Synthesis of aqueous ferrofluids of ZnxFe3−xO4 nanoparticles by citric acid assisted hydrothermal-reduction route for magnetic hyperthermia applications

Superparamagnetic and monodispersed aqueous ferrofluids of Zn substituted magnetite nanoparticles (Zn_xFe_3−xO₄, x=0, 0.25, 0.3, 0.37 and 0.4) were synthesized via hydrothermal-reduction route in the presence of citric acid, which is a facile, low energy and environmental friendly method. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized by X ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM and TEM) and the dynamic light scattering (DLS) method. The results showed that a certain amount of citric acid was required to obtain single phase Zn substituted magnetite nanoparticles. Citric acid acted as a modulator and reducing agent in the formation of spinel structure and controlled nanoparticle size and crystallinity. Mean particle sizes of the prepared nanoparticles were around 10 nm. The results that are obtained from XRD, magnetic and power loss measurements showed that the crystallinity, saturation magnetization (M_S) and loss power of the synthesized ferrofluids were all influenced by the substitution of Zn in the structure of magnetite. The Zn substituted magnetite nanoparticles obtained by this route showed a good stability in aqueous medium (pH 7) and hydrodynamic sizes below 100 nm and polydispersity indexes below 0.2. The calculated intrinsic loss power (ILP) for the sample x=0.3 (e.g. 2.36 nH m²/kg) was comparable to ILP of commercial ferrofluids with similar hydrodynamic sizes.     

Anti-cancer,anti-oxidant and molecular docking studies of thiosemicarbazone indole-based derivatives

Based on the structural elements of bioactive 3-substituted indoles, a new series of indole–thiosemicarbazone hybrid derivatives were designed, synthesized, and well-characterized using different spectral techniques. The intended scaffolds were screened for their in vitro anti-proliferative activities against breast cancer (MCF-7), lung cancer (A-549), and liver cancer (Hep-G2) cell lines, as well as their anti-oxidant properties. Cytotoxicity studies revealed that compound 6n was the most potent, at least threefold more potent than the commercially available reference drug etoposide, against A-549. In addition, morphological analysis by the acridine orange/ethidium bromide double staining test and flow cytometry analysis confirmed induction of apoptosis in the A-549 cells by compound 6n. In order to validate the experimental results, molecular studies were performed to achieve the possible binding interactions of the most potent compound (6n) and colchicine with tubulin as well as ANP with ATPase domain of topoisomerase IIα active sites. Moreover, the radical scavenging potential of the final derivatives was found to be excellent with the range of 0.015–0.630 µM, comparable to the standard ascorbic acid (0.655 µM).