Total Bio-Based Material for Drug Delivery and Iron Chelation to Fight Cancer through Antimicrobial Activity

Abstract

Bacterial involvement in cancer’s development, along with their impact on therapeutic interventions, has been increasingly recognized. This has prompted the development of novel strategies to disrupt essential biological processes in microbial cells. Among these approaches, metal-chelating agents have gained attention for their ability to hinder microbial metal metabolism and impede critical reactions. Nanotechnology has also contributed to the antibacterial field by offering various nanomaterials, including antimicrobial nanoparticles with potential therapeutic and drug-delivery applications. Halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) are naturally occurring tubular clay nanomaterials composed of aluminosilicate kaolin sheets rolled multiple times. The aluminum and siloxane groups on the surface of HNTs enable hydrogen bonding with biomaterials, making them versatile in various domains, such as environmental sciences, wastewater treatment, nanoelectronics, catalytic studies, and cosmetics. This study aimed to create an antibacterial material by combining the unique properties of halloysite nanotubes with the iron-chelating capability of kojic acid. A nucleophilic substitution reaction involving the hydroxyl groups on the nanotubes’ surface was employed to functionalize the material using kojic acid. The resulting material was characterized using infrared spectroscopy (IR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and its iron-chelating ability was assessed. Furthermore, the potential for drug loading—specifically, with resveratrol and curcumin—was evaluated through ultraviolet (UV) analysis. The antibacterial assay was evaluated following CLSI guidelines. The results suggested that the HNTs–kojic acid formulation had great antibacterial activity against all tested pathogens. The outcome of this work yielded a novel bio-based material with dual functionality as a drug carrier and an antimicrobial agent. This innovative approach holds promise for addressing challenges related to bacterial infections, antibiotic resistance, and the development of advanced therapeutic interventions.

TiO2/Loofah–Halloysite Bio–Hybrid Composites as Efficient Systems for VOCs Removal

“…Considering that the amount of residue in the LH composite was 2.5 %, [14,17] the amount of TiO 2 loaded is around 15 %, in accordance with the nominal loading. We have chosen this loading value following a photocatalytic screening for the removal of VOCs (data not showed), where we noted that lower amounts of TiO 2 were not sufficient to have detectable photoactivity.…”

Supramolecular biomaterials as drug nanocontainers with iron depletion properties for antimicrobial applications

“…Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was determined as previously described. 34 Briefly, a bacterial suspension of 0.5 McFarland (equal to 1.5 × 10 8 CFU mL −1 ) was made for each strain under examination, and subsequent dilutions in Mueller–Hinton broth Oxoid™ (Thermo Scientific™, CM0405B) were prepared to obtain a final concentration of 10 4 CFU mL −1 in the plate. β-cyclodextrin-maltol formulation was added in a concentration range from 1.5 mg to 12.0 mg. Each plate was prepared by including a positive control for bacterial growth (C+) and a negative sterility control for the medium Mueller–Hinton (C−).…”

A Commercial Clay-Based Material as a Carrier for Targeted Lysozyme Delivery in Animal Feed

“…Although adsorption is a simple process, the interaction of a bioactive molecule with the porous matrix is complex. In fact, the molecular mobility in porous media is strongly dependent on the nature of the carrier, namely its porosity, and on the nature of the medium where the biomolecule is spread [44][45][46][47][48]. In fact, many molecule-carrier interactions are possible, such as size-dependent steric interactions, Van der Waals interactions, electrostatic interactions, and/or interactions mediated by solvents when present [33].…”