Publications

Treating bacterial biofilms remains a major clinical challenge, particularly in uropathogenic infections where the dense extracellular matrix impedes antibiotic access and protects tolerant bacterial populations. In this work, we explored a nanomaterial-based strategy to improve antibiotic responsiveness by combining iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) with pulsed laser irradiation to induce vapor nanobubble (VNB)-mediated disruption of a mature flow-grown uropathogenic E. coli CFT073 biofilm. We tested three nanoparticle sizes (70 nm, 130 nm, and 500 nm) and identified IONP500 as the most effective formulation for generating VNBs upon irradiation with 532 nm nanosecond laser pulses, with a VNB threshold of 0.56 J/cm2 per pulse. In the mature biofilm model, the combined IONP500 + ciprofloxacin + laser treatment significantly enhanced antibiotic activity compared with ciprofloxacin alone, increasing dead biomass from approximately 16% to 23%, corresponding to a 39-45% relative increase, as quantified by COMSTAT analysis and one-way ANOVA with Tukey's post-hoc test. The combined treatment also reduced total biofilm biomass and increased biofilm porosity by 55.8% compared with ciprofloxacin alone, supporting a mechanism based on VNB-mediated matrix disruption and improved antibiotic access. Overall, these results support the use of photothermally active, biocompatible IONPs as a promising complementary strategy to enhance the efficacy of conventional antibiotics against persistent biofilm-associated infections.

JTD Keywords: Cells, Ciprofloxacin potentiation, Iron oxide nanoparticles, Laser, Nanoparticles, Photoporation, Photothermal biofilm disruption, Prostate, Resistance, Transurethral resection, Uropathogenic biofilms, Vapor nanobubbles, Vaporization

Prostate cancer remains one of the leading causes of cancer-related mortality. Although there were advances in cancer therapy, there is a need for advanced drug delivery strategies to improve the spatiotemporal control of therapeutic action. Here, we developed conductive, redox-responsive hybrid sponges based on glutathione-extended waterborne polyurethane (WPU-GSSG) and the electroactive polymer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) for dual-stimuli-triggered release of anticancer peptide in locoregional tumor therapy. WPU/PEDOT porous scaffolds presented lightweight and mechanically resilient structures with homogeneous loading of the pentapeptide Cys-Arg-N-methyl-Glu-Lys-Ala (CR(NMe)EKA). PEDOT incorporation significantly enhanced the electrochemical properties of the sponges, providing reversible redox activity, reduced impedance, and near-ideal capacitive behavior. The sponges supported cell adhesion and high cell viability within the three-dimensional architecture. In vitro release studies demonstrated that peptide delivery is regulated by a synergistic combination of redox and electrical stimuli. A mimetic tumor microenvironment accelerated peptide release relative to physiological conditions. Electrostimulation (+0.5 V chronoamperometry) further enhanced release kinetics, and the combined application of redox and electrical triggers enabled peptide release of up to similar to 94%, demonstrating tunable stimulus-responsive delivery. Functional assays on cancer cells supported the therapeutic potential of this platform. While WPU alone was fully cytocompatible and PEDOT-containing sponges exhibited moderate electrostimulation-dependent effects, CR(NMe)EKA-loaded conductive sponges induced a pronounced reduction in cancer cell viability under electrostimulation, decreasing survival to similar to 20%. Although further in vivo validation is required, these findings highlight the potential of multifunctional WPU/PEDOT sponges for localized, stimuli-responsive peptide delivery.

JTD Keywords: Cancer, Cell-line, Citrate transport, Design, Electrostimulation, Locoregional drugdelivery, Nanoparticle, Pedot, Ph, Polyurethane, Porosity, Prostate cancer, Redox, Scaffolds

We present a novel lab-on-a-chip (LOC) device for the simultaneous detection of multiple biomarkers using simple voltage measurements. The biosensor functionalization is performed in-situ, immediately before its use, facilitating reagents storage and massive devices fabrication. Sensitivity, limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) are tunable depending on the in-chip flown sample volumes. As a proof-of-concept, the system has been tested and adjusted to quantify two proteins found in blood that are susceptible to be used combined, as a screening tool, to diagnose prostate cancer (PCa): prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and spondin-2 (SPON2). This combination of biomarkers has been reported to be more specific for PCa diagnostics than the currently accepted but rather controversial PSA indicator. The range of detection for PSA and SPON2 could be adjusted to the clinically relevant range of 1 to 10. ng/ml. The system was tested for specificity to the evaluated biomarkers. This multiplex system can be modified and adapted to detect a larger quantity of biomarkers, or different ones, of relevance to other specific diseases.

JTD Keywords: Adjustable sensing, Impedance measurements, In situ functionalization, Microfluidics, Prostate specific antigen, Self-assembled monolayers