Two nanoscale devices recently reported by University
of Pittsburgh researchers in two separate journals harness the potential
of carbon nanomaterials to enhance technologies for drug or imaging agent delivery
and energy storage systems, in one case, and, in the other, bolster the sensitivity
of oxygen sensors essential in confined settings, from mines to spacecrafts.
In a report published online by Advanced Materials Aug. 12, a team led by chemistry
professors Alexander Star and Stéphane Petoud in Pitt's School of Arts
and Sciences describe the creation of nanosized capsules that are universally
compatible with a range of substances, particularly related to medicine and
energy. When applied to medicine, the tiny vessels can potentially carry a sizable
"cargo" of anticancer drugs or medical-imaging agents, and could be
steered via antibodies and biological molecules to specific locations within
the human body. Energy applications include the storage of lithium and hydrogen
in batteries and fuel cells. Pitt graduate chemistry student Brett Allen was
the paper's lead author. The project also included chemistry graduate student
Chad Shade and Adrienne Yingling, now a graduate of Pitt's PhD chemistry program.
In a separate paper appearing online in Nature Chemistry Aug. 16, another team
headed by Star and Petoud revealed the development of a highly sensitive, fluorescent
oxygen sensor that can detect minute amounts of the gas. Oxygen detectors are
important safety devices in mines, aircraft, submarines, and other confined
spaces, the researchers note. The sensor consists of carbon nanotubes coated
with a luminescent compound incorporating europium, a reactive metal found in
fluorescent bulbs, television/computer screens, and lasers, among other applications.
The researchers gauged oxygen levels by measuring the intensity of its glow
when exposed to ultraviolent light and the tubes' change in electrical conductance.
The tubes demonstrated sensitivity to oxygen concentrations as low as 5 percent
(normal atmospheric concentration is around 20 percent) with the team calculating
that it can indicate a level as low as 0.4 percent, and they were unaffected
by other atmospheric gases, such as carbon dioxide and nitrogen. The second
paper was authored by Shade and Pitt chemistry graduate students Douglas Kauffman
and Hyounsoo Uh.
For both technologies, the Pitt teams worked with carbon nanomaterials to create
enhanced versions of existing technologies. For instance, the oxygen sensor
combines the small scale of carbon nanotubes—they are one-atom thick rolls
of graphite 100,000 times smaller than a human hair—with the reactivity
of the europium compound coating to produce a platform for low-cost, room-temperature
detectors that are notably sensitive to oxygen but less complicated than existing
sensors, the researchers write in Nature Chemistry.
Regarding the nanocapsules described in Advanced Materials, existing technologies
are typically constructed of polymers that are permeable like a sponge and can
result in leakage, Star explained. Additionally, each capsule must be tailored
to its particular cargo, he said. The Pitt version employs graphite carbon shells
bonded with glutaraldehyde—a common biological adhesive—creating
a hollow storage space. More importantly, the graphite shells are chemically
inactive and are thus compatible with any cargo substance without costly and
time-consuming chemical preparation, Star said.
"For decades, researchers have been searching for an optimal vessel for
storing and transporting a variety of cargo to specified locations," Star
said. "Our devices have the potential to be universal delivery vehicles
for a range of materials. Our next steps will focus on controlling how and when
the nanocapsules open by using different stimuli such as pH, light, and chemical
agents."
To illustrate the capsules' adaptability, the team loaded them with a luminescent
imaging agent developed in Petoud's lab made of zinc sulfide semiconductor nanocrystals
incorporating terbium, a metal chemically similar to europium. Once in the body,
the substance would emit a unique light that allows easier detection and a better
image, Petoud said. But the inorganic nanocrystals have to be prepared before
being introduced to a biological environment such as the body and is difficult
and time-consuming. The graphite nanocapsules, however, could hold and transport
the solution with no preparation.
Posted August 17th, 2009
