Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Jianting Zhang, Zhoujiang Chen, Ranjith Kumar Kankala, Shi-Bin Wang, Ai-Zheng Chen
Summary: Self-propelling micro-/nano-motors (MNMs) show enormous potential in various applications, such as drug delivery, by overcoming the challenge of low permeation of biological barriers. Research progress and application of these innovative motor designs are expected to play a crucial role in future clinical practice.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICS
(2021)
Article
Mechanics
Evgeny S. Asmolov, Tatiana Nizkaya, Olga Vinogradova
Summary: Catalytic Janus swimmers exhibit diffusiophoretic motion by generating gradients of concentrations and electric potential spontaneously. This study considers the experimentally relevant scenario of particles releasing both types of ions and derives a simple expression for particle velocity in the limit of a thin electrostatic diffuse layer. The approximate expression remains highly accurate even in the presence of large ion fluxes and surface potentials, and it offers explanations for several intriguing phenomena, such as the reversal of particle motion in response to variations in the salt concentration or the self-diffusiophoresis of uncharged particles.
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Martina Ussia, Martin Pumera
Summary: Inspired by the desire to imitate nature, micro- and nanorobots have gained increasing interest. The use of organic components, such as polymers, can address the biocompatibility and biodegradability issues of inorganic-based microrobots. Additionally, combining self-powered micro- and nanorobots with the properties of macromolecules is an important area of research.
CHEMICAL SOCIETY REVIEWS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Xianglong Lyu, Xiaoxia Liu, Chao Zhou, Shifang Duan, Pengzhao Xu, Jia Dai, Xiaowen Chen, Yixin Peng, Donghao Cui, Jinyao Tang, Xing Ma, Wei Wang
Summary: The popular principle of designing chemical micro-machines based on asymmetric chemical reactions like catalytic decomposition of H2O2 may not be sufficient in powering the micromotors into self-propulsion. Surface morphology plays a critical role in enabling/disabling the performance of catalytic caps on chemical micromotors. This study offers a refreshed perspective on understanding how chemistry powers nano- and microscopic objects by emphasizing the importance of an electrochemical mechanism over nonelectrochemical pathways in self-propulsion.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Wei Wang, Thomas E. Mallouk
Summary: The recent invention of nanoswimmers, synthetic, powered objects with characteristic lengths in the range of 10-500 nm, has generated widespread interest. However, studying nanoswimmers poses new opportunities and challenges, particularly in accurately characterizing and visualizing them.
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Jessica Ann O'Callaghan, Daeyeon Lee, Daniel A. Hammer
Summary: This study demonstrates the generation of enzyme-powered microcapsules using droplet microfluidics. By functionalizing the surfaces of the microcapsules with enzyme urease, their motion can be actively driven. The research also explores the role of different surfactants and surface roughness in enhancing the motion of these microcapsules.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2023)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Conghui Liu, Jingyu Chen, Jiahui Liang, Tailin Xu, Xueji Zhang
Summary: Artificial micro/nanomotors have shown promising potential in nucleic acid biosensing, enabling targeted delivery of detection probes and improving sensitivity and specificity. This comprehensive overview discusses the advancements in nucleic acid biosensing through the integration of micro/nanomotors over the past decade. Various applications of micro/nanomotors in nucleic acid biosensing, including fluorescence recovery-based biosensing and aggregation-enhanced biosensing, are explored. Challenges hindering their practical applications and future development prospects are also discussed.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Morgane Valles, Silvia Pujals, Lorenzo Albertazzi, Samuel Sanchez
Summary: This study evaluated the purity of a commercial urease used for powering micro- and nanomotors and found it to be impure. Purification of the urease improved the motility of the micromotors, indicating the importance of protein purity for optimal performance of enzyme-powered motors.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Lei Wang, Katherine Villa
Summary: Micro/nanomotors have significant potential applications in the environmental field, especially in mixing liquid media and removing pollutants. While current research mainly focuses on soluble pollutants, the study of insoluble pollutants, such as microplastics and oil spills, is limited, posing a threat to the environment.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE-NANO
(2021)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Xavier Arque, Tania Patino, Samuel Sanchez
Summary: Enzyme-powered micro- and nanomotors, inspired by nature, have shown great potential as biomedical tools and in various applications. However, there is still a lack of comprehensive understanding on how to rationally design and control their motion. This study provides a thorough bibliographic investigation on the key parameters that govern the propulsion of enzyme-powered devices and highlights the importance of intelligent selection and design based on specific applications.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Ke Wang, Enhui Ma, Haohao Cui, Hong Wang
Summary: Self-propelled amphiphilic micromotors were developed as active demulsifiers for efficient oil/water separation. The micromotors can push oil droplets away from the aqueous phase and aggregate them to form an oil layer, achieving rapid oil-water separation.
APPLIED SURFACE SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Physics, Multidisciplinary
Xuemao Zhou, Shuo Wang, Longbin Xian, Zameer Hussain Shah, Yurou Li, Guanhua Lin, Yongxiang Gao
Summary: The experimental study demonstrates that the effect of added salt in the phoretic motion of chemically driven colloidal particles is influenced by various factors, including ionic strength, potential, and particle size. Furthermore, it is found that the direction of self-propulsion of Janus colloids can be reversed by decreasing their potential.
PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Haocheng Wang, Chenlu Liu, Xiaopeng Yang, Fengtong Ji, Wenping Song, Guangyu Zhang, Lin Wang, Yanhe Zhu, Shimin Yu, Weiwei Zhang, Tianlong Li
Summary: The study proposes a strategy using oriented magnetized Janus spheres to assemble microdimer robots, achieving performance of multiple tasks through multimode transformation and locomotion. The microdimer robot can provide versatile motion modes to address environmental variations or multitasking requirements.
Article
Mechanics
Johannes Voss, Raphael Wittkowski
Summary: The propulsion of colloidal particles using planar traveling ultrasound waves has become a topic of increasing interest. This article uses acoustofluidic simulations to investigate how the propulsion of bullet-shaped particles depends on their length and diameter. It is found that the propulsion strength of the particles increases with their length and diameter, and a sign change of propulsion is observed when varying the diameter. This study complements previous experimental work and provides insight into the choice of particle shapes for future experimental studies.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Serena Arnaboldi, Gerardo Salinas, Aleksandar Karajic, Patrick Garrigue, Tiziana Benincori, Giorgia Bonetti, Roberto Cirilli, Sabrina Bichon, Sebastien Gounel, Nicolas Mano, Alexander Kuhn
Summary: One key method for designing bioinspired machines is transferring concepts from nature to man-made structures by integrating biomolecules into artificial mechanical systems, allowing the conversion of molecular information into macroscopic action. Hybrid bioelectrochemical swimmers can convert chiral information into enantiospecific macroscopic trajectories, with potential biomedical applications and food quality testing.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Yuan Sun, Yanhe Lang, Yusheng Pan, Qi Nie, Zheng Qi, Na Ling, Ke Han, Jinwei Zhang, Lei Wang, Cunguo Lin, Zhizhou Zhang
Summary: This study investigated the colonization dynamics of pioneer surface-associated eukaryotes (PSE) on different carbon nanotubes (CNTs)-filled polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) composites. Different PSE with diverse characteristics colonized on various composites, showing sensitivity to CNT incorporation and involvement in multiple biosynthesis and degradation pathways. Key functional modules related to initial colonization were identified, providing insights into how different composites impact PSE colonization dynamics and guiding future development of anti-biofouling materials.
INTERNATIONAL BIODETERIORATION & BIODEGRADATION
(2022)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Jiatong Ni, Lixiang Kong, Minglu Tang, Yan Song, Junge Zhao, Wenxin Wang, Tiedong Sun, Ying Wang, Lei Wang
Summary: In this study, water-soluble amino-rich polydopamine carbon quantum dots were synthesized and used as fluorescent probes for the detection of intracellular zinc ions. By linking salicylaldehyde, a zinc-inducing fluorescence recovery system was established, enabling the visualization of zinc ions at the single-cell level.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Junbo Li, Zhijun Xu, Mei Zhu, Chunyu Zhao, Xiaoliang Wang, Haixu Chen, Xiaoman Liu, Lei Wang, Xin Huang
Summary: Spatial organization of various biomacromolecules can be achieved through heterogeneous LLPS, including nesting, partial engulfing, and petal-like multicompartmental models. Reversible programmable reconstitution between sub-microcompartments can be realized, providing a technological platform for the spatial modulation of biological reactions.
Article
Biophysics
Yiqing Wang, Jinwei Zhang, Haiping Gao, Yuan Sun, Lei Wang
Summary: This paper summarized the fabrication approaches and application progress of lipid nanotubes (LNTs), and discussed the potential significance for their future development.
COLLOIDS AND SURFACES B-BIOINTERFACES
(2022)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Xi Wang, Dang Zhang, Yu Bai, Jian Zhang, Lei Wang
Summary: This review summarizes the recent progress in cancer treatment based on enzyme-driven micro/nanomotors, including their applications in crossing biological barriers, targeted drug delivery, and photothermal/starvation therapy. The challenges and future development trends in this field are also discussed.
CHEMISTRY-AN ASIAN JOURNAL
(2022)
Article
Polymer Science
Wenyu Fu, Huifeng Mei, Zhijia Zhang, Qiang Wang, Rui Li, Songsong Zhang, Guojun Wang, Hao Wei, Chenyuan Zhang, Cunguo Lin, Lei Wang
Summary: Self-healing polyurethane elastomers with UPy-based supramolecular polymer have shown excellent self-healing performance and chemical resistance, which contributes to their extended lifespan, adaptability to circular economy, and waste reduction.
JOURNAL OF APPLIED POLYMER SCIENCE
(2022)
Editorial Material
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Lei Wang, Binju Wang, Renfeng Dong
CHEMISTRY-AN ASIAN JOURNAL
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
L. Wang, Y. Huang, H. Xu, S. Chen, H. Chen, Y. Lin, X. Wang, X. Liu, S. Sanchez, X. Huang
Summary: This study develops laccase-powered Fe3O4@silica nanomotors assisted by lipase enzyme for enhanced degradation of multiple pollutants. The nanomotors showed increased Brownian motion and catalytic efficiency, leading to efficient degradation of contaminants. The lipase-assisted laccase nanomotors outperformed other nanomotors in terms of catalytic stability and degradation efficiency.
MATERIALS TODAY CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yang Zhao, Shiliang Bi, Faming Gao, Lei Wang
Summary: In this study, Cu2O/Au nanocubes with different Au content were successfully prepared for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol. The role of the Au component in charge redistribution and transfer, as well as the adsorption and reduction of 4-NP, was found to be crucial. The degradation performance of Cu2O/Au composite was better than that of pure Cu2O, with a degradation rate of almost 90% for 4-NP in 10 minutes, providing a new idea for the rational design of effective nanocatalysts.
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Shengliang Wang, Haixu Chen, Zhijun Xu, Xiaoliang Wang, Zhengyu Tao, Lei Wang, Xiaoman Liu, Xin Huang
Summary: Cell surface engineering is an effective strategy to improve cell tolerance and impart various properties. However, research on collective functionality is limited. In this study, a single cell was encapsulated with TiO2 nanoparticles and conductive polymer PPy. The engineered cells exhibited collective behaviors under different conditions, including swarming negative phototaxis migration. This technique has potential in cell therapy and biosensors.
ACS APPLIED NANO MATERIALS
(2023)
Review
Chemistry, Inorganic & Nuclear
Haiyue Yang, Lei Wang, Xin Huang
Summary: Micro/nanomotors (MNMs) are micro/nanoscale devices with various applications. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have been explored as alternatives to solve the problems of MNMs due to their unique characteristics. However, there is a lack of systematic review on the synthesis methods, working principles, applications, and challenges of MOF-based MNMs. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of these aspects and proposes future directions for the development of MOF-based MNMs.
COORDINATION CHEMISTRY REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Jian Zhang, Yanyan Dong, Xue Liu, Hongbo Jin, Shuyuan Wang, Na An, Lei Wang
Summary: Myocardial infarction (MI) is a common cardiovascular pathology that induces extensive inflammation and poses a severe threat to human health. Current MI drugs are suboptimal due to side effects and poor targeting. In this study, porous magnetic silica nanoparticles (PMSNs) loaded with sulforaphane (SFN) were used to target SFN delivery to infarcted areas. The results showed that PMSNs + SFN decreased inflammation, improved cardiac function and cell survival. Further mechanistic studies revealed the involvement of HSP70 through Nrf2/HSF1 in SFN's effects against myocardial injury.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICS
(2023)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Zheyi Li, Zhiqiang Gao, Cong Wang, Danqing Zou, Huan Zhou, Yang Yi, Jun Wang, Lei Wang
Summary: Janus nanoparticles are asymmetric-structured nanoparticles that integrate two or more properties in one single particle. They have shown broad application potentials in optics, nuclear magnetic resonance, multi-mode imaging, and other fields due to their unique structure and surface properties. However, there is still a lack of review papers specifically dedicated to the bioimaging applications with Janus nanoparticles.
Article
Materials Science, Biomaterials
Zhenhui Li, Song Lin, Mei Zhu, Lei Wang, Xiaoman Liu, Xin Huang
Summary: In this study, a method to enhance the antibacterial activity of lysozyme by incorporating guanidino functional groups onto its surface (Lyz-Gua) is presented. This method can effectively treat pathogenic bacteria without accumulated resistance and has advantages over commercial antibiotics.
BIOMATERIALS SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Yan Song, Yuan Sun, Minglu Tang, Zhengya Yue, Jiatong Ni, Junge Zhao, Wenxin Wang, Tiedong Sun, Lianxu Shi, Lei Wang
Summary: This study integrated electrodynamic therapy (EDT) with chemodynamic therapy (CDT) using polyoxometalate nanoparticles (NPs) decorated with zeolite imidazole framework (POM@ZIF-8). The resulting POM@ZIF-8 NPs can induce reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation via a catalytic reaction on the surface of POM NPs in an electric field, as well as catalyze the conversion of H2O2 into ROS via a Fenton-like reaction. The acid-responsive nature of ZIF-8 protects normal tissues and minimizes side effects. The POM@ZIF-8+E group exhibits significantly higher cytotoxicity and apoptosis rate compared to the E group, demonstrating a high tumor inhibition effect.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2022)
