Current Physical Chemistry - Volume 15, Issue 2, 2025

Superparamagnetic nanoparticles are widely employed in biomedicine, especially in the fields of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), targeted medication delivery, and hyperthermia therapy. Drugs or biomolecules can be used to functionalize SPIONs, and an external magnetic field can be used to direct them to specific areas within the body. This allows for more focused medication administration with fewer systemic adverse effects. In chemotherapy, adjunct therapy is found to be more beneficial, and the use of vitamins and minerals as an add-on drug may improve tolerance. In this study, soft hydrolysis of iron silica core-shell nanoparticles was achieved. The aim was to to study the loading and unloading of curcumin using Fe3O4-silane core-shell nanoparticles. Additionally, Vitamin C was utilized as an add-on drug, and DNA was cleavaged in the presence of Vitamin C, whose effects were also studied.

The curcumin-loaded Fe2O4-silica magnetic nanoparticles (CLFS) were prepared and characterized using various methods. In particular, the nanoparticles were characterised using SEM and XRD spectral techniques. The loading and unloading of curcumin were studied using absorption spectral techniques. The interaction of DNA was studied using emission, CD, electrochemical, and gel electrophoresis techniques.

The loading capacity of curcumin was found to be 6.3 higher than that of commercial samples. A significant release of curcumin was observed using absorption spectroscopy after sonication. The DNA binding of CLFS with CT-DNA was confirmed using absorption, emission, CD, and electrochemical studies.

The effective binding was established using these studies. The increase in the curcumin bioavailability was due to the loading of curcumin in CLFS. The efficient binding was established from the absorption, emission, and CD spectral results. The addition of vitamin C resulted in the breakage of DNA, which was demonstrated using gel electrophoresis studies.

The ultimate goal of this novel strategy is to encapsulate curcumin in magnetic nanoparticles so that it can release the compound continuously over a period of seventy hours at a pH that is similar to physiological conditions. In the future, CLFS may be used to treat cancer because it cleaves plasmid DNA into linear form when combined with vitamin C, an add-on medication.

Our research aims to uncover how solute-solvent and solute-solute interactions behave in aqueous solutions, exploring how temperature variations and concentration changes influence these interactions. This can provide deeper insights into the behavior of molecules in different environments, potentially leading to applications in fields such as drug delivery, chemical reactions, and material science.

In the aqueous ternary system, the physicochemical interactions between a medically powerful pharmacological molecule and two naturally occurring amino acids were explored. The investigations were performed in a dilute to infinite dilute medium to study the interactions between the solutes and solvent extensively.

The objective of this research is to systematically investigate the nature of solute-solvent and solute-solute interactions in aqueous solutions across a range of temperatures and concentrations. By doing so, we aim to elucidate the underlying principles governing these interactions, which could contribute to a deeper understanding of solution chemistry. This knowledge is intended to inform the development of more efficient and effective applications in various scientific and industrial fields, including drug formulation, catalysis, and material design.

To characterize and calculate the interactions in the ternary system, various models and formulas were considered and applied. Based on various parameters, including viscosity-B coefficient, apparent molar volume, and molar conductance from viscosity, density, and conductance studies, varying temperatures and concentrations were used to elucidate the molecular interactions. To elucidate the interactions between solute with co-solute and with solvent, the limiting apparent molar volumes and the experimental slopes, derived from the Masson equation, and the Viscosity constants A and B, obtained via the Jones-Doles equation, were examined. To illustrate the structure- breaking/making character of the solutes in the solution, Hepler’s method and dB/dT values were applied.

The results indicated that hydrophobic-hydrophobic interaction plays a significant role in the system.

These amino acid interaction models may explain the properties of a variety of physiologically active compounds, and the mechanism can be expanded to comprehend the nature of similar systems. Furthermore, the research could lead to advancements in areas such as pharmaceutical sciences, where controlling solute interactions is crucial for drug delivery systems, and in environmental chemistry, where understanding pollutant behavior in water is essential for remediation efforts.

Hydrogen bonding plays a very crucial role in weak molecular complex formation. Some of the binding modes may lead to fluorescence quenching or excited state complex formation. The fluorescent property of the gas phase complex of phenylacetylene-methylamine pair is different from that of the phenylacetylene-triethylamine pair.

A total of 100 mM solution of triethylamine was added in 2 ml of 1 mM phenylacetylene taken in a cuvette. Then, absorption and fluorescence spectra were recorded, and fluorescence decay was measured each time. The experiment was conducted in the non-polar aprotic solvent, cyclohexane, and the polar protic solvent, ethanol.

With an increase in the concentration of triethylamine, fluorescence quenching occurred in the local emission band at 281nm in both cyclohexane and ethanol. Interestingly, in cyclohexane, an exciplex was formed that gave a structureless emission band at 422 nm, but not in ethanol.

In cyclohexane, fluorescence quenching is predominantly dynamic in the lower range of concentrations of triethylamine, and beyond that, it is complicated due to exciplex formation. However, in ethanol, fluorescence quenching is purely dynamic in the entire range of concentrations of triethylamine.

Air pollution is a major health hazard. This study aims to investigate the concentration of the pollutants nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and respirable Particulate Matter (PM10) generated from various sources like automobiles and industries near the center of the cities in Mysuru and Madikeri.

The major pollutants, as suggested by the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) in industrial areas include oxides of nitrogen (NOX), sulfur dioxide, and respirable particulate matter (PM10). The concentration of these gases in the ambient air was studied for about three months, from February to April 2017.

The results showed that the concentration of emissions of the above-cited gaseous and suspended solid pollutants is higher than that of permissible concentrations as per the standards provided by KSPCB for an industrial area.

The major precautions can be taken to reduce the concentration level of these pollutants.