Photoactive Lanthanide‐Based Upconverting Nanoclusters for Antimicrobial Applications

Abstract

Developing photoactive nanosystems against microbial infection and its therapeutic application is compromised by the lack of suitable materials or molecular dyes activatable at biofriendly NIR light. In this direction, the upconverting nanoparticles based on core–shell lanthanide‐doped nanoclusters are developed synthetically to achieve a broad range of NIR‐active phototherapeutic antimicrobial agents. This review illustrates antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT) and multimodal therapy by NIR photoirradiation, generated by lanthanum doped upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs). The objective herein is to discuss the insights in developing the UCNPs for designing efficient aPDTs and their efficacies against emerging antibiotic‐resistant bacterial colonies and their biofilms, drug‐resistant fungi, and viruses. The biosafety and biocompatibility of UCNPs at both in vitro and in vivo level are also presented in detail. Finally, our perspectives on the ways of future material engineering needed for the effective translation into their real‐world applications are also commented.

A combination therapy strategy for treating antibiotic resistant biofilm infection using a guanidinium derivative and nanoparticulate Ag(0) derived hybrid gel conjugate

“…Guanidine is known to be a versatile ligand that can form stable complexes with various metal ions. 19 A report from Nandibewoor and his co-workers reported oxidation of guanidinium ion to urea by Ag(I) species. 68 Also, hydrazide derivatives are known to act as a reducing agent for Ag(I)-species and generate nanoparticulate Ag(0) following a two-electron redox process.…”

“…14 The challenges to conventional mono-therapeutic approaches posed by biofilms have given way to combinatorial therapies that inhibit biofilm formation and/or dispersion of established biofilms, as well as act as anti-microbial chemotherapy. [15][16][17][18][19] A recent report reveals that the use of certain synthetic guanidinium derivatives could effectively induce biofilm disassembly in the developmental cycle of Bacillus subtilis. [20][21][22] It is proposed that the guanidine functionalities participate in the hydrogen bond formation in the extracellular polymeric matrix weakening its mechanical stability to induce dispersion.…”

Self-assembled dipeptide based fluorescent nanoparticles as a platform for developing cellular imaging probes and targeted drug delivery chaperones

“…Nanodrug delivery systems (NDDs) hold great promise in the development of novel molecules for the diagnosis or treatment of several diseases, such as cancer, inammation, neurological diseases and cardiovascular diseases, which represent a large burden on the global healthcare system. [1][2][3][4][5] The augmentation of existing cancer chemotherapeutics with drug-chaperone systems capable of directing delivery of the drug to cancer cells while sparing healthy tissue is in demand given the high incidence of dose-limiting adverse events associated with many chemotherapeutic agents. When compared to low molecular weight substrates, NDDs oen exhibit extended blood half-life, enhanced penetration into tumor tissues, and the ability to release drugs into the cytoplasm in a controllable manner.…”

Conjugating AIE-featured AuAg nanoclusters with highly luminescent carbon dots for improved visible-light-driven antibacterial activity

“…Recently, ultrasmall noble metal nanoclusters (NCs for short) with a core size of ≤3 nm as novel functional nanomaterials [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] have been demonstrated to be a new type of antibacterial agent, which features broad-spectrum antibacterial performance without inducing drug resistance of bacteria. [17][18][19][20][21] However, the conventional metal NC-based antibacterial agents mostly rely on their self-consumption (i.e., endocytosis of NCs or metal ions) to induce the generation of destructive reactive oxygen species (ROS) for bacterial killing, which constrains their longlasting antibacterial applications. [22][23][24][25] Hence, it is essential to develop a metal NC-based antibacterial agent that inherits the merits but overcomes the short-lasting efficacy of conventional metal NC-based ones, which could be beneficial for the protection of the public environment from bacterial hazards.…”