapatite nanoparticles exert a dual action, by promoting osteoblasts-driven matrix secretion and inhibiting osteoclasts-driven matrix resorption. Recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein 2 (rhBMP2) is a...

The study of the binary system probenecid–benzamide is an excellent example of the power and the limits of thermal analysis applied to the investigations of compounds of pharmaceutical interest. The DSC curves obtained for the drug:coformer physical mixtures show a challenging pattern of endo/exothermal peaks heavily dependent on the system composi...

Electrospinning is known to be an effective and straightforward technique to fabricate polymer non woven matrices made of nano and microfibers. Micro patterned morphology of electrospun matrices results to be outmost advantageous in the biomedical field, since it is able to mimic extracellular matrix (ECM), and favors cell adhesion and proliferatio...

The study aims to investigate a novel bioink made from Chitosan (Cs)/ poly(gamma‐glutamic acid) (Gamma‐PGA) hydrogel that takes advantage of the two biodegradable and biocompatible polymers meeting most of the requirements for biomedical applications. The bioink could be an alternative to other materials commonly used in 3D‐bioprinting such as gela...

Aim of work was to locate a simple, reproducible protocol for uniform seeding and optimal cellularization of biodegradable patch minimizing the risk of structural damages of patch and its contamination in long-term culture. Two seeding procedures are exploited, namely static seeding procedures on biodegradable and biocompatible patches incubated as...

The use of nanohybrids containing cationic or anionic inorganic compounds, seems particularly promising as efficient strategy for drug delivery. In fact, the inorganic counterions usually present in the host can be easily exchanged with drug molecules, from antitumor to anti-inflammatory, antibiotics and vitamins, giving rise to composites with imp...

Regulating stem cell adhesion and growth onto functionalized biomaterial scaffolds is an important issue in the field of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. In this study, new electrospun scaffolds of poly(L-lactic acid) (PLLA) as bioresorbable polymer, and β-lactam compounds agonists of selected integrins, as functional components with c...

Electrospinning is known to be an effective and straightforward technique to fabricate polymer non woven matrices made of nano and microfibers. Micro patterned morphology of electrospun matrices results to be outmost advantageous in the biomedical field, since it is able to mimic extracellular matrix (ECM), and favors cell adhesion and proliferatio...

The eco-friendly method of kneading was here used to synthesize a cocrystal of probenecid, an uricosuric drug used in treating gout and hyperuricemia, with the aim to improve its pharmaceutical behavior. Benzamide was selected as a co-former showing functional groups favorable to the formation of supramolecular synthons with the active principle. T...

Cutaneous wounds represent a major issue in medical care, with approximately 300 million chronic and 100 million traumatic wound patients worldwide, and microbial infections slow the healing process. The aim of this work was to develop electrospun scaffolds loaded with silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to enhance cutaneous healing, preventing wound infe...

An electrospinning process was optimized to produce fibers of micrometric size with different combinations of polymeric and surfactant materials to promote the dissolution rate of an insoluble drug: firocoxib. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) showed that only some combinations of the proposed carrier systems allowed the production of suitable fib...

The advent and growth of resistance phenomena to antibiotics has reached critical levels, invalidating the action of a majority of antibiotic drugs currently used in the clinical field. Several innovative techniques, such as the nanotechnology, can be applied for creating innovative drug delivery systems designed to modify drug release itself and/o...

Layered double hydroxides (LDHs) with their sheets structure are undoubtedly interesting inorganic hosts for different applications, in particular for drug delivery. Nimesulide, a poorly soluble anti-inflammatory drug, could benefit of the association with LDH to improve its low dissolution rate and thanks to natural antacid properties of LDH to re...

The aim of the present work was to investigate how the molecular weight (MW) of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO), a synthetic polymer able to improve alginate (ALG) electrospinnability, could affect ALG-based fiber morphology and mechanical properties. Two PEO grades, having different MWs (high, h-PEO, and low, l-PEO) were blended with ALG: the concentra...

The aim of this study was to synthetize cocrystals of nateglinide, an antidiabetic agent of biopharmaceutics classification system Class IIa, as a strategy to improve both the solubility and the dissolution rate of the drug. Benzamide was selected by a screening procedure as a suitable coformer, and binary mixtures with different compositions were...

Sulindac is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug with poor water solubility. This study presents a way to increase its dissolution rate while reducing the risk of gastrointestinal side effects. This approach considers the paired administration of sulindac with the gastroprotector proglumide, in the form of eutectic mixture. Theoretical and experim...

Aim The aim of the present work was to develop biodegradable alginate (ALG)-containing fibrous membranes intended for tissue repair, acting as both drug delivery systems and cell growth guidance. Methods Membranes were prepared by electrospinning. Since ALG can be electrospun only when blended with other spinnable polymers, dextran (DEX) and polye...

We report the study of novel biodegradable electrospun scaffolds from poly(butylene 1,4-cyclohexandicarboxylate-co-triethylene cyclohexanedicarboxylate) (P(BCE-co-TECE)) as support for in vitro and in vivo muscle tissue regeneration. We demonstrate that chemical composition, i.e., the amount of TECE co-units (constituted of polyethylene glycol-like...

Lanthanum cobaltite, LaCoO 3 , finds applications as an oxidation and reduction catalyst in gas-sensing materials and in electrode materials for high-temperature fuel cells. The compound has been synthesized through several routes aimed at obtaining LaCoO 3 at lower temperatures. We propose a synthetic procedure based on the combined use of mechani...

Electrospinning is an interesting technique to produce polymer membranes made of entangled nanofibres. The technique is raising interest in pharmaceutical and biomedical areas. Either electrospun membranes are studied for tissue regeneration purposes, or incorporation of nanoparticles in electrospun membranes can be an opportunity to control the de...

Innovative nanofibrous scaffolds have attracted considerable attention in bone tissue engineering, due to their ability to mimic the hierarchical architecture of an extracellular matrix. Aiming to investigate how polymer chemistry and fiber orientation of electrospun scaffolds (ES) based on poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) and poly(butylene succinate...

The dispersion of nanoparticles having different size-, shape-, and composition-dependent properties is an exciting approach to design and synthetize multifunctional materials and devices. This work shows a detailed investigation of the preparation and properties of free-standing nanocomposite films based on cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) loaded with...

Electrospinning is a quite consolidated technique to produce polymer nanofibrous matrices whose nanostructured morphology received great interest for application in the biomedical field i.e. in manufacturing matrices for tissue regeneration. Purpose of the work to design electrospun matrices made of Poly-L-lactide-co-poly-ε-caprolactone (PLA-PCL) 7...

The physico-chemical characterization of norfloxacin commercial sample (NF), norfloxacin anhydrous form A (NFanhA), norfloxacin pentahydrate (NF·5H2O) and metronidazole (MZ) has been carried out. It was determined that the commercial sample is a mixture of 74% anhydrous NF form A and 26% hemipentahydrate NF. From XRPD analysis, it was observed that...

Polyvinyl alcohol/chitosan (PVA/Ch) hydrogels containing 1 and 3 wt% of lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) were prepared through a freezing-thaw procedure. Results from microstructural, thermal and mechanical characterization of LNPs based PVA/Ch demonstrated that the lowest amount of LNPs (1 wt%) was beneficial, whereas the presence of agglomerates at hi...

The purpose of this investigation is to determine how the dissolution media may influence the release rate of an insoluble drug in in-vitro conditions. Some oral dosage forms containing Ibuprofen, a molecule that shows pH-dependent solubility, are tested. They are evaluated in different media to simulate the gastrointestinal transit at paddle rotat...

Lanthanum ferrite, LaFeO3 (LF), has raised considerable interest since it can be used in many applications such as solid-oxide fuel cell electrode, sensor material (H2O and ethanol) and catalyst. Since the conventional ceramic route of synthesis has some disadvantages, mainly related to an exaggerated grain growth, LF has been prepared by different...

An amphiphilic chitosan salt, chitosan oleate (CS-OA), was previously proposed for the physical stabilization of lemongrass antimicrobial nanoemulsions (NE) through a mild spontaneous emulsification process. As both chitosan and oleic acid are described in the literature for their positive effects in wound healing, in the present study CS-OA has be...

The development of efficient strategies for drug delivery is considerably desired. Indeed, often several issues such as the drug solubility, the control of the drug release rate, the targeted delivery of drugs, the drug bioavailability and the minimization of secondary effects still present great obstacles. Different methodologies have been propose...

Objective: To improve the pharmaceutical behaviour of the oral antidiabetic agent gliclazide through the synthesis of multicomponent crystals with tromethamine. Methods: Multicomponent crystals were prepared by solvent evaporation method, kneading and combining mechanical and thermal activation. DSC, FT-IR spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, SEM-EDS a...

Some natural compounds have recently been widely employed in wound healing applications due to their biological properties. One such compound is sericin, which is produced by Bombix mori, while active polyphenols, polysaccharides and proteins are synthetized by Chlorella vulgaris and Arthrospira platensis microalgae. Our hypothesis was that sericin...

Statement of significance: The research paper entitled "Halloysite and chitosan oligosaccharide nanocomposite for wound healing" considers a therapeutic option for difficult to heal skin lesions and burns. The aim of work submitted was the development of a nanocomposite based on halloysite nanotubes and chitosan oligosaccharide, to be used as pour...

The aim of this work was to search for new polymorphic forms of febantel, an anthelminthic drug of great present interest for the veterinary industry. Solvent-based recrystallization, thermal and mechanical treatments and spray drying were chosen to discover new solid forms. The solids obtained were physicochemically characterized by thermal techni...

The aim of this study was the development of novel fluorescent microspheres as embolic agent for transarterial embolization (TAE) of advanced stages of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). TAE is a minimally invasive procedure that induces tumour regression blocking the blood flow by injection of microparticles. The microspheres currently used in clinic...

Statement of significance: In order to endow mesoporous bioactive glass, characterized by excellent bioactive properties, with additional biological functions, Cu-doped mesoporous SiO2-CaO glass (Cu-MBG) in the form of nanoparticles was prepared by an ultra-sound assisted one pot synthesis. The analysis of the bacterial viability, using different...

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are gaining increasing technological relevance for wastewater remediation and ancillary energy production. MFC separators are often fabricated with ion-exchange perfluorinated membranes, the most common of them being Nafion™. Here, we prepared composite separators based on polybenzimidazole (PBI), where the filler is mad...

In the present paper, we reported how cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) from microcrystalline cellulose have the capacity to assist in the synthesis of metallic nanoparticles chains. A cationic surfactant, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), was used as modifier for CNC surface. Silver nanoparticles were synthesized on CNC, and nanoparticle density a...

The aim of this work was to develop a novel carrier-in-carrier system based on stem cell-extracellular vesicles loaded of silk/curcumin nanoparticles by endogenous technique. Silk nanoparticles were produced by desolvation method and curcumin has been selected as drug model because of its limited water solubility and poor bioavailability. Nanoparti...

The production of stable suspensions of strontium-substituted hydroxyapatite (Sr-HA) nanopowders, as Sr ions vector for bone tissue regeneration, was carried out in the present work. Sr-HA nanopowders were synthesized via aqueous precipitation methods using Sr2 + amount from 0 to 100 mol% and were characterized by several complementary techniques s...

Pyrophosphate-based materials, in particular Na2FeP2O7, constitute an interesting class of cathode compounds for rechargeable Na-ion batteries. In this work we investigate the effect of different synthetic procedures, namely: (i) glucose-assisted solid-state synthesis, and (ii) Pechini-based wet chemistry approach, on the electrochemical performanc...

The mechanism of Bi4Ti3O12 formation starting from the two constituent oxides has been studied. Starting from a physical mixture, a solid-state reaction occurs between the two oxides that leads at ≈700 °C to a mixture of the two ternary oxides Bi12TiO20 + Bi4Ti3O12 along with unreacted precursor oxides. At T ≈ 830 °C Bi12TiO20 reacts with TiO2 form...

Active drug targeting and controlled release of hydrophilic macromolecular drugs represent crucial points in designing efficient polymeric drug delivery nanoplatforms. In the present work EGFR-targeted polylactide-co-glycolide (PLGA) nanoparticles were made by a blend of two different PLGA-based polymers. The first, GE11-PLGA, in which PLGA was fun...

Solubility represents an important challenge for formulation of drugs, because the therapeutic efficacy of a drug depends on the bioavailability and ultimately on its solubility. Low aqueous solubility is one of the main issues related with formulation design and development of new molecules. Many drug molecules present bioavailability problems due...

Micro-and nano-patterning/modification are emerging strategies to improve surfaces properties that may influence critically cells adherence and differentiation. Aim of this work was to study the in vitro biological reactivity of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSCs) to a nanostructured titanium dioxide (TiO2) surface in comparison to a...

This paper contains original data supporting the antibacterial activities of Gallium (Ga3+)-doped pro-osteointegrative titanium alloys, obtained via Anodic Spark Deposition (ASD), as described in “The effect of silver or gallium doped titanium against the multidrug resistant Acinetobacter baumannii” (Cochis et al. 2016) [1]. In this article we incl...

Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) are considered a good choice for post-lithium devices. Transition metal sodium pyrophosphates are among the most interesting cathode materials for SIBs. Here we study the electrochemical properties of the system Na 2 Fe 1´x Mn x P 2 O 7 (x = 0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1). By means of cyclic voltammetry (CV) and galvanostatic ex...