Publication: Nanomaterials. 2022 Mar 11;12(6):929. Publication Date: March 11, 2022.

Abstract:
Gold nanorods (AuNRs) have been proposed to promote stem cell differentiation in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we examined a particular type of AuNR in supporting the differentiation of rat fetal neural stem cells (NSCs) into oligodendrocytes (ODCs). AuNRs were synthesized according to the seed-mediated method resulting in nanorods with an aspect ratio of around 3 (~12 nm diameter, 36 nm length) and plasmon resonance at 520 and 780 nm, as confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and UV-vis spectroscopy, respectively. A layer-by-layer approach was used to fabricate the AuNR substrate on the functionalized glass coverslips. NSCs were propagated for 10 days using fibroblast growth factor, platelet-derived growth-factor-supplemented culture media, and differentiated on an AuNR or poly-D-lysine (PDL)-coated surface using differentiation media containing triiodothyronine for three weeks. Results showed that NSCs survived better and differentiated faster on the AuNRs compared to the PDL surface. By week 1, almost all cells had differentiated on the AuNR substrate, whereas only ~60% differentiated on the PDL surface, with similar percentages of ODCs and astrocytes. This study indicates that functionalized AuNR substrate does promote NSC differentiation and could be a viable tool for tissue engineering to support the differentiation of stem cells.

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Publication: Nanomaterials. 2022 Mar 12;12(6):937. Publication Date: March 12, 2022.

Abstract:

Nanosized materials have been proposed for a wide range of biomedical applications, given their unique characteristics. However, how these nanomaterials interact with cells and tissues, as well as how they bio-distribute in organisms, is still under investigation. Differences such as the nanoparticle size, shape, and surface chemistry affect the basic mechanisms of cellular uptake and responses, which, in turn, affects the nanoparticles’ applicability for biomedical applications. Thus, it is vital to determine how a specific nanoparticle interacts with cells of interest before extensive in vivo applications are performed. Here, we delineate the uptake mechanism and localization of gold nanorods in SKBR-3 and MCF-7 breast cancer cell lines. Our results show both differences and similarities in the nanorod-cell interactions of the two cell lines. We accurately quantified the cellular uptake of gold nanorods in SKBR-3 and MCF-7 using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). We found that both cell types use macropinocytosis to internalize bare nanorods that aggregate and associate with the cell membrane. In addition, we were able to qualitatively track and show intracellular nanoparticle localization using transmission electron microscopy. The results of this study will be invaluable for the successful development of novel and “smart” nanodrugs based on gold nano-structural delivery vehicles, which heavily depend on their complex interactions with single cells.

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Publication: Scientific Reports. 12, Article number: 3208 (2022) Publication Date: February 25, 2022

Abstract:
The aim of this study was to create a surgical guide platform that maintains its integrity while the surgeon performs an intestinal anastomosis or another similar procedure, which then breaks apart and is eliminated from the body in a controlled manner. The device contains mixed polymeric structures that give it a controlled rate of disassembly that could meet the requirements of a specific surgical purpose. The intraluminal anastomotic guide was manufactured as a hollow cylinder composed of layers of porous polyurethane/PCL with polyvinylpyrrolidone as the binding agent similar to a “brick–mortar” architecture. This combination of polymeric structures is a promising manufacturing method from which a variety of tunable devices can be fabricated for specific medical procedures and site-specific indications. The guide was designed to rapidly disassemble within the intestinal lumen after use, reliably degrading while maintaining sufficient mechanical rigidity and stability to support manipulation during complex surgical procedures. The nature of the device’s disassembly makes it suitable for use in hollow structures that discharge their contents, resulting in their elimination from the body. A swine model of intestinal anastomosis was utilized to validate the use and function of the device.

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The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has received state and federal approval to award a services contract to NuShores Biosciences LLC for Generation 1 manufacturing of the NuCress bone void filler scaffold products. This contract is funded by a $5.6 million grant awarded by the Department of Defense to ����Vlog��ý Little Rock in 2019. Read more…

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The path to becoming a researcher takes many different forms. For ����Vlog��ý Little Rock student William King, it all started with a fifth-grade plot to take over the world.

A lofty dream, but the Bradford, Arkansas, native was practical about it — the first step had to be, of course, a quest for immortality. However, unlike other kids his age, King wasn’t interested in fountains of youth or magical potions.

“I wanted to research the longevity of the human life,” he said. “I was always interested in ‘how close are we to being immortal?’”

These questions introduced young King to biology, awakening a curiosity that would eventually lead him to ����Vlog��ý Little Rock. As a science-minded, academically gifted high school student, King’s immortality quest had matured into a simpler but nobler desire — to prolong and improve human life.

As a result, he wanted biological research to be the focus of his college career. While ����Vlog��ý Fayetteville and Hendrix College were options, King was swayed by the advanced research taking place at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock, specifically in the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences.

Read more…

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A University of Arkansas at Little Rock doctoral student has been selected for a highly competitive postdoctoral scholarship at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (����Vlog��ýMS). 

Emilie Darrigues, a doctoral student in applied science with an emphasis in chemistry who is graduating in May, is one of four students selected for the ����Vlog��ýMS Translational Research Institute Health Sciences Innovation and Entrepreneurship Postdoctoral Training Program for its class of 2022. Chosen by a competitive application process, Darrigues will begin two years of mentored entrepreneurship training on July 1.

Darrigues will be mentored by Dr. Analiz Rodriguez, director of neurosurgical oncology  in the Department of Neurosurgery. Her research project will focus on improving circulating tumor DNA detection in glioblastoma liquid biopsies and designing therapeutic nanoparticles as a strategy to specifically target glioblastoma.

Darrigues honed her research skills in the labs of the ����Vlog��ý Little Rock Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences, where she’s worked as a graduate assistant for the last five years. Under the mentorship of ����Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Dr. Zeid Nima and Dr. Alexandru Biris, Darrigues has developed her own biomedical research path and published multiple peer-reviewed papers.

Read more…

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The University of Arkansas at Little Rock announced a $750,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Defense to support the development of potentially life-saving bone regeneration technology during a Nov. 15 visit from Sen. John Boozman. The visit celebrated on-campus research initiatives that the senator championed for federal support. 

Pioneered at the ����Vlog��ý Little Rock Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences, the NuCress scaffold is a multifunctional device designed to promote controlled, robust bone regeneration in fractures, gaps where bone is missing, and major injury defects, including previously untreatable catastrophic injuries. Such a technology is highly needed by a wide variety of patients, including wounded soldiers, victims of major accidents and trauma, and those with various bone diseases.

The $750,000 grant, provided by the Department of Defense’s Peer Reviewed Orthopaedic Research Program, will investigate the scaffold’s ability to combat infection while regenerating bone. Earlier this fall, ����Vlog��ý Little Rock received a $5.6 million grant from the Department of Defense to fund the pre-market development of the same bone regeneration technology. Sen. Boozman supported both grants during the application stages.

Read the full press release on the ����Vlog��ý Little Rock Office of Communications website

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The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) has awarded the University of Arkansas at Little Rock a $5.6 million grant to advance the NuCress scaffold, a groundbreaking bone regeneration technology.

The grant brings together an interdisciplinary team from ����Vlog��ý Little Rock, led by principal investigator Dr. Alex Biris; the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, led by Dr. David Anderson; and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (����Vlog��ýMS), led by Dr. Mark Smeltzer.

Biris and Anderson have worked together since 2006 to develop this pioneering medical device. The NuCress scaffold is in the final stages of moving from the laboratory to the surgical theater, with potential future uses in both military and civilian hospitals. The new award from the DOD’s Joint Warfighter Medical Research Program will help facilitate this transition by funding critical go-to-market research.

Read the full press release on the ����Vlog��ý Little Rock Office of Communications website

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For nearly 20 years, the Arkansas Breast Cancer Research Program (ABCRP) has promoted innovative research work in breast cancer factors, prevention, detection, and treatment. Beginning in the fall of 2015, ABCRP is supporting Dr. Alexandru Biris, chief scientist and director of the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences, in launching his research project “Tunable Plasmonic Nanostructures for the Detection and Treatment of Breast Cancer.” Dr. Biris has received a $75,000 grant from ABCRP and ����Vlog��ýMS to support the project, which will investigate the use of nanostructures to pinpoint and possibly destroy individual breast cancer cells.

The strategic design of the nanostructures—and the researchers’ ability to control them—should enable them to identify single cancer cells with increased accuracy. Additionally, not only might detection be improved, but, by loading the nanostructures with complex cancer-fighting molecules and sending them directly to the individual cancer cells, the researchers believe that healthy cells can be spared—a difficult feat with radiation treatment. The number of cancer cells killed by treatment may also be greatly increased. The year-long project will both develop these complex nanostructural systems and test their proposed functions in vitro.

The project will last through August 2016. Dr. Biris will be joined in his research by Dr. Zeid Nima, Dr. Kieng Bao Vang-Dings, and a graduate assistant.

*This research was supported by a grant from the Arkansas Breast Cancer Research Program and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

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