Advanced Applications of Micro and Nano Clay

Chapter 16 - Application of micro- and nanoengineering tragacanth and its water-soluble derivative in drug delivery and tissue engineering

β-Cyclodextrin-based materials for 3D printing, cancer therapy, tissue engineering, and wound healing

Packaging has been with humans for thousands of years in one form or the other. Previously, it was by shaping different materials in to packaging material like glass pottery and paper. Modern food packaging is believed to have begun in the 19th century with the invention of canning. The packaging system by now reach at capable of carrying out intelligent functions (such as detecting, sensing, recording, tracing, communicating, and applying scientific logic) to facilitate decision making to extend shelf life, enhance safety, improve quality, provide information, and warn about possible problems. Basically, packaging has roles like protection, reduce waste, product freshness and enhance sales in a competitive environment. However, the properties of the packaging material, the type of food/beverage to be packaged, possible food/package interactions, the intended market for the product, eventual package disposal, and costs should also considered during packaging since it has a great harm. This review was initiated with the objective to know about food and beverage packaging materials and their impact. The information about food packaging materials and their impact was collected from different publications over the past decade, research reports and databases from different organization were also reviewed. Various on-line sources including Google Scholar were browsed using some important key terms such as food packaging materials, history of food packaging, role of food packaging and the impact.

Recently, extensive research has been conducted on wound healing and drug release materials. In this perspective, a cellulose acetate (CA) and a poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) blended polymer membrane were prepared, and their drug release activities against wound healing proteins were evaluated using molecular docking studies. The CA, PVDF, and CA: PVDF polymer membranes were synthesized using the solution‐casting technique with DMSO as the solvent. The optimized CA: PVDF polymer membrane was characterized using various techniques for different compositions. The FTIR analysis confirms the variation in the peak when varying the PVDF content, indicating complexation. The semicrystalline CA matrix collapsed due to this complexation, as evidenced by the reduced intensity in the CA: PVDF XRD peaks. The XRD results confirm that the sample exhibits a semicrystalline nature, and increasing the PVDF content enhances its amorphous character. The DFT / B3LYP method was employed to calculate the molecular properties of CA, PVDF, and CA: PVDF. The molecular reactivity of CA, PVDF, and CA: PVDF molecules was investigated through frontier molecular orbital (FMO) analysis and additionally, the molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) contour map and mulliken atomic charge distribution analysis were used to identify possible electrophilic and nucleophilic reactive sites. Furthermore, molecular docking studies were performed to analyze the binding affinity of CA: PVDF with wound healing proteins 1MKW, 3OSL, 1TBQ, and 1VIT. The results suggest that CA: PVDF exhibits potent wound healing properties.

Halloysite is a novel mineral belonging to the kaolinite family of clays. It consists of largely cylindrical particles in the size range of few hundred to few micrometers in length. The negatively charged Si-O-Si functional groups at the surface and positively charged Al2(OH)4 at the luminal side offer unique chemistry to this clay mineral. Biopolymers such as starch are considered biodegradable and non-toxic in nature. But their higher water permeability, poor mechanical strength, and rigid characteristics limit their applications in many fields. Halloysite and starch hybrid materials or composites have been demonstrated to improve on these properties and at the same time remain natural. They have a wide variety of applications such as tissue engineering, drug delivery and food packaging materials. Besides this, they have also been used as catalyst and flame retardant materials.

Exploring bioactive aloe-vera and sterculia gum to develop hydrogel wound dressings by graft-copolymerization

Antimicrobial function of some nano and nanocomposite materials has long been recognized and exploited in various industries, including the packaging sector. Nanocomoposite antimicrobial systems are particularly effective, because of the high surface-to-volume ratio and enhanced surface reactivity of the nanosized antimicrobial agents, making them able to inactivate microorganisms more effectively than their micro- or macro-scale counterparts. Commonly used or tested antimicrobial nano and nanocomposite materials include metal ions (silver, copper, gold, platinum), metal oxide (titanium dioxide, zinc oxide, magnesium oxide), and organically modified nanoclay (quaternary ammonium-modified montmorillonite [MMT]). Natural biopolymers (chitosan), natural antimicrobial agents (nisin, thymol, carvacrol, isothiocyanate, antibiotics), enzymes (peroxidase, lysozyme), and synthetic antimicrobial agents and organic acids (quaternary ammonium salts, EDTA, propionic, benzoic, sorbic acids) are also utilized to provide antimicrobial function. In addition, various combinations of such antimicrobials are exploited by incorporating into packaging materials expecting their synergistic effect. The novel nanocomposite packaging materials with antimicrobial functions have a high potential for an active food packaging.

Chapter 1 - Polymer blends, composites and nanocomposites from chitin and chitosan; manufacturing, characterization and applications

Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a nanocellulose form produced by some nonpathogenic bacteria. BC presents unique physical, chemical, and biological properties that make it a very versatile material and has found application in several fields, namely in food industry, cosmetics, and biomedicine. This review overviews the latest state-of-the-art usage of BC on three important areas of the biomedical field, namely delivery systems, wound dressing and healing materials, and tissue engineering for regenerative medicine. BC will be reviewed as a promising biopolymer for the design and development of innovative materials for the mentioned applications. Overall, BC is shown to be an effective and versatile carrier for delivery systems, a safe and multicustomizable patch or graft for wound dressing and healing applications, and a material that can be further tuned to better adjust for each tissue engineering application, by using different methods.

Natural and synthetic polymers are a versatile platform for developing biomaterials in the biomedical and environmental fields. Natural polymers are organic compounds that are found in nature. The most common natural polymers include polysaccharides, such as alginate, hyaluronic acid, and starch, proteins, e.g., collagen, silk, and fibrin, and bacterial polyesters. Natural polymers have already been applied in numerous sectors, such as carriers for drug delivery, tissue engineering, stem cell morphogenesis, wound healing, regenerative medicine, food packaging, etc. Various synthetic polymers, including poly(lactic acid), poly(acrylic acid), poly(vinyl alcohol), polyethylene glycol, etc., are biocompatible and biodegradable; therefore, they are studied and applied in controlled drug release systems, nano-carriers, tissue engineering, dispersion of bacterial biofilms, gene delivery systems, bio-ink in 3D-printing, textiles in medicine, agriculture, heavy metals removal, and food packaging. In the following review, recent advancements in polymer chemistry, which enable the imparting of specific biomedical functions of polymers, will be discussed in detail, including antiviral, anticancer, and antimicrobial activities. This work contains the authors' experimental contributions to biomedical and environmental polymer applications. This review is a vast overview of natural and synthetic polymers used in biomedical and environmental fields, polymer synthesis, and isolation methods, critically assessessing their advantages, limitations, and prospects.

In this article, we discuss carbon nanoparticles for application as antibacterials and food-packaging materials. The use of petroleum-derived products, synthetic materials, ceramics, wax, etc. in the food-packaging industry emits polluted gas and wastewater, which leads to environmental pollution. To overcome the problems faced by the industry to preserve and package food, carbon nanomaterials may be good alternatives to enhance the shelf life of food without affecting the nutrients. Carbon atoms bond with each other in diverse ways to form many allotropes, resulting in a variety of carbon nanomaterials (CNMs). CNMs include zero-dimensional carbon dots, graphene quantum dots, 1-dimensional carbon nanotubes, 2-dimensional pristine graphene, graphene oxide, reduced graphene oxide, and other derivatives of graphene. Most of the carbon-based nanomaterials are synthesized through a green process that is widely used in the field of food science and technology, and they are used mostly as antibacterial agents and as a biofiller in the development of active food-packaging materials. Carbon nanomaterials (CNMs), viz., carbon dots, graphene, activated carbon-based nanocomposites, carbon nanotubes, etc., are found to be environmentally benign and better materials for food packaging. With antibacterial efficiency, they support food preservation and other applications as well. Thus, carbon nanostructures are found to be applicable as superior materials for food preservation and packaging in modern industry.

Biocide physically cross-linked hydrogels based on carrageenan and guanidinium polyampholytes for wound healing applications

Nanotechnology plays a pivotal role in addressing environmental challenges by providing innovative tools for toxin removal and sustainable solutions. Nanomaterials, particularly nano clays (NCs), offer broad applications due to their unique physicochemical properties. NCs, composed of natural phyllosilicates, are chemically processed to include elements like oxygen and silicon. Their layered structure allows for expansion with water absorption, increasing volume up to six‐fold and forming stable gels. In wastewater treatment, NCs are effective in removing heavy metals and adsorbing ions. In agriculture, NCs eliminate pesticides and neonicotinoid residues from the soil, promoting eco‐friendly practices. Specialized types of NC, including magnetic exfoliated bentonite and carboxy cellulose nanofibers, are also employed in oil spill cleanup. Additionally, organic montmorillonite NC is promising for air pollution control, especially in gas separation and pollutant removal. NCs are versatile, extending into biomedical applications for drug delivery and engineering. This review provides a comprehensive look at various NC types, traditional and emerging, and explores modification methods to optimize their use across fields. By offering a broad, forward‐thinking perspective, this review highlights NCs' potential in advancing technology and sustainability, underscoring the need for continued research and development to address global issues. By adopting an inclusive and forward‐focused outlook, this article distinguishes itself from more narrowly focused studies in the field of NCs.

Background: Food and drug packaging materials are an integral part of our everyday life. Noxious elements can inadvertently be included in packaging materials in various stages of their production. Adulterants, adhesives, colorants and heavy metal interference are the common sources of contamination in food packaging materials. Heavy metal toxicity has far-reaching ill effects on living organisms. The present study aimed at qualitatively and quantitatively analysing heavy metal contamination of various materials that are used for food and drug packaging in India. Methods: The qualitative detection was done by rapid assay and heavy metals were quantified with the help of inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). A total of 13 types of food and drug packaging materials were procured from local market and analysed for four heavy metals viz. arsenic (As), vanadium (V), mercury (Hg) and cadmium (Cd). The concentration of each heavy metal in the samples was compared with permitted values published by the European Council. Results: Of the 13 samples, heavy metals were qualitatively detected in 10 samples. ICP­-OES values for quantitative estimation showed presence of heavy metal above permissible range in 10 of the studied samples for vanadium, all samples for arsenic, two samples for mercury and one sample for cadmium. Arsenic was found to be the commonest heavy metal contaminant, present in 13 samples above permissible limit. Conclusions: The significantly higher concentration of heavy metal poses a potential health risk to the consumer and affects the quality of the food.

Recent functionality developments in Montmorillonite as a nanofiller in food packaging