Recent Patents on Nanotechnology - Volume 16, Issue 2, 2022

Background: Essential oils (EOs) are natural substances that serve as sources of bioactive compounds with antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. Objective: This objective is to understand intellectual property related to patent documents on EOs and nanotechnology. Methods: The nanotechnology growth curve applied to EOs demonstrated that the period from 2015 to 2017 was the most prominent, with a peak in 2016. China is the dominant country, mainly through research developed in the academic area. Results: The food industry area had the highest number of patents filed, highlighting the preservation line. Ginger essential oil, chitosan and Tween 80 were preferentially used as a core, wall material, and emulsifier, respectively. In the market, the use of EOs is more associated with the pharmaceutical/ cosmetics industry. In addition, the food industry market bets more on products based on hemp oil nanocapsules. Conclusion: EO nanotechnology is promising for the development of sustainable food systems. However, this nanotechnology in Brazil has not yet advanced enough in the food industry, although there are government incentives that may change this paradigm in the future. The profile of the patent documents and the products in the market differ between the application and the types of oils. In addition, there is a gap between the volume of patent documents investigated and the transfer of technology to the commercial sector, but this constitution could be better explored, given the properties of EOs.

Background: Synthetic polymers present disadvantages such as high cost, limited availability, safety concerns, environmental hazards and accumulation in body. Lignin, an aromatic biopolymer, is highly abundant and offers various advantages including cost-effectiveness, biocompatibility and biodegradability. It also possesses various pharmacological activities including antioxidant, antibacterial, anticancer and UV protection, thus lignin has become a popular biopolymer in recent years and is no more considered as bio-waste rather extensive research is been carried out on developing it as drug carrier. Lignin also has non-biomedical applications including dispersing agents, surfactants, detergent/ cleaning agents, energy storage, etc. Methods: This review compiles patents granted on production of technical lignin, different lignin therapeutic carriers and its biomedical and non-biomedical applications. The literature is collected from recent years including both articles as well as patents and is carefully analyzed and compiled in an easy to comprehend pattern for guiding future research. Results: The reviewed patents and articles highlighted the advancement made in lignin isolation and valorization. Numerous lignin nanoformulations as drug delivery agents or as standalone entities with various pharmacological actions like antibacterial, antioxidant or UV protectant have been reported. As well as industrial applications of lignin as adhesives, insulators or supercapacitors have also made lignin a biopolymer of choice. Conclusion: Lignin being a bio-inspired polymer has huge potential in commercial applications. New methods of lignin isolation from lignocellulosic biomass including physical pretreatments, solvent fraction, and chemical and biological pretreatment have been widely patented. Several micro/nano lignin formulations with improved and controllable reactivity like nanocontainers, nanocapsules, nanoparticles have also been reported recently. Also, various pharmacological properties of lignin have also been explored, thus valorization of lignin is a hot topic of hour.

Aims: In this work, we propose the implementation of three carbon sponges, generated from the carbonization of melamine-formaldehyde sponges coated with different HKUST-type metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) in different thermal conditions. Background: Nowadays, numerous investigations are focused on the development of new technologies for the rapid separation of water/oil mixtures. Several of these processes use hydrophobic materials of different nature for efficient oil capture. Despite these efforts, the water/oil separation still remains a great challenge. The main oil absorbers that are commercially available tend to be expensive and have complex synthesis; however, they usually have an acceptable cost/benefit ratio. Despite this, the passage of time has brought us new generations of materials, which seek to solve the problems in a more efficient way, as in the case of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), which stand out for the great ease with which their morphological and surface aspects can be controlled. MOFs are extensively investigated in the fields of adsorption and catalysis; the MOF coated sponges do not meet the selectivity and stability standards to be applied in oil spills in water. However, this completely changes when subjected to the pyrolysis process, giving the material an increase in its surface area, hydrophobic and magnetic properties in addition to making the material suitable for its application. Objective: Creation of a low-cost 3D template and the study of morphological properties of MOFs, for the formation of carbon-based materials by a fast, simple and low-cost method, promoting the use of new generations of materials to more effectively solve persistent environments. Methods: The employed MOF precursors were trimesic acid (BTC), nickel and cobalt salts. The monometallic HKUST type MOFs were synthesized using a simple method of controlled precipitation, which starts from two precursor solutions. The first one consisted of a ligand solution, dissolving the BTC in deionized water. In the case of mixed-metal MOFs, they were synthesized using the same procedure described for monometallic MOFs, but in this case, a mixture of metal salts with a 1:1 molar ratio was performed. The methodology for the production of the sponges decorated with MOF was carried out in two steps. In the first stage, the sponges were subjected to a wash to remove dust and impurities, being rinsed with acetone in an ultrasonic bath for 30 min. The sponges were subsequently immersed in deionized water and subjected to an ultrasonic bath for 10 min. Finally, the sponges were dried at 60°C for 3 h. The second step was the addition of the HKUST-type MOFs to the sponges was carried out by means of the immersion method, preparing a dispersion of the corresponding MOFs in ethanol. Results: It was revealed that the carbon sponges can selectively absorb oil in the water/oil mixture, possessing magnetic and enhanced hydrophobic and superhydrophobic properties. All the pyrolyzed carbon sponges, obtained at 500 and 700°C, were not the most optimal since they had absorption capacities of around 25 g/g and only supported up to 4 absorption cycles. On the other hand, the carbon sponges, obtained at 300°C, had absorption capacities greater than 40 g/g, in addition to being able to be reused up to 12 times without showing significant changes in their absorption capacity and having acceptable hydrophobic characteristics for the removal of oil dispersed in water. Among the three sponges obtained at 300°C, we highlight the sponges coated with BTC-Co, which have the highest absorption capacity (54 g/g) among all fabricated sponges. Conclusions: The sponges obtained in the present work are a promising alternative to the materials that are traditionally used since they have great advantages such as their simple production method, low-cost starting materials and good absorption capacities. This work sheds light on the production of carbon materials from 3D templates decorated with MOFs, through a one-step carbonization process and we demonstrate that these materials have characteristics that make them applicable in the removal of oil dispersed in water, giving us a practical, economic and friendly alternative to the environment.

Aim: The present study was aimed to developed and optimize the self-nano emulsifying drug delivery system of α-pinene (ALP-SNEDDS) and evaluate its in-vivo anti-Parkinson's activity. Background: Different lipid-based drug delivery technologies have been researched to upgrade drug bioavailability and expand their clinical adequacy upon oral administration. Self-emulsifying drug delivery systems (SEDDS) have pulled in developing the interest specifically for self nano emulsifying drug delivery systems (SNEDDS). Objective: The present work was attempted to improve the bioavailability of the ALP by defining the role of self-nano emulsifying formulations for its neuroprotective effect. Methods: Miscibility of the ALP was estimated in various excipient components to select the optimized combination. Self-nano emulsification, thermodynamic stability, the effect of dilution on robustness, optical clarity, viscosity, and conductivity tests were performed. The in-vivo anti-Parkinson's activity of the ALP-SNEDDS formulations were done using Pilocarpine antagonism induced Parkinsonism in rodents. Behavioral tests like tremulous jaw movements, body temperature, salivation, and lacrimation are performed. Results: Two optimized formulations, composed of Anise oil, Tween 80, and Transcutol-HP of Oil: Smix ratio (4:6 and 3:7) were selected. The Smix ratio for both the formulation was 2:1. The particle size was found to consistent with the increase in dilution. The mean negative zeta potential of the formulations was found to be increased with an increase in dilution. The TEM images of the formulations revealed spherical shape of the droplet. The in-vitro drug release profile was found to be significant as compared to plain ALP suspension. Conclusion: The results of in-vivo studies indicate that nanosizing and enhanced solubilization of oral ALP-SNEDDS formulations significantly improved the behavioral activities compared to plain ALP suspension.

Background: Treatment of diabetes mellitus (DM) using plant based drugs is advancing and getting much attention in recent years. Cassia auriculata L. is widely used in Indian folk medicine for the treatment of DM. Site-specific targeted plant drug delivery by metallic nanoparticles carriers is a new emerging procedure under research due to its enhanced bioavailability and reduced toxicity. This study was therefore aimed at biosynthesizing a new silver nanoparticle of Cassia auriculata L. flower extract and study its anti-diabetic efficiency in rats. Methods: The silver nanoparticles were biosynthesized using AgNO3 solution and characterized by spectroscopy, SEM and EDAX analyses. The acute toxicity of this nano-preparation (up to 2000 mg/kg b. wt) was analyzed in rats and the anti-diabetic efficiency (for 50 mg/kg.b.wt and 200 mg/kg.b.wt) was studied in Streptozotocin induced diabetic rats. The diabetic parameters such as; blood glucose, serum protein, liver glycogen, serum lipid profile, serum levels of creatinine, urea, ALT, AST and ALP were analyzed. The histology of the liver, kidney and pancreas was evaluated after staining with Haematoxylin and Eosin. Results: The increased blood glucose in Streptozotocin induced diabetic rats was found to be significantly reduced (p<0.01) in the treated group of rats. The characteristic damage and disorganization in the cells of Streptozotocin induced DM was found to be recovered in the treated group of rats. The alterations in the lipid profile, hyperglycaemia, reduced serum protein and liver glycogen, enhanced liver function and kidney function markers observed in the rats of DM control group were normalized in the treated group of rats. Conclusion: The results of this study, proving an efficient anti-diabetic activity of the biosynthesized silver nanoparticles of Cassia auriculata L. flower extract, implies that this nano-preparation may be exploited as an alternative biopharmaceutical agent for treating DM.