Huw Simon Jones

Black phosphorus (BP) is one of the most promising nanomaterials for cancer therapy. This 2D material is biocompatible and has strong photocatalytic activity, making it a powerful photosensitiser for combined NIR photothermal and photodynamic therapies. However, the fast degradation of BP in oxic conditions (including biological environments) still limits its use in cancer therapy. This work proposes a facile strategy to produce stable and highly concentrated BP suspensions using lysolipid temperature-sensitive liposomes (LTSLs). This approach also allows for co-encapsulating BP nanoflakes and doxorubicin, a potent chemotherapeutic drug. Finally, we demonstrate that our BP/doxorubicin formulation shows per se high antiproliferative action against an in vitro prostate cancer model and that the anticancer activity can be enhanced through NIR irradiance.

On-chip continuous-flow synthesis of metabolites from glucuronidation and sulfonation reactions to enable synthesis of analytical standards and study drug metabolism.

Age-related frailty is a significant health and social care burden, however treatment options are limited. There is currently a lack of suitable cell culture model for screening large numbers of test compounds to identifying those which can potentially promote healthy skeletal muscle function. This paper describes the characterization of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS) signalling changes in young and aged myoblasts and myotubes using the C ₂ C ₁₂ cell line, and the application of aged myoblast and myotube cultures to assess the effect of dietary polyphenols on RONS signalling. Aged myoblasts and myotubes were observed to have significantly increased reactive oxygen species levels (p2 C ₁₂ model, as both myoblasts and myotubes, as a suitable cell model for screening compounds for modulating RONS signalling in aged muscle, and that resveratrol and kaempferol (using pharmacokinetically-informed exposures) can modulate RONS signalling in skeletal muscle cells after an acute exposure.

Raised postprandial triglycerides (TAG) and related oxidative stresses are strongly associated with increased cardiovascular disease risk. Acute exercise and strawberry ingestion independently ameliorate postprandial lipid excursions and oxidative stress. However, the combined effects of these lifestyle interventions are unknown. We investigated whether acute exercise and strawberry consumption improved postprandial responses to an oral fat tolerance test (OFTT) in overweight/obese males. Overweight/obese adult males underwent four separate OFTT (73 g fat, 33 g carbohydrate) with blood sampled at baseline and hourly for 4 h after OFTT. Two OFTT contained 25 g freeze-dried strawberries and two contained strawberry flavoring (placebo). Participants performed 40 min of submaximal high-intensity interval cycling exercise 16 h before one strawberry and one placebo OFTT and rested before the remaining two OFTT. Serum TAG was analyzed, and TAG area under the curve (AUC) and incremental AUC (iAUC) were calculated. Oxidative stress markers were measured at baseline and 4 h. Differences between conditions (strawberry/placebo and exercise/rest) were assessed using repeated-measures ANOVA. Ten males (age = 31.5, interquartile range = 17.8 yr, body mass index = 29.9 ± 1.8 kg·m−2) completed the study. TAG AUC was 1.5 mmol per 4 h−1·L−1 lower for the exercise conditions compared with the rest conditions (95% confidence interval [CI] = −2.3 to −0.8 mmol per 4 h−1·L−1, P = 0.001). TAG AUC was not different between strawberry and placebo conditions (95% CI = −1.3 to 0.6 mmol per 4 h−1·L−1, P = 0.475). TAG iAUC was 0.5 mmol per 4 h−1·L−1 greater for the strawberry compared with the placebo conditions (95% CI = 0.1 to 1.0 mmol per 4 h−1·L−1, P = 0.021). There were no changes in markers of lipid related oxidative stress (P > 0.05). Acute submaximal high-intensity interval cycling exercise appears effective in reducing postprandial lipemia in overweight/obese adult males. However, strawberry ingestion did not improve postprandial TAG.