Carbon-based nanomaterials have been developed for photothermal cancer therapy, but it is still a great challenge to fabricate their multifunctional counterparts with facile methods, good biocompatibility and dispersity, and high efficiency for cancer theranostics. In this work, an alternative multifunctional nanoplatform is developed based on carbon–silica nanocapsules with gold nanoparticle in the cavity (Au@CSN) for cancer theranostics. The encapsulated chemodrug doxorubicin can be released from the Au@CSN with mesoporous and hollow structure in a near-infrared light and pH stimuli-responsive manner, facilitating spatiotemporal therapy to decrease off-target toxicity. The nanocapsules with efficient photothermal conversion and excellent biocompatibility achieve a synergistic effect of photothermal and chemotherapy. Furthermore, the nanocapsules can act as a multimodal imaging agent of computed tomography and photoacoustic tomography imaging for guiding the therapy. This new design platform can provide a promising strategy for precise cancer theranostics.

One-dimensional (1D) ferroelectric nanostructures, such as nanowires, nanorods, nanotubes, nanobelts, and nanofibers, have been studied with increasing intensity in recent years. Because of their excellent ferroelectric, ferroelastic, pyroelectric, piezoelectric, inverse piezoelectric, ferroelectric-photovoltaic (FE-PV), and other unique physical properties, 1D ferroelectric nanostructures have been widely used in energy-harvesting devices, nonvolatile random access memory applications, nanoelectromechanical systems, advanced sensors, FE-PV devices, and photocatalysis mechanisms. This review summarizes the current state of 1D ferroelectric nanostructures and provides an overview of the synthesis methods, properties, and practical applications of 1D nanostructures. Finally, the prospects for future investigations are outlined.

The influence of graphene quantum dots (GQDs) on key characteristics of bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) phenotype (i.e., self-renewal, differentiation potential, and pluripotency) is systematically investigated in this work. First, the viability and impact of GQDs on the self-renewal potential of MSCs is evaluated in order to determine a threshold for the exposing dose. Second, GQDs uptake by MSCs is confirmed due to the excellent fluorescent properties of the particles. They exhibit a homogenous cytoplasmatic distribution that increases with the time and concentration. Third, the impact of GQDs on the osteogenic differentiation of MSCs is deeply characterized. An enhanced activity of alkaline phosphatase promoted by GQDs indicates early activation of osteogenesis. This is also confirmed upon GQD-induced up-regulation of phenotypically related osteogenic genes (Runx2, osteopontin, and osteocalcin) and specific biomarkers expression (osteopontin and osteocalcin). GQDs also effectively enhance the formation of calcium-rich deposits characteristics of osteoblasts. Furthermore, genes microarray results indicate that the enhanced osteogenic differentiation of MSCs by GQDs is in progress through a bone morphogenetic protein and transforming growth factor-β relative signaling pathways. Finally, intracytoplasmatic lipid detection shows that GQDs can also promote the adipogenic differentiation of MSCs, thus confirming the prevalence of their pluripotency potential.

TiO₂ semiconductor nanobelts have unique structural and functional properties, which lead to great potential in many fields, including photovoltaics, photocatalysis, energy storage, gas sensors, biosensors, and even biomaterials. A review of synthetic methods, properties, surface modification, and applications of TiO₂ nanobelts is presented here. The structural features and basic properties of TiO₂ nanobelts are systematically discussed, with the many applications of TiO₂ nanobelts in the fields of photocatalysis, solar cells, gas sensors, biosensors, and lithium-ion batteries then introduced. Research efforts that aim to overcome the intrinsic drawbacks of TiO₂ nanobelts are also highlighted. These efforts are focused on the rational design and modification of TiO₂ nanobelts by doping with heteroatoms and/or forming surface heterostructures, to improve their desirable properties. Subsequently, the various types of surface heterostructures obtained by coupling TiO₂ nanobelts with metal and metal oxide nanoparticles, chalcogenides, and conducting polymers are described. Further, the charge separation and electron transfer at the interfaces of these heterostructures are also discussed. These properties are related to improved sensitivity and selectivity for specific gases and biomolecules, as well as enhanced UV and visible light photocatalytic properties. The progress in developments of near-infrared-active photocatalysts based on TiO₂ nanobelts is also highlighted. Finally, an outline of important directions of future research into the synthesis, modification, and applications of this unique material is given.

Owing to extensive industrial revolutions, the harvesting of sunlight for environmental remediation has attracted extensive attention and a number of potential photocatalysts have been reported. These photocatalysts were prepared according to their effectiveness under various light irradiations, that is, from UV/Vis to near-infrared (NIR) regions and finally to full solar light spectrum. This review briefly summarizes recent progress in the enhancement of photocatalytic activities of prepared photocatalysts under various light irradiations. To understand the photocatalytic process, photocatalytic mechanisms and band-structure engineering are discussed in detail in this review. Moreover, various effective photocatalysts are taken as examples of the photocatalytic process under various light irradiations. Finally, the challenges and perspectives of photocatalysis under different lights irradiations are presented.

With nearly 30 years of progress, tissue engineering has shown promise in developing solutions for tissue repair and regeneration. Scaffolds, together with cells and growth factors, are key components of this development. Recently, an increasing number of studies have reported on the design and fabrication of scaffolding materials. In particular, inspired by the nature of bone, polymer/ceramic composite scaffolds have been studied extensively. The purpose of this paper is to review the recent progress of the naturally derived biopolymers and the methods applied to generate biomimetic biopolymer/calcium phosphate composites as well as their biomedical applications in bone tissue engineering.

Heterostructures play an important role not only in the manufacture of semiconductor devices, but also in the field of catalysis. Herein, we report the synthesis of PdO/TiO₂ and Pd/TiO₂ heterostructured nanobelts by means of a simple co-precipitation method, followed by a reduction process using surface-modified TiO₂ nanobelts as templates. The as-obtained heterostructures were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and UV/Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. PdO and Pd nanoparticles with a size of about 1.3 and 1.6 nm were assembled uniformly on the surface of TiO₂ nanobelts, respectively. Compared with TiO₂ nanobelts, PdO/TiO₂ and Pd/TiO₂ hybrid nanobelts exhibit enhanced photocatalytic activity upon UV and visible-light irradiation. Photoelectrochemical technology was used to study the heterostructure effect on enhanced photocatalytic activity. Our mechanistic investigation revealed that energy-band matching is the major factor in the observed enhancement of photocatalytic activity.

Three types of TiO-compound-based nanobelts (Na₂Ti₃O₇, H₂Ti₃O₇, TiO₂) are prepared from commercial TiO₂ powders via an alkaline hydrothermal process. Nanostructured sheets based on the as-synthesized nanobelts are prepared using a paper-making process. The nanobelts are connected with hydrogen bonds or/and bridge oxygen atoms and packed together, forming a paperlike porous network structure, with an average pore size of ∼500 nm. The electrical properties and gas sensing of the nanostructured sheets are demonstrated to display sensitivity down to sub-ppb levels. H₂Ti₃O₇ nanobelts decorated with Ag nanoparticles have also been applied as an antibacterial agent.

Silver nanoparticles were covalently coated on a glass surface by overnight exposure of the glass substrate to nanoparticle solutions, using 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) as a coupling agent. Washing and air-drying yield a uniformly coated glass substrate, which can be used as a material capable of killing harmful microorganisms in food industry. Nanoparticles are stable on the glass surface and are not washed away by water; they even remain on the glass surface under short-term ultrasonic irradiation. The morphology of silver nanoparticles on the glass substrate was characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The existence of Ag nanoparticles on the substrate was also confirmed by ultraviolet-visible (UV–Vis) spectroscopy. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) measurement shows that the connection is based on covalent bonds between silver nanoparticle surface/APTES molecules. Combining the effects of low cost and effectiveness in prohibiting the growth of Escherichia coli, such materials are expected to be used as antibacterial coatings, which may have large potential applications in food industry. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.