BUSCADOR RECOLECTA

The effect of Cr and N doping in the adsorption capacity, photocatalytic properties and antibacterial response of TiO2 anatase nanoparticles is analyzed. The nanoparticles (N-TiO2, Cr-TiO2 and Cr/N-TiO2) were prepared by the sol-gel method. The structural (X-ray diffraction and TEM) and magnetic (SQUID magnetometry) characterization confirms the nanosized nature of the anatase nanoparticles and the absence of secondary phases. The enhancement of the adsorption capacity of the dye (methyl orange) on the surface of the catalysts for the Cr and Cr/N doped samples, together with the redshift of the UV-Vis absorbance spectra promote a high photocatalytic performance under visible light in these nanocatalysts. The culturability and viability of the Escherichia coli DH5α in a medium supplemented with the nanoparticles was characterized and compared with the evolution under visible light (both without and with nanoparticles). The results show that Cr-TiO2 nanoparticles under visible light display antibacterial activity that cannot be accounted by the toxicity of the nanoparticles alone. However the antibacterial effect is not observed in N-TiO2 and Cr/N-TiO2. The differences in the electrostatic charge (isoelectric point) and the degree of nanoparticle dispersion are invoked as the main origins of the different antibacterial response in the Cr-TiO2 nanoparticles., The Spanish and Basque Governments are acknowledged for funding under projects MAT2017-83631-C3-R and IT-1245-19, respectively. A. Gil is also grateful for financial support from Santander Bank through the Research Intensification Program.

Magnetic Fluid Hyperthermia mediated by iron oxide nanoparticles is one of the mostpromising therapies for cancer treatment. Among the different candidates, magnetite and maghemite nanoparticles have revealed to be some of the most promising candidates due to both their performance andtheir biocompatibility. Nonetheless, up to date, the literature comparing the heating efficiency of magnetiteand maghemite nanoparticles of similar size is scarce. To fill this gap, here we provide a comparison between commercial Synomag Nanoflowers (pure maghemite) and bacterial magnetosomes (pure magnetite)synthesized by the magnetotactic bacterium Magnetospirillum gryphiswaldenseof〈D〉 ≈40–45 nm. Bothtypes of nanoparticles exhibit a high degree of crystallinity and an excellent degree of chemical purity andstability. The structural and magnetic properties in both nanoparticle ensembles have been studied by meansof X–Ray Diffraction, Transmission Electron Microscopy, X–Ray Absorption Spectroscopy, and SQUIDmagnetometry. The heating efficiency has been analyzed in both systems using AC magnetometry at severalfield amplitudes (0–88 mT) and frequencies (130, 300, and 530 kHz)., This work was supported in part by the Spanish 'Ministerio de Ciencia, Investigación y Universidades' under Project MAT2017-83631-C3-R, and in part by the Nanotechnology in Translational Hyperthermia (HIPERNANO) under Grant RED2018–102626–T. The work of Elizabeth M. Jefremovas was supported by the Beca Concepción Arenal through the Gobierno de Cantabria–Universidad de Cantabria under Grant BDNS: 406333. The work of Irati Rodrigo was supported by the Programa de Perfeccionamiento de Personal Investigador Doctor (Gobierno Vasco) under Grant POS–2020–1–0028 and Grant IT–1005–16. The work of Lourdes Marcano was supported by the Postdoctoral Fellowship from the Basque Government under Grant POS–2019–2–0017.

Magnetic interactions can play an important role in the heating efficiency of magnetic nanoparticles. Although most of the time interparticle magnetic interactions are a dominant source, in specific cases such as multigranular nanostructures intraparticle interactions are also relevant and their effect is significant. In this work, we have prepared two different multigranular magnetic nanostructures of iron oxide, nanorings (NRs) and nanotubes (NTs), with a similar thickness but different lengths (55 nm for NRs and 470 nm for NTs). In this way, we find that the NTs present stronger intraparticle interactions than the NRs. Magnetometry and transverse susceptibility measurements show that the NTs possess a higher effective anisotropy and saturation magnetization. Despite this, the AC hysteresis loops obtained for the NRs (0-400 Oe, 300 kHz) are more squared, therefore giving rise to a higher heating efficiency (maximum specific absorption rate, SAR(max) = 110 W/g for the NRs and 80 W/g for the NTs at 400 Oe and 300 kHz). These results indicate that the weaker intraparticle interactions in the case of the NRs are in favor of magnetic hyperthermia in comparison with the NTs., This research was funded by the Vietnam National Foundation for Science and Technology Development (NAFOSTED), grant number 103.02-2019.314. The Spanish Government is acknowledged for the Nanotechnology in translational hyperthermia (HIPERNANO) research network (RED2018-102626-T) and for funding under the project number MAT2017-83631-C3. Research at USF was supported by US Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Division of Materials Science and Engineering, Award No. DE-FG02-07ER46438. Basque Government is also acknowledged for funding under the project number IT-1005-16 and for the postdoctoral fellowship POS_2020_1_0028.

Scientific interest in iron-oxides and in particular magnetite has been renewed due to the broad scope of their fascinating properties, which are finding applications in electronics and biomedicine. Specifically, iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) are gathering attraction in biomedicine. Their cores are usually constituted by a mixture of maghemite and magnetite phases. In view of this, to fine-tune the properties of an ensemble of IONPs towards their applications, it is essential to enhance mass fabrication processes towards the production of monodisperse IONPs with controlled size, shape, and stoichiometry. We exploit the vacancy sensitivity of the Verwey transition to detect the presence of magnetite. Here we provide direct evidence for the Verwey transition in an ensemble of IONPs through neutron diffraction. This transition is observed as a variation in the Fe magnetic moment at octahedral sites and, in turn, gives rise to a change of the net magnetic moment. Finally, we show this variation as the microscopic ingredient driving the characteristic kink that hallmarks the Verwey transition in thermal variation of magnetization., This work has received funding from EU FP7 604448 (NanoMag) and MAT2017-83631-C3-R. The Institute Laue-Langevin is acknowledged for provision of beamtime on the D1B instrument., Peer reviewed