Shimaa Nabih

Bio: Shimaa Nabih is an academic researcher from Modern Academy For Engineering & Technology. The author has contributed to research in topics: Silver nanoparticle & Colloidal gold. The author has an hindex of 5, co-authored 8 publications receiving 89 citations.

Photocatalytic performance of TiO2@SiO2 nanocomposites for the treatment of different organic dyes

Abstract: Photocatalytic degradation of pollutant using TiO2@SiO2 nanocomposites (NCs) is a well route for the treatment of the organic waste in aquatic life. The recent work focuses on the removal of many organic dyes like methylene blue, eosin and safranin and study the pollutant degradation of them using the activity and high efficiency of titania as well as nanostructured titania@silica. The impregnation of silica with anatase-type TiO2 was carried out through a sol–gel way. The obtained powders were checked and characterized using N2 adsorption–desorption complete isotherm at low temperature, BET, FESEM, XRD, PL, UV–Vis spectroscopy, diffuse reflectance spectra and the photocatalytic activity to attain the homogeneity distribution of the nanostructure particles inside the matrix. TiO2@SiO2 material displayed good photocatalytic properties compared to a pure titania. Different parameters as the type of the photocatalyst, pH of solution, amount of the photocatalyst and adsorption were studied. In addition, reusability for dye removal under consecutive cycles was also investigated. Photocatalytic activity and the excellent properties of the TiO2@SiO2 NCs displayed that these materials can consider being good candidate considered in water treatment applications.

A graphene gold nanocomposite-based 5-FU drug and the enhancement of the MCF-7 cell line treatment

Abstract: There is no doubt that cancer is now one of the most formidable diseases in the world; despite all the efforts and research, common treatment routes, including chemotherapy, photodynamic therapy, and photothermal therapy, suffer from different limitations in terms of their efficiency and performance. For this reason, different strategies are being explored to improve the efficiency of the traditional drugs reported to date. In this study, we have redirected the function of one of these drugs (5-fluorouracil, 5-FU) by combining it with a graphene–gold nanocomposite in different molar ratios that has been exceedingly used for biological research development. The high activity of the graphene–gold material enables it to produce reactive oxygen and ions, which display good anticancer and antioxidant activity through the scavenging of the DPPH, SOD and GPx radicals; in addition, different characterizations have been used to confirm the structure and morphology of the obtained samples. Highly potent cytotoxicity against the MCF-7 cells was achieved with the drug combination containing the nanocomposite. All the results, including those obtained via cytometry, indicate that the combination of 5% graphene–gold nanocomposites with 5-FU exhibits a higher antitumor impact and more drug stability than pure 5-FU.

High cytotoxic activity of ZnO@leucovorin nanocomposite based materials against an MCF-7 cell model

Abstract: In the current work, we design a multifunctional hybrid nanocomposite for treating MCF-7 cell lines, which act as a model for breast cancer cells, to overcome the serious side-effects of chemotherapy treatment pathways. ZnO was designed within the nanoscale range using simple wet chemical pathways and via adding TWEEN as a pore directing agent. ZnO@leucovorin was exploited by confining the ZnO nanoparticles within the cavities and across the surface of the leucovorin drug through the Stober process from mechanical coating. Various characterization techniques were used to confirm the structure and morphology of the obtained composite material. Furthermore, the inhibition (%) activity of different scavenging radicals, the DPPH, GPx, SOD and ABTS assays commonly performed to characterize the antioxidant activity, was measured. The obtained results show a high antioxidant activity associated with the hybrid material compared to the pure leucovorin itself. Additionally, ZnO@leucovorin displays a high potent cytotoxicity against MCF-7, established using annexin V-flow cytometry. Subsequently, a gene expression study provided information about the growth factor reduction of the HER-2 gene, which in turn has an effect on the apoptotic death of the cancer cells. In addition, RO measurement exploits the rate of oxygen release inside the cell, and showed a suitable and healthy range after 3 days of treatment compared to that in other studies.

A Lot of Promise for ZnO-5FU Nanoparticles Cytotoxicity against Breast Cancer Cell Lines

Abstract: In this study we present an approach for new modification of 5-FU drug, which widely used for treatment of cancer by inhibiting essential biological processes. Recently understanding of the treating mechanism of 5-FU has led to the development of new ways that raises its activity. Herein, we modify the drug function by combination with ZnO which get a lot of attention in the past 10 years in the field of anticancer drug development. Anticancer activity of ZnO reveals to production of Reactive Oxygen and ions. Zinc Oxide were designed by Sol-Gel. X-ray, High resolution transition electron microscope and scanning electron microscope used to characterize the structure and morphology of samples. DPPH, SOD and GPx radical scavenging activity applied to investigate the antioxidant activity. Cytotoxicity of MCF-7 was determined by MTT assay, flow cytometry and RT-PCR which confirms that (ZnO-5-FU) will be promising efficient drug for treatment of breast cancer.

Synthesis and characterization of silver/zein nanocomposites and their application

Abstract: Zein nanoparticles were prepared by the liquid-liquid dispersion method. The particles were used as templates for growing silver nanoparticles by reduction of silver ions using gamma radiation. The dynamic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) results indicated that the obtained zein nanoparticles have spherical shape with a homogeneous particle size distribution and an average particle size of 60 nm. The factors affecting the silver nanoparticle deposition on zein nanoparticles were studied. Among these factors, irradiation dose, silver ion concentration, and zein polymer content were evaluated. The formation of the nanocomposite was detected using UV–vis spectroscopy and TEM. The surface plasmon resonance peak was found to be sensitive to the concentration of the zein and AgNO3 solutions. A blue shift was observed as the zein content was increased, while a red shift took place upon increasing the AgNO3 concentration. The TEM imaging indicated that the silver particles are nanosized, spherical in shape and adsorbed on the surface of zein particles. The Zein/silver nancomposites were applied for the antimicrobial test against E. coli and found to have high antibacterial activity. POLYM. COMPOS., 2015. © 2015 Society of Plastics Engineers

An overview of nanomaterials for industrial wastewater treatment

Abstract: Industrial wastewater is a universal environmental issue. Numerous organic pollutants, heavy metals, and non-disintegrating materials are present at extreme concentrations. Presently, removing these pollutants from industrial wastewater in an effective way has become a momentous issue. Efficient purification procedures are needed to remove those pollutants before disposal. In this direction, wastewater treatment has been one of the nanomaterial applications. Additionally, nanomaterials are innovationally effective for purifying water by using low-budget nanoadsorbents and nanofiltration. This review article highlights the use of nanomaterials for the removal of different polluting materials from industrial wastewater with a special focus on metal and metal oxide nanomaterials (NMs), carbon-based nanomaterials (CNMs) and nanofiber/nanocomposite membranes. The goal is to offer a recent overview and references in the area of emergent nanomaterials used for removing toxic pollutants from real industrial wastewater for researchers and industrializers.

Carbon Nanotubes in Biomedicine

Abstract: Nowadays, biomaterials have become a crucial element in numerous biomedical, preclinical, and clinical applications. The use of nanoparticles entails a great potential in these fields mainly because of the high ratio of surface atoms that modify the physicochemical properties and increases the chemical reactivity. Among them, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have emerged as a powerful tool to improve biomedical approaches in the management of numerous diseases. CNTs have an excellent ability to penetrate cell membranes, and the sp2 hybridization of all carbons enables their functionalization with almost every biomolecule or compound, allowing them to target cells and deliver drugs under the appropriate environmental stimuli. Besides, in the new promising field of artificial biomaterial generation, nanotubes are studied as the load in nanocomposite materials, improving their mechanical and electrical properties, or even for direct use as scaffolds in body tissue manufacturing. Nevertheless, despite their beneficial contributions, some major concerns need to be solved to boost the clinical development of CNTs, including poor solubility in water, low biodegradability and dispersivity, and toxicity problems associated with CNTs’ interaction with biomolecules in tissues and organs, including the possible effects in the proteome and genome. This review performs a wide literature analysis to present the main and latest advances in the optimal design and characterization of carbon nanotubes with biomedical applications, and their capacities in different areas of preclinical research.

Advances in nanotechnology and antibacterial properties of biodegradable food packaging materials

Abstract: A large number of non-biodegradable and non-renewable materials are produced daily for application as food packaging materials. These waste materials have a greatly negative effect on our health and the ecosystem. The idea of a bio-based economy is steadily gaining attention from the scientific, societal, and financial communities, so there are several areas in which the intended approaches can be improved for this reason. Therefore, creating biopolymer-based materials from natural sources, including polysaccharides and proteins, is a good alternative to non-renewable fossil resources. In the current review paper, we plan to summarize the major recent findings in food biodegradable packaging materials that include nanotechnology either directly or indirectly. Several natural nano-materials applied in food packaging applications such as polymers, polysaccharides, and protein-based nano-materials have been included in order to make special biopolymer hosts for nanocomposites. Finally, this review will highlight the antibacterial properties of commonly used nanoparticles or nanomaterials.

Functionalized Reduced Graphene Oxide as a Versatile Tool for Cancer Therapy

Abstract: Cancer is one of the deadliest diseases in human history with extremely poor prognosis. Although many traditional therapeutic modalities—such as surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy—have proved to be successful in inhibiting the growth of tumor cells, their side effects may vastly limited the actual benefits and patient acceptance. In this context, a nanomedicine approach for cancer therapy using functionalized nanomaterial has been gaining ground recently. Considering the ability to carry various anticancer drugs and to act as a photothermal agent, the use of carbon-based nanomaterials for cancer therapy has advanced rapidly. Within those nanomaterials, reduced graphene oxide (rGO), a graphene family 2D carbon nanomaterial, emerged as a good candidate for cancer photothermal therapy due to its excellent photothermal conversion in the near infrared range, large specific surface area for drug loading, as well as functional groups for functionalization with molecules such as photosensitizers, siRNA, ligands, etc. By unique design, multifunctional nanosystems could be designed based on rGO, which are endowed with promising temperature/pH-dependent drug/gene delivery abilities for multimodal cancer therapy. This could be further augmented by additional advantages offered by functionalized rGO, such as high biocompatibility, targeted delivery, and enhanced photothermal effects. Herewith, we first provide an overview of the most effective reducing agents for rGO synthesis via chemical reduction. This was followed by in-depth review of application of functionalized rGO in different cancer treatment modalities such as chemotherapy, photothermal therapy and/or photodynamic therapy, gene therapy, chemotherapy/phototherapy, and photothermal/immunotherapy.

Facile approach to prepare ZnO@SiO2 nanomaterials for photocatalytic degradation of some organic pollutant models

Abstract: Band gap energy narrowing upon doping is consider as a general phenomenon in semiconductors. However, low surface area still the main problem that limits its wide applications. Herein, incorporation of ZnO on the surface and inside the matrix of SiO2 using CTAB as structural and capping agent have prepared via sol–gel wet chemical pathway. The crystalline size, structural and textural properties of the obtained samples were investigated through different techniques like XRD, SBET surface area, UV–Vis spectroscopy, FESEM and TEM. The results indicate that the surface area and pore volume constant decrease by insertion of ZnO nanoparticles in the pore wall and/or above the surface of silica. In the other hand, the organic materials removal enhanced due to the existence of different types of pores ranging from microspores to wide mesoporous system. Following the nanomaterials preparation and characterizations, some experiments have done to check the effect on the organic materials like dyes removal. One of these tests is COD result, which affirm the good degradation for most of MB dye that exist in the solution. Furthermore, the scavenger study results show that the ZnO@SiO2 nanomaterials displayed good photocatalytic properties compared to the bare silica one via its charge carrier and reactive hydroxyl radicals species. The scrutinization at the features of the obtained materials enable us to offering without doubt a promising photocatalyst candidate for different applications in wastewater and water treatment.