A unique scheme to design theranostic materials by using energy-efficient MW-heating, the atrane method, and efficient green chemical extraction routes.

The development of nanomaterials that mimic the activity of enzymes is a topic of interest, for the decomposition of reactive oxygen species (ROS). We report the preparation of a novel nanocomposite of MnO_x needles covered with SiO₂ porous material. The material was prepared in one pot with a two-step procedure. The material was characterized by EDX, SEM, TEM, XRD, nitrogen adsorption–desorption isotherms, and XPS. The synthesis protocol took advantage of the atrane method, favoring the nucleation and initial growth of manganese oxide needles that remained embedded and homogeneously dispersed in a mesoporous silica matrix. The final composite had a high concentration of Mn (Si/Mn molar ratio of ca. 1). The nanozyme presented bimodal porosity: intraparticle and interparticle association with the surfactant micelles and the gaps between silica particles and MnO_x needles, respectively. The porosity favored the migration of the reagent to the surface of the catalytic MnO_x. The nanozyme showed very efficient SOD and catalase activities, thus improving other materials previously described. The kinetics were studied in detail, and the reaction mechanisms were proposed. It was shown that silica does not play an innocent role in the case of catalase activity, increasing the reaction rate.

The development of smart, selective, and multifunctional nanotherapeutics is crucial for advancing next-generation cancer treatments. In this study, superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoclusters (SPIONCs) were coated with mesoporous silica, functionalized with folic acid (FA), and co-loaded with curcumin (CUR) and capecitabine (CAPE) to create a novel nanocarrier system. To enhance cellular internalisation, magnetophoresis was applied before exposure of the cells to cold atmospheric plasma (CAP). The resulting FA-conjugated, CUR and CAPE-loaded nanoclusters were evaluated in vitro in MCF-7 breast cancer and HME-1 normal epithelial cells at varying CAP exposure durations (0, 10, and 20 s) and incubation times (24 and 48 h). This is the first report demonstrating the co-loading of CUR and CAPE into FA-functionalised mesoporous silica-coated magnetic nanoclusters. Drug release studies revealed significantly enhanced release profiles under acidic conditions (pH 5.0 and 6.5), mimicking lysosomal and tumour microenvironments, compared to physiological pH (7.4). Drug-loaded nanoclusters exhibited substantially higher cytotoxicity than the controls with no loading, with a more pronounced effect in MCF-7 cells. Notably, the combined treatment of CAP and CUR-CAPE loaded NCs showed a synergistic cytotoxic effect. IC₅₀ values, after 10 s CAP exposure and 24 h incubation, decreased to 0.43 µg mL⁻¹ for MCF-7 cells and 37 µg mL⁻¹ for HME-1 cells. The elevated levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) induced by CAP played a key role in the observed cytotoxic effects, and both CUR and CAPE were found to enhance this process through ROS-related and potentially additional molecular pathways. These findings highlight the potential of CAP-assisted multicomponent nanocarriers as a promising platform for effective cancer therapy.