Density functional and molecular docking studies towards investigating the role of single-wall carbon nanotubes as nanocarrier for loading and delivery of pyrazinamide antitubercular drug onto pncA protein

The potential biomedical application of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) pertinent to drug delivery is highly manifested considering the remarkable electronic and structural properties exhibited by CNT. To simulate the interaction of nanomaterials with biomolecular systems, we have performed density functional calculations on the interaction of pyrazinamide (PZA) drug with functionalized single-wall CNT (fSWCNT) as a function of nanotube chirality and length using two different approaches of covalent functionalization, followed by docking simulation of fSWCNT with pncA protein. The functionalization of pristine SWCNT facilitates in enhancing the reactivity of the nanotubes and formation of such type of nanotube-drug conjugate is thermodynamically feasible. Docking studies predict the plausible binding mechanism and suggests that PZA loaded fSWCNT facilitates in the target specific binding of PZA within the protein following a lock and key mechanism. Interestingly, no major structural deformation in the protein was observed after binding with CNT and the interaction between ligand and receptor is mainly hydrophobic in nature. We anticipate that these findings may provide new routes towards the drug delivery mechanism by CNTs with long term practical implications in tuberculosis chemotherapy.     

碳纳米管的宏量制备及产业化

作为纳米材料的代表之一,碳纳米管因其独特的一维结构具备了优异的力学、电学、热学、光学和反应性能,使其在能源存储与转化、复合材料、多相催化、环境保护及生物医药等领域具有大量的应用潜力.本文总结了多种类型碳纳米管宏量制备的化学及工程原理,并对多壁碳纳米管、单壁碳纳米管、双壁碳纳米管、定向碳纳米管、超顺排碳纳米管、水平超长碳纳米管、掺杂碳纳米管、螺旋碳纳米管、碳纳米管结及碳纳米管/石墨烯杂化物的宏量制备方法进行了评述.同时,对碳纳米管产业化中新的工程问题,如工业标准、环境评估以及产业化进展进行了分析.目前,碳纳米管已经具有成千吨的产能,并广泛应用于锂离子电池电极、导电复合材料、汽车配件和体育用品等领域.尽管如此,高性能的碳纳米管的宏量制备及其配套产业化技术仍有待深入开发,产品需要进一步丰富、市场需要进一步拓展,以望形成大规模纳米产业,促进社会的可持续发展.     

Molecular dynamics simulation of anticancer drug delivery from carbon nanotube using metal nanowires

In this study, we have investigated delivery of cisplatin as the anticancer drug molecules in different carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in the gas phase using molecular dynamics simulation. We examined the shape and composition of the releasing agent by using the different nanowires and nanoclusters. We also investigated the doping effect on the drug delivery process using N-, Si, B-, and Fe-doped CNTs. Different thermodynamics, structural, and dynamical properties have been studied by using the pure and different doped CNTs in this study. Our results show that the doping of the CNT has significant effect on the rate of the drug releasing process regardless of the composition of the releasing agent. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Incorporation of carbon nanotubes into polyethylene by high energy ball milling: Morphology and physical properties

High energy ball milling (HEBM) was utilized, as an innovative process, to incorporate carbon nanotubes (CNTs) into a polyethylene (PE) matrix avoiding: high temperatures, solvents, ultrasonication, chemical modification of carbon nanotubes. Composites with 1, 2, 3, 5, and 10 wt % of carbon nanotubes were prepared. Films were obtained melting the powders in a hot press. Morphology and physical properties (thermal, mechanical, electrical properties) were evaluated. The used processing conditions allowed to obtain a satisfactory level of dispersion of CNTs into the PE matrix with a consequent improvement of the physical properties of the samples. The thermal degradation was significantly delayed already with 1–2% wt of CNTs. The mechanical properties resulted greatly improved for low filler content (up to 3% wt). The electrical measurements showed a percolation threshold in the range 1–3 wt % of CNTs. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 45: 597–606, 2007     

Density Functional Theory-Based Studies Predict Carbon Nanotubes as Effective Mycolactone Inhibitors

Fullerenes, boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs), and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have all been extensively explored for biomedical purposes. This work describes the use of BNNTs and CNTs as mycolactone inhibitors. Density functional theory (DFT) has been used to investigate the chemical properties and interaction mechanisms of mycolactone with armchair BNNTs (5,5) and armchair CNTs (5,5). By examining the optimized structure and interaction energy, the intermolecular interactions between mycolactone and nanotubes were investigated. The findings indicate that mycolactone can be physically adsorbed on armchair CNTs in a stable condition, implying that armchair CNTs can be potential inhibitors of mycolactone. According to DOS plots and HOMO–LUMO orbital studies, the electronic characteristics of pure CNTs are not modified following mycolactone adsorption on the nanotubes. Because of mycolactone’s large π-π interactions with CNTs, the estimated interaction energies indicate that mycolactone adsorption on CNTs is preferable to that on BNNTs. CNTs can be explored as potentially excellent inhibitors of mycolactone toxins in biological systems.     

Density functional study of super cell N-doped (10,0) zigzag single-walled carbon nanotubes as CO sensor

N-doped SWCNT with different concentration of doped nitrogen atoms were investigated through density functional theory (DFT) calculations for detecting CO molecule. The CO molecule was adsorbed to different sites of the modified nanotubes and their geometric structures and electronic properties were investigated after full optimization. A significant change can be observed in adsorption energies and electronic properties of N-doped SWCNT after CO adsorption. By increasing the number of nitrogen atoms in each unit cell, these properties change more obviously. So these modified nanotubes can be used as CO sensors.     

Controlled Chemical Derivatisation of Carbon Nanotubes with Imaging,Targeting, and Therapeutic Capabilities

In drug delivery, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) hold a great potential as carriers because of their ability to easily cross biological barriers and be internalised into cells. Their high aspect ratio allows multi‐functionalisation and their development as a multimodal platform for targeted therapy. In this article, we report the controlled covalent derivatisation of triple‐functionalised CNTs with the anticancer drug gemcitabine, folic acid as a targeting ligand and fluorescein as a probe. The anticancer activity of gemcitabine was maintained after covalent grafting onto the CNTs. The functionalised nanotubes were internalised into both folate‐positive and negative cells, suggesting the passive diffusion of CNTs. Overall, our approach is versatile and offers a precise chemical control of the sidewall functionalisation of CNTs and the possibility to manoeuvre the types of functionalities required on the nanotubes for a multimodal therapeutic strategy.     

Effect of curvature and chirality for hydrogen storage in single-walled carbon nanotubes: a combined ab initio and Monte Carlo investigation

Combined ab initio and grand canonical Monte Carlo simulations have been performed to investigate the dependence of hydrogen storage in single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) on both tube curvature and chirality. The ab initio calculations at the density functional level of theory can provide useful information about the nature of hydrogen adsorption in SWCNT selected sites and the binding under different curvatures and chiralities of the tube walls. Further to this, the grand canonical Monte Carlo atomistic simulation technique can model large-scale nanotube systems with different curvature and chiralities and reproduce their storage capacity by calculating the weight percentage of the adsorbed material (gravimetric density) under thermodynamic conditions of interest. The author's results have shown that with both computational techniques, the nanotube's curvature plays an important role in the storage process while the chirality of the tube plays none.     

What are carbon nanotubes’ roles in anti-tumor therapies?

Since their discovery, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have become one of the most promising nanomaterials in many industrial and biomedical applications. Due to their unique physicochemical properties, CNTs have been proposed and actively exploited as multipurpose innovative carriers for cancer therapy. The aim of this article is to provide an overview of the status of applications, advantages, and up-to-date research and development of carbon nanotubes in cancer therapy with an emphasis on drug delivery, photothermal therapy, gene therapy, RNAi, and immune therapy. In addition, the issues of risk and safety of CNTs in cancer nanotechnology are discussed briefly.     

Theoretical prediction of encapsulation and adsorption of platinum-anticancer drugs into single walled boron nitride and carbon nanotubes

In this research, the adsorption and encapsulation of cisplatin, nedplatin, oxaliplatin and carbaplatin as Pt-anticancer drugs into the (7,7) boron nitride nanotube (BNNT) and carbon nanotube (CNT) are investigated using density functional theory. The different orientation modes of drug molecules onto the outer and inner surfaces of BNNT and CNT are studied. Analysis of the adsorption energy reveals that the complex formation process is favorable. The calculated adsorption energies indicate that the encapsulation of drugs inside the nanotubes is more favorable than the adsorption of drugs outside of the nanotubes. On the other hand, the results show that the BNNT/oxaliplatin(in) system is more stable than the others. The stabilization of nanotube/drug complexes results in electronic and structural properties change in the nanotubes. The natural bond orbital calculations show that the van der Waals forces, hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interactions are the major factors contributed to the overall stabilities of the complexes. The predicted electronic and structural properties of BNNT compared to the CNT towards Pt-anticancer drugs, suggest that BNNT can act as drug delivery vehicles.     

Density functional studies of oxygen-terminations versus hydrogen-terminations in carbon and silicon nanotubes

We performed density functional theory (DFT) calculations to investigate the properties of hydrogen-terminated and oxygen terminated models of representative structures of carbon and silicon nanotubes. Different models based on terminating atoms were constructed for each nanotube; model 1: two-end H-terminated, model 2: one-end O-terminated and the other end H-terminated, and model 3: two-end O-terminated. The results of obtained parameters including energy gaps, binding energies, dipole moments, bond lengths, and chemical shifts for the optimized models of the investigated nanotubes indicated that the atomic level properties of nanotubes changed more in the O-terminated models than the H-terminated model. Moreover, the O-terminations could change the magnitude of energy gaps and dipole moments. And finally, for investigating the properties of nanotubes, H-terminations models of nanotubes could be more preferred than other types of terminations.     

Quantum chemical investigation on structures of pyrrolic amides functionalized (5,5) single-walled carbon nanotube and their binding with halide ions

The structures of mono- and di-podal pyrrolic amides functionalized (5,5) single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and their complexes with fluoride, chloride, and bromide ions were obtained using the two-layered ONIOM(MO:MO) and density functional theory (DFT) methods. The binding energies between halide ions and all the receptors and their charge transfers were obtained using DFT method. The computational results indicate that the pyrrolic amide functionalized on the SWCNT affects to the density of state and energy gap of SWCNT. All the free receptors, mono-, di-podal pyrrolic amides and the functionalized SWCNT forming the strongest complexes were found.     

Effect of chemical potential on the computer simulation of hydrogen storage in single walled carbon nanotubes

Hydrogen is a kind of clean, sustainable and renewable energy carrier. Of the problems to be solved for the utilization of hydrogen energy, how to store and transport hydrogen has been given high priority on the research agenda. Recently, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were reported to be very promising candidates for hydrogen uptake[1], which may have possibility to satisfy the benchmark set by the US Department of Energy (DOE) Hydrogen Plan for fuel cell powered vehicles: a gravimetric density …     

Theoretical analysis of fluorine addition to single-walled carbon nanotubes: functionalization routes and addition patterns

We present a theoretical investigation on the chemical addition patterns governing the fluorination of single wall carbon nanotubes. Monte Carlo calculations based on a Hückel model suggest that fluorination is stabilized in a bandlike pattern due to electronic confinement effects on the tube bond network topology. Ab initio analysis of the fluorination of small nanotubes show that fluorine addition along the nanotube axis direction is favored by a mechanism of carbon framework distortion. The experimentally observed formation of fluorine bands may be thus explained in terms of multiple axial C(2)F rows expanding by contiguous axial addition.     

Preparation and Cellular Uptake of pH‐Dependent Fluorescent Single‐Wall Carbon Nanotubes

Fluorescent single‐wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) were prepared by mixing cut SWCNTs with acridine orange (AO). The optical absorbance and fluorescence characteristics of AO–SWCNT conjugates display interesting pH‐dependent properties. Fluorescence microscopy in combination with transmission electron microscopy proves that AO–SWCNTs can enter HeLa cells and are located inside lysosomes. The endocytosis‐inhibiting tests show that the clathrin‐mediated endocytosis is a key step in the internalization process. The internalized AO–SWCNTs remain inside lysosomes for more than a week and have little effect on cell proliferation. These findings may be useful in understanding the SWCNT‐based intracellular drug delivery mechanism and help to develop new intracellular drug transporters.     

Energetics and dipole moment of transition metal monoxides by quantum Monte Carlo

The transition metal (TM) oxygen bond appears very prominently throughout chemistry and solid-state physics. Many materials, from biomolecules to ferroelectrics to the components of supernova remnants, contain this bond in some form. Many of these materials' properties depend strongly on fine details of the TM-O bond, which makes accurate calculations of their properties very challenging. Here the authors report on highly accurate first principles calculations of the properties of TM monoxide molecules within fixed-node diffusion Monte Carlo and reptation Monte Carlo.     

碳纳米管的修饰及其在超级电容器中的应用

碳纳米管以其窄孔径分布、高有效比表面积、良好导电性能、良好力学性能、优良化学稳定性和良好热稳定性以及较低成本等优点,被认为是超级电容器的理想电极材料之一.本文结合碳材料具有的双电层电容和金属氧化物、导电聚合物具有的准法拉第电容,综述了碳纳米管的修饰处理技术及碳纳米管/金属氧化物、碳纳米管/导电聚合物复合材料、碳纳米管原位再生长技术的研究进展,指出碳纳米管的修饰能更好地改善其电化学性质,因此碳纳米管复合材料是超级电容器电极材料研究的一个重要发展方向.     

Determination of the Diameter‐Dependent Onset Potential for the Oxygenation of SWCNTs

The evaluation of the diameter‐dependent onset potential for the oxygenation of a SWCNT (single‐walled carbon nanotube) is an important issue because its chemical and physical properties, such as chemical reactivity, electronic conductance, and optical characteristics, would be changed. We investigated the diameter‐dependent onset potential for the oxygenation of SWCNTs in neutral aqueous solution by using in situ Raman spectroelectrochemical measurements, which was explained quantitatively in terms of the strain energy per carbon atom. These results will be useful for the fabrication of materials in which CNTs are used as a platform for applications such as fuel cells, capacitors, and Li‐ion batteries.