Transmission Microscopy Research Articles

Green synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles using Hibiscus plant extract

In the present work, hematite (α-Fe2O3) nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized by using a simple and facile green synthesis by using Hibiscus plant extract. The used solution is composed of plant extract and 0.1 M of iron chloride mixture. The nanoparticles are grown at ambient temperature. The prepared nanoparticles morphology, structure and composition were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and high-resolution transmission microscopy (HRTEM). The synthesized nanoparticles are formed by agglomeration of spherical and mono-disperse grains. XRD analysis reveals that the grains are polycrystalline with an average particle size of 20 nm. The calcinated nanoparticles contain small traces of maghemite and hydroxide. A vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) was used for the nanoparticle magnetic properties determination. The finding reveals the superparamagnetic behaviour of the synthesized α-Fe2O3 nanoparticles owing to a saturated magnetization (Ms) of 0.96 emu/g, and low remnant magnetization Mr of 0.06 emu/g.

Rheological, Physical, and Spectroscopical Characterization of Gamma-Irradiated Albumin Nanoparticles Loaded with Anthocyanin.

Anthocyanins are the main active compounds in blueberry. However, they have poor oxidation stability. If anthocyanins are encapsulated in protein nanoparticles, their oxidation resistance could be increased as a result of the slowing down of the oxidation process. This work describes the advantages of using a γ-irradiated bovine serum albumin nanoparticle bound to anthocyanins. The interaction was characterized biophysically, mainly by rheology. By computational calculation and simulation based on model nanoparticles, we estimated the number of molecules forming the albumin nanoparticles, which allowed us to infer the ratio of anthocyanin/nanoparticles. Measurements by UV-vis spectroscopy, FTIR spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering (DLS), ζ potential, electron transmission microscopy, and rheology at room (25 °C) and physiological (37 °C) temperatures were performed. The spectroscopy measurements allowed identifying additional hydrophobic sites created during the irradiation process of the nanoparticle. On the basis of the rheological studies, it was observed that the BSA-NP trend is a Newtonian flow behavior type for all the temperatures selected, and there is a direct correlation between dynamic viscosity and temperature values. Furthermore, when anthocyanins are added, the system increases its resistance to the flow as reflected in the morphological changes observed by TEM, thus confirming the relationship between viscosity values and aggregate formation.

Soft X-ray scanning transmission microscopy as a selective probe of topical dermal drug delivery: The role of petrolatum and occlusion

Selective and label-free probing of drugs by scanning transmission X-ray microscopy (STXM) is applied along with hyperspectral imaging to probe topically applied drugs in human skin explants ex vivo. A comparison of data evaluation strategies is reported, which includes changes in optical density at selected photon energies in the O 1 s regime, linear combination modeling using reference spectra, as well as principal component and cluster analyses. It is shown that consistent results are obtained from linear combination modeling of reference spectra and changes in optical density. The dermal penetration of the anti-inflammatory drug rapamycin is investigated with high spatial resolution using a petrolatum-based formulation. For such well-known formulation the result of occlusion is investigated leading to drug uptake into corneocytes. Additional changes in drug penetration induced by weakening the skin barrier by the serine protease trypsin are also included. These results are discussed in comparison with the dermal penetration of other drug formulations. Finally, alternatives to present data acquisition strategies in STXM are discussed with respect to sub-sampling in combination with mathematical approaches, so that the full chemical and spatial information can be retrieved and radiation damage is minimized.

Bismuth sulfoiodide (BiSI) nanorods: synthesis, characterization, and photodetector application

The nanorods of bismuth sulfoiodide (BiSI) were synthesized at relatively low temperature (393 K) through a wet chemical method. The crystalline one-dimensional (1D) structure of the BiSI nanorods was confirmed using high resolution transmission microscopy (HRTEM). The morphology and chemical composition of the material were examined by applying scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), respectively. The average diameter of 126(3) nm and length of 1.9(1) µm of the BiSI nanorods were determined. X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed that prepared material consists of a major orthorhombic BiSI phase (87%) and a minor amount of hexagonal Bi13S18I2 phase (13%) with no presence of other residual phases. The direct energy band gap of 1.67(1) eV was determined for BiSI film using diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). Two types of photodetectors were constructed from BiSI nanorods. The first one was traditional photoconductive device based on BiSI film on stiff glass substrate equipped with Au electrodes. An influence of light intensity on photocurrent response to monochromatic light (λ = 488 nm) illumination was studied at a constant bias voltage. The novel flexible photo-chargeable device was the second type of prepared photodetectors. It consisted of BiSI film and gel electrolyte layer sandwiched between polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates coated with indium tin oxide (ITO) electrodes. The flexible self-powered BiSI photodetector exhibited open-circuit photovoltage of 68 mV and short-circuit photocurrent density of 0.11 nA/cm2 under light illumination with intensity of 0.127 W/cm2. These results confirmed high potential of BiSI nanorods for use in self-powered photodetectors and photo-chargeable capacitors.

Crack formation and oxidation wear in (Cr,Y,Al)N and (Mo,Y,Al)N nanolayer coatings with high content of yttrium

The article considers the processes of cracking and oxidation in the nanolayer coatings of (Cr,Y,Al)N and (Mo,Y,Al)N with a high (about 50 at%) content of yttrium (Y). The studies were carried out during the turning of steel with subsequent investigation of the wear area using scanning (SEM) and transmission (TEM) microscopes. Although the main parameters (elemental composition and structure) are identical and the values of hardness and elastic modulus are close, tools with the coatings under consideration demonstrated noticeable difference in wear resistance. The (Mo,Y,Al)N coated tool had a wear resistance 45% higher than the (Cr,Y,Al)N coated tool and 30% higher than the (Ti,Cr,Al)N reference coated tool. Active formation of cracks is detected in the (Cr,Y,Al)N coating, while oxidation wear dominated in the (Mo,Y,Al)N coating. Therefore, coatings containing layers of materials characterized by an increased tendency to oxidize, but at the same time providing a favorable compositional effect, can be effectively used. This is possible provided that the oxidation-resistant layers protect the oxidation-prone layers from active contact with oxygen.

Structural analysis and architectural principles of the bacterial amyloid curli

Two decades have passed since the initial proposition that amyloids are not only (toxic) byproducts of an unintended aggregation cascade, but that they can also be produced by an organism to serve a defined biological function. That revolutionary idea was borne out of the realization that a large fraction of the extracellular matrix that holds Gram-negative cells into a persistent biofilm is composed of protein fibers (curli; tafi) with cross-β architecture, nucleation-dependent polymerization kinetics and classic amyloid tinctorial properties. The list of proteins shown to form so-called functional amyloid fibers in vivo has greatly expanded over the years, but detailed structural insights have not followed at a similar pace in part due to the associated experimental barriers. Here we combine extensive AlphaFold2 modelling and cryo-electron transmission microscopy to propose an atomic model of curli protofibrils, and their higher modes of organization. We uncover an unexpected structural diversity of curli building blocks and fibril architectures. Our results allow for a rationalization of the extreme physico-chemical robustness of curli, as well as earlier observations of inter-species curli promiscuity, and should facilitate further engineering efforts to expand the repertoire of curli-based functional materials.

Molecular beam epitaxy growth of Transition Metal Dichalcogenide (Mo,Mn)Se2 on 2D, 3D and polycrystalline substrates

Magnetic doping of 2D materials such as Transition Metal Dichalcogenides is promising for enhancement of magneto-optical properties, as it was previously observed for 3D diluted magnetic semiconductors. To maximize the effect of magnetic ions, they should be incorporated into the crystal lattice of 2D material rather than form separated precipitates. This work shows study on incorporating magnetic manganese ions into the MoSe2 monolayers using molecular beam epitaxy. We test growth on various substrates with very different properties: polycrystalline SiO2 on Si, exfoliated 2D hexagonal Boron Nitride flakes (placed on SiO2/Si), monocrystalline sapphire, and exfoliated graphite (on tantalum foil). Although atomic force microscopy images indicate presence of MnSe precipitates, but at the same time, various techniques reveal effects related to alloying MoSe2 with Mn: Raman scattering and photoluminescence measurements shows energy shift related to presence of Mn, scanning transmission microscopy shows Mn induced partial transformation of 1H to 1T’ phase. Above effects evidence partial incorporation of Mn into MoSe2 layer.

The Effect of Boron Addition on the Structure and Mechanical Properties of Cu–Al–Ni–B Alloys with a Thermoelastic Martensitic Transformation

For the first time, data on the peculiarities of the structure of the Cu–Al–Ni–(B) alloys differing in the contents of alloying elements, namely, containing 10–14 wt % aluminum, 3, 4, 4.5 wt % nickel, and 0.02–0.3 wt % boron were obtained using optical, scanning, and transmission microscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis along with measurements of tensile mechanical properties. The effect of boron on the grain size, structure, phase composition, and mechanical properties of the shape-memory alloys has been studied. The localization of aluminum boride precipitates in the structure has been studied, and the effect of grain growthretardation in (α + β) and β Cu–Al–Ni–B alloys in both cast and heat-treated states has been found.

Palladium Nanoparticle-Decorated Porous Metal-Organic-Framework (Zr)@Guanidine: Novel Efficient Catalyst in Cross-Coupling (Suzuki, Heck, and Sonogashira) Reactions and Carbonylative Sonogashira under Mild Conditions.

A novel heterogeneous Zr-based metal-organic framework containing an amino group functionalized with nitrogen-rich organic ligand (guanidine), through a step-by-step post synthesis modification approach, was successfully modified by the stabilization of palladium metal nanoparticles on the prepared UiO-66-NH2 support in order to synthesize the Suzuki-Murray, Mizoroki-Heck, and copper-free Sonogashira reactions and also the carbonylative Sonogashira reaction incorporating H2O as a green solvent under mild conditions. This newly synthesized highly efficient and reusable UiO-66-NH2@cyanuric chloride@guanidine/Pd-NPs reported catalyst has been utilized to increase anchoring palladium onto the substrate with the aim of altering the construction of the intended synthesis catalyst to form the C-C coupling derivatives. Several strategies, including X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared, scanning electron microscopy, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller, transmission microscopy electron, thermogravimetric analysis, inductively coupled plasma, energy-dispersive X-ray, and elemental mapping analyzes, were used to indicate the successful preparation of the UiO-66-NH2@cyanuric chloride@guanidine/Pd-NPs. In these reactions, the UiO-66-NH2-supported Pd-NPs illustrated superior performances compared to their catalyst, revealing the benefits of providing nanocatalysts. As a result, the proposed catalyst is favorable in a green solvent, and also, the outputs are accomplished with good to excellent outputs. Furthermore, the suggested catalyst represented very good reusability with no remarkable loss in activity up nine sequential runs.

Finite Element Simulation and Experimental Investigation of Nanostructuring Burnishing AISI 52100 Steel Using an Inclined Flat Cylindrical Tool

This article is devoted to the development of a sliding burnishing scheme using a flat cylindrical indenter. The previously established patterns of nanostructured state formation in the AISI 52100 steel subsurface layer showed a need to create a special tool with a variable tilt angle of the indenter and with force regulation. A new tool with a cubic boron nitride indenter opens wide possibilities for nanostructuring burnishing of hardened bearing steel. Firstly, a flat cylindrical indenter has high durability due to repeated rotation around its axis. Secondly, the change of the tilt angle to the treated surface allows controlling the contact compression pressure and plastic shear deformation, which determines the formation of a nanostructured state of the material by the method of severe plastic deformation (SPD). The purpose of the work is to determine the optimal parameters of the process and tool in order to form a nanostructure and significantly increase surface layer microhardness. The goal was achieved by the methods of finite element modeling (FEM) and experimental studies of burnishing when the indenter tilt angle changes from 0.5° to 2.5° under dry processing conditions. Numerical simulation of the process made it possible to establish optimal values of the indenter tilt angle of 2° and the burnishing force 250 N according to the criteria of maximum contact pressure and cumulative deformation. The experimental studies of cumulative deformations and the coefficient of friction by the method of burnishing a split disc and dynamometry of the process confirmed the FEM results. The transmission microscopy, durometry, and 3D surface profilometry showed the sensitivity of nanocrystallite sizes, microhardness, and roughness to an indenter tilt angle and confirmed the optimality of the established tilt angle value.

Effect of hydrothermal time on the forming specific morphology of YPO4:Eu3+ nanoparticles for dedicated luminescent applications as optical markers

A way to control the desired shape and microstructure of YPO4:Eu3+ nanoparticles through the precipitation method followed by a hydrothermal treatment is reported. This method is useful for achieving very high control over the YPO4:Eu3+ formation process with the selection of appropriate synthesis parameters. In detail, the autoclave processing time allows control of the shape and size of nano-needle-shaped particles independently in both directions, as confirmed by X-ray powder diffraction, FT-IR Spectroscopy and Electron Transmission Microscopy. In order to analyse the effect of the nanoparticles' surroundings on the excitation and relaxation processes of luminescent ions, Eu3+ ion was used as a dopant, whose specific properties allow the study of changes in their local surroundings by analysing emission spectra. As additionally shown, the shape and size of the nano-needles were correlated with the luminescence properties of the particles, which are particularly influenced by the presence of water and by its effect on emission processes from dopant ions located in the near-surface zone of the nanoparticles. These results proved that the shape of particles influenced the distance between Eu3+ ions in the phosphor, such distance affected the specific emission properties, i.e. the lifetime of excited levels of Eu3+ ions.

Constructing poison-resistant Au-Pd single-atom alloy electrocatalyst on Pd nanocrystals for formic acid electrooxidation

Pd is a promising anodic catalyst for direct formic acid fuel cells, while its performance on formic acid electrooxidation is still suffered from for low catalytic efficiency and durability. In this work, an electrochemical self-catalyzed method was employed to deposit Au single-atoms onto Pd nanocrystals with tuneable compositions. Spherical-corrected Scanning transmission microscope and electrochemical characteristics demonstrated that the Au atoms were atomic-dispersive on Pd nanocrystals, forming Au-Pd single-atom alloy. Systematic studies showed that the activity of Pdx @Auy/C SAA is related to the density of the Au single-atoms on Pd surface. When an optimized balance between active-site exposure and intrinsic activity is achieved, the Pd50 @Au1/C SAA showed superb formic acid electrooxidation activity of 4.98 A mg−1M and unusual high anti-poisoning ability which is distinctly different from most of the Pd based catalysts. The boosted electrochemical performances of Pdx @Auy/C SAA can be attributed to the unique geometric effect that facilitates the direct reaction route and favourable electronic effect that weakens the CO adsorption to Pd sites.

Morphology of the buccal apparatus of Dendronotus frondosus(Gastropoda: Nudibranchia).

Nudibranchia is the order of Gastropoda, which is known for its high diversity of dietary specializations and a diversified morphology of the buccal armature. The characters of the buccal armature are adaptive to the feeding mechanisms and diet preferences, but they also are phylogenetically informative. The morphological differences in the buccal armature imply different mechanisms of the synthesis and morphology of the formation zones. Here, we report new data on the morphology of the buccal complex in a cladobranch species with broad radula, Dendronotus frondosus, using light microscopy, transmission and scanning elctron microscopy and computer-based three- dimensional reconstruction and compare them with those on other nudibranchs. We report the presence of protective chitinous spindles in the epithelia of the oral tube and esophagus, which suggests the presence of Cnidaria in the diet of the studied mollusc species. Similar to other Cladobranchia, the jaw plate of D. frondosus is synthesized by the layer of gnathoblasts located posteriorly in the epithelial fold. Near the zone of jaw synthesis, the gnathoblasts with concentric granular endoplasmic reticulum structures were found. This may indicate the turnover of gnathoblasts during the life of a specimen. Despite that D. frondosus has a broad radula, the zone of its synthesis does not split into two parts, unlike other molluscs with broad radulae. A single radular tooth is formed by a few cells, such as in other Nudibranchia. The number of odontoblasts per tooth in D. frondosus is not defined by a tooth size. At the same time, the linear dimensions of the cells secreting radular teeth depend on the size of the teeth synthesized by them.

Improving quantification of renal fibrosis using Deep-DUET.

Accurate quantification of renal fibrosis has profound importance in the assessment of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Visual analysis of a biopsy stained with trichrome under the microscope by a pathologist is the gold standard for evaluation of fibrosis. Trichrome helps to highlight collagen and ultimately interstitial fibrosis. However, trichrome stains are not always reproducible, can underestimate collagen content and are not sensitive to subtle fibrotic patterns. Using the Dual-mode emission and transmission (DUET) microscopy approach, it is possible to capture both brightfield and fluorescence images from the same area of a tissue stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) enabling reproducible extraction of collagen with high sensitivity and specificity. Manual extraction of spectrally overlapping collagen signals from tubular epithelial cells and red blood cells is still an intensive task. We employed a UNet++ architecture for pixel-level segmentation and quantification of collagen using 760 whole slide image (WSI) patches from six cases of varying stages of fibrosis. Our trained model (Deep-DUET) used the supervised extracted collagen mask as ground truth and was able to predict the extent of collagen signal with a MSE of 0.05 in a holdout testing set while achieving an average AUC of 0.94 for predicting regions of collagen deposits. Expanding this work to the level of the WSI can greatly improve the ability of pathologists and machine learning (ML) tools to quantify the extent of renal fibrosis reproducibly and reliably.

Influences of Na2CO3 roasting and H3PO4 hot-pressure leaching on the purification of vein quartz to achieve high-purity quartz

Vein quartz can be used as a raw material for producing high-purity quartz (HPQ). In this study, the mineralogy and purification process of vein quartz were investigated using transmission and reverse dual-purpose polarizing microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and inductively coupled plasma spectrometry. The results indicated that muscovite (KAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2) was the main mineral impurity. A combined process of Na2CO3 roasting and dual H3PO4 hot-pressure leaching was established. The lattice reorganization of the vein quartz during the Na2CO3 roasting process reduced the phase transfer temperature from α-quartz to cristobalite. In addition, the roasting pretreatment destroyed the muscovite crystal structure, which is beneficial for the dissolution of impurities during the subsequent H3PO4 hot-pressure leaching process, mainly because of the broken Si-O-Al, Si-O-K, and Al-O-K bonds, thereby releasing soluble elements such as K+ and Al3+ into the solution and eventually achieving selective removal of muscovite impurities from the vein quartz. This study provides a new strategy for HPQ preparation using vein quartz as the raw material where the SiO2 grade changes from 99.938% in vein quartz to 99.991% after first leaching and 99.995% after roasting with Na2CO3 and second leaching.

Partially coherent broadband 3D optical transfer functions with arbitrary temporal and angular power spectra.

Optical diffraction tomography is a powerful technique to produce 3D volumetric images of biological samples using contrast produced by variations in the index of refraction in an unlabeled specimen. While this is typically performed with coherent illumination from a variety of angles, interest has grown in partially coherent methods due to the simplicity of the illumination and the computation-free axial sectioning provided by the coherence window of the source. However, such methods rely on the symmetry or discretization of a source to facilitate quantitative analysis and are unable to efficiently handle arbitrary illumination that may vary asymmetrically in angle and continuously in the spectrum, such as diffusely scattered or thermal sources. A general broadband theory may expand the scope of illumination methods available for quantitative analysis, as partially coherent sources are commonly available and may benefit from the effects of spatial and temporal incoherence. In this work, we investigate partially coherent tomographic phase microscopy from arbitrary sources regardless of angular distribution and spectrum by unifying the effects of spatial and temporal coherence into a single formulation. This approach further yields a method for efficient computation of the overall systems' optical transfer function, which scales with O(n 3), down from O(mn 4) for existing convolutional methods, where n 3 is the number of spatial voxels in 3D space and m is the number of discrete wavelengths in the illumination spectrum. This work has important implications for enabling partially coherent 3D quantitative phase microscopy and refractive index tomography in virtually any transmission or epi-illumination microscope.

Combinatorial approach to fabricate silica doped polyvinyl alcohol/hydroxyapatite/carrageenan nanocomposite for bone regeneration applications

AbstractBone tissue engineering is a dominating approach for the fabrication of nanocomposite bone implants with superior biocompatibility and low toxicity to the surrounding tissues. Here, in this report ternary nanocomposites integrating nanohydroxyapatite/κ‐carrageenan/silica doped polyvinyl alcohol in three different ratios, that is, 60/30/10 (HCP1), 60/20/20 (HCP2), and 60/10/30 (HCP3) was constructed and a binary system comprised of nanohydroxyapatite and κ‐carrageenan was also prepared for analyzing and comparing their bone regeneration potential. The samples were characterized by various physico‐chemical techniques such as infra‐red spectroscopy, which furnished details about structural functionalities and complex formation. Rough surface morphology and dispersed particle size distribution of developed nanocomposites were revealed by scanning electron microscopy and electron transmission microscopy, respectively. Thermogravimetric analysis and differential temperature analysis revealed higher thermal stability of HCP3 nanocomposite with total weight loss of 10% and X‐ray diffraction analysis revealed average crystallite size of 15 nm for HCP3 nanocomposite. Bioactivity and biocompatibility of fabricated nanocomposites were deduced with the help of biological techniques. HCP3 manifested cell viability above 100% at 2 μg/mL concentration and exhibited hemolysis below 3% at all tested concentration favoring cell growth with minimum cytotoxicity. HCP3 also exhibited efficient apatite layer deposition, optimum swelling ability and improved biodegradability (~30%) and anti‐bacterial activity predicting it as a promising nanocomposite implant for future orthopedic applications.

Radial-tangential mode of single-wall carbon nanotubes manifested by Landau regulation: reinterpretation of low- and intermediate-frequency Raman signals

The low-frequency Raman signals of single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs), appearing in the range of 100–300 cm−1, have been interpreted as radial-breathing mode (RBM) comprising pure radial Eigenvectors. Here, we report that most of the low-frequency and intermediate-frequency signals of SWNTs are radial-tangential modes (RTMs) coexisting radial and tangential Eigenvectors, while only the first peak at the low-frequency side is the RBM. Density functional theory simulation for SWNTs of ~ 2 nm in diameter shows that dozens of RTMs exhibit following the RBM (~ 150 cm−1) up to G-mode (~ 1592 cm−1) in order with Landau regulation. We specify the RBM and the RTM on Raman spectra obtained from SWNTs, where both appear as prominent peaks between 149 and 170 cm−1 and ripple-like peaks between 166 and 1440 cm−1, respectively. We report that the RTMs have been regarded as RBM (~ 300 cm−1) and ambiguously named as intermediate-frequency mode (300–1300 cm−1) without assignment. The RTMs gradually interlink the RBM and the G-mode resulting in the symmetric Raman spectra in intensity. We reveal high-resolution transmission microscope evidence for a helical structure of SWNTs, informing the typical diameter of commercial SWNTs to be 1.4–2 nm.

Pollen Visualization of Turkish Flora of Selected Plant Species under Light, Scanning, and Transmission Microscopy

This study aims to examine pollen morphologically via studies of 16 plant taxa from Turkish flora. The pollen structures of the taxa examined, and their microscopic relevance, was discussed and studied with the help of microscopic visualization using scanning and transmission microscopies. Pollen grains were first acetolyzed, and then quantitative and qualitative pollen features were used to evaluate the species. The pollen grains were prolate, spherical, elliptic, tricolporate, 3-colpate, and hexacolpate. Sculpturing patterns of surfaces vary from reticulate, micro-reticulate, and striate regulate. As the findings reveal, palynological data can aid in the taxonomic classification of Turkish floral species. Microscopic implications can be made via micromorphological examination to correctly identify the species. While the pollen morphology of 16 taxa collected from the study area was studied for the first time from this region, the palynological research of some taxa was introduced to the literature for the first time with this study. Pollen morphology and photographic and statistical data of the taxa in our study were determined. This study contributed to bee plant research, melisapalinological studies, and systematic botanical flora studies.

Formulation and evaluation of alginate-gelatin hydrogel scaffolds loaded with zinc-doped hydroxyapatite and 5-fluorouracil

Alginate and gelatin are natural macromolecules used to formulate biocompatible drug delivery systems. Hydroxyapatite (HA) is an osteophilic ceramic used to prepare bone scaffolds. The current study aimed at preparing and characterizing HA, zinc-doped HA, and 5-fluorouracil(5-FU)-loaded alginate-gelatin-based hydrogel scaffolds using different crosslinking solutions. 5-FU incorporation efficiency, in-vitro drug release, antitumor bioassays, FTIR, X-ray-diffraction (XRD), High-Resolution Transmission, and Scanning-Electron Microscope (HR-TEM and SEM) studies were conducted. XRD showed the incorporation of Zn2+ into HA structure with a deformity in HA crystal lattice and inhibited crystal growth. FTIR-spectra represented the characteristic bands corresponding to HA structure. HR-TEM showed a decreased HA crystal size and rod-like crystallites that increased with increasing zinc content. Zn2+ content and 5-FU-loading caused significant effects on the scaffolds' thickness (p-value = 0.021 and 0.035, respectively). Burst 5-FU release within 10–15 min followed by 100 % release within 4 h was observed. Zinc content showed a significant positive effect on the cytotoxicity% of the blank and drug-loaded scaffolds. XRD and FTIR studies revealed that 5-FU was completely incorporated into the hydrogel with no chemical interaction. SEM-imaging showed interconnected pores and needle-shaped drug particles. The prepared formulations showed promising physico-chemical properties for targeted delivery of 5-FU in the form of biocompatible bone scaffolds.