Cancer photothermal therapy (PTT) has captured the attention of researchers worldwide due to its localized and trigger-activated therapeutic effect.

Chitosan-based composites play an important role in food packaging applications and can be used either as films or as edible coatings. Due to their high costs and lower performance (i.e., lower barrier against water vapor, thermal, and mechanical properties) when compared to the traditional petroleum-based plastics, the use of such biopolymers in large-scale is still limited. Several approaches of chitosan composites in the packaging industry are emerging to overcome some of the disadvantages of pristine polymers. Thus, this work intends to present the current trends and the future challenges towards production and application of chitosan composites in the food packaging industry.

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Novel bionanocomposite films of chitosan/montmorillonite (CS/MMT) activated with ginger essential oil (GEO) were produced and characterized in terms of their physical and morphological properties. The homogenization process led to a good interaction between the chitosan and the nanoparticles, however the exfoliation was diminished when GEO was incorporated. Film glass transition temperature did not statistically change with the incorporation of either MMT or GEO, however the value was slightly reduced, representing a relaxation in the polymer chain which corroborated with the mechanical and barrier properties results. Pristine chitosan films showed excellent barrier properties to oxygen with a permeability of 0.184 × 10−16 mol/m·s·Pa being reduced to half (0.098 × 10−16 mol/m·s·Pa) when MMT was incorporated. Although the incorporation of GEO increased the permeability values to 0.325 × 10−16 mol/m·s·Pa when 2% of GEO was integrated, this increment was smaller with both MMT and GEO (0.285 × 10−16 mol/m·s·Pa). Bionanocomposites also increased the UV light barrier. Thus, the produced bioplastics demonstrated their ability to retard oxidative processes due to their good barrier properties, corroborating previous results that have shown their potential in the preservation of foods with high unsaturated fat content.

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Intelligent food packaging is emerging as a novel technology, capable of monitoring the quality and safety of food during its shelf-life time. This technology makes use of indicators and sensors that are applied in the packaging and that detect changes in physiological variations of the foodstuffs (due to microbial and chemical degradation). These indicators usually provide information, e.g., on the degree of freshness of the product packed, through a color change, which is easily identified, either by the food distributor and the consumer. However, most of the indicators that are currently used are non-renewable and non-biodegradable synthetic materials. Because there is an imperative need to improve food packaging sustainability, choice of sensors should also reflect this requirement. Therefore, this work aims to revise the latest information on bio-based sensors, based on compounds obtained from natural extracts, that can, in association with biopolymers, act as intelligent or smart food packaging. Its application into several perishable foods is summarized. It is clear that bioactive extracts, e.g., anthocyanins, obtained from a variety of sources, including by-products of the food industry, present a substantial potential to act as bio-sensors. Yet, there are still some limitations that need to be surpassed before this technology reaches a mature commercial stage.