Recently, photothermal ablation therapy (PTA) employing near-infrared radiation (NIR) has been extensively investigated as an emerging modality for cancer management. However, the clinical translation of this promising approach is limited by the lack of PTA agents with broad NIR absorption, low cost and high photothermal conversion efficiency. Herein, we have developed PEGylated homogeneous CsxWO3 nanorods (a mean size ∼69.3 nm × 12.8 nm) with broad photo-absorption (780-2500 nm) as a novel NIR absorbent for PTA treatment of human cancer. The prepared CsxWO3 nanocrystals displayed strong near-infrared optical absorption with a high molar extinction coefficient (e.g. 4.8 × 10(10) M(-1) cm(-1) at 980 nm), thus generated significant amounts of heat upon excitation with near-infrared light. The PTA study in two human carcinoma cell lines (i.e. A549 lung cancer cells and HeLa ovarian cancer cells) demonstrated that CsxWO3 nanorods can efficiently cause cell death via hyperthermia induced lysosome destruction, cytoskeleton protein degradation, DNA damage and thereafter cellular necrosis or apoptosis. Our study also confirmed the migration of healthy cells migrated from unirradiated areas to dead cell cycle, which is essential for tissue reconstruction and wound healing after photodestruction of tumor tissue. The prompted results reported in the current study imply the promising potential of CsxWO3 nanorods for application in PTA cancer therapy.

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Serratia marcescens YS-1, a chitin-degrading microorganism, produced mainly N-acetylhexosaminidase. The purified enzyme had an optimal pH of approximately 8-9 and remained stable at 40 degrees C for 60 min at pH 6-8. The optimum temperature was around 50 degrees C, and enzyme activity was relatively stable below 50 degrees C. YS-1 N-acetylhexosaminidase hydrolyzed p-nitrophenyl beta-N-acetylgalactosamide by 28.1% relative to p-nitrophenyl beta-N-acetylglucosamide. The N-acetylchitooligosaccharides were hydrolyzed more rapidly, but the cellobiose and chitobiose of disaccharides that had the same beta-1,4 glycosidic bond as di-N-acetylchitobiose were not hydrolyzed. YS-1 N-acetylhexosaminidase efficiently transferred the N-acetylglucosamine residue from di-N-acetylchitobiose (substrate) to alcohols (acceptor). The ratio of transfer to methanol increased to 86% in a reaction with 32% methanol. N-Acetylglucosamine was transferred to the hydroxyl group at C1 of monoalcohols. A dialcohol was used as an acceptor when the carbon number was more than 4 and a hydroxyl group existed on each of the two outside carbons. Sugar alcohols with hydroxyl groups in all carbon positions were not proper acceptors.

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Micro-disks and micro-rods of ZnO were successfully synthesized by a mild solution process using zinc chloride as starting material. The morphology of the ZnO crystals changed substantially, depending on the concentrations of the Zn 2? ion and organic additives in the solution. A plate-like Zn 5 (OH) 8 Cl 2 ÁH 2 O precursor with a layered structure could be produced in solutions with high concentrations of chloride ions. The thermal stability, including phase composition and morphology, of the as-prepared Zn 5 (OH) 8 Cl 2 ÁH 2 O in air and water was investigated.