Antibacterial activity of TiO2, CuO, and CuO/TiO2 nanomaterials and their potential application on construction surfaces Z. Martínez-Corona, D. S. García-Zaleta, R. López-González, C. García-Mendoza, M. A. Alvarez-Lemus, et al. Journal of Materials Science Materials in Engineering, 2025 In the construction sector, diverse microorganisms have the ability to form biofilms on constructed surfaces affecting the health of the inhabitants. In this sense, diverse nanomaterials of titanium oxide (TiO2), copper oxide (CuO), and CuO/TiO2 were synthesized by the sol–gel method, Pechini method, and a mechanical synthesismethod. The influence of the thermal treatment (425–575 °C) on the formation of crystalline phases in the compounds, as well as their antibacterial activity on Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus was investigated. X-ray diffraction technique(XRD) results displayed the formation of anatase, rutile, and tenorite phases on the as-synthesized samples. The Rietveld refinement analysis estimated the composition of phases, as well as the crystal size for each crystalline phase in the specimens (from ~ 16 up to ~ 165 nm). The Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy showed the characteristic M–O vibrations of the TiO2 and CuO compounds. No relevant signals of the precursors were detected. RAMAN spectroscopy confirmed the formation of anatase and rutile phases in the TiO2 nanomaterials. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrographs revealed the morphology of the compounds and dynamic light scattering (DLS) and electrophoretic light scattering (ELS) analysis showed the particle sizes (from ~ 225 to ~ 750 nm) with Z-potentials between − 11 mV and − 21 mV. Nitrogen adsorption/desorption isotherms results revealed pore sizes between ~ 0.2 and ~ 12.4 nm as well as surface area values up to ~ 158 m2/g. Finally, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) evaluation revealed that the compounds that CuO-based compounds exhibit good antibacterial activity, with MIC values starting at 0.625 mg/mL, and the CuO/TiO2 sample at 475 °C showed the highest efficacy at 0.312 mg/mL. These results suggest that the as-synthesized compounds could be used as disinfection agents on construction surfaces and in sick buildings, as well as they could to reduce the health risks associated with exposure to bacteria.
Analysis and Application of UV-LED Photoreactors for Phenol Removal Betsabé Ildefonso-Ojeda, Macaria Hernández-Chávez, Mayra A. Álvarez-Lemus, Rosendo López-González, José R. Contreras-Bárbara, et al. Catalysts, 2025 The development of three types of UV radiation-based photoreactors using light-emitting diodes (LEDs) is presented. In this work, three pattern irradiation arrangements, direct radiation, internal radiation, and external radiation, were tested for deactivation of a typical model contaminant in wastewater under the same conditions. All photoreactors allow the adjustment of optical power and irradiation time and include a sensor for temperature monitoring in the solution. In this case, phenol was used as a model contaminant with TiO2 as a photocatalyst in a batch-type reactor at pH 7. The results showed that the highest degradation efficiency was achieved after 120 min, reaching 97.79% for the internal-radiation photoreactor, followed by 90.17% when the direct-radiation photoreactor was used, and 85.24% for the external-radiation photoreactor. Phenol degradation served as the basis for validating reactor performance, given its persistence and relevance as an indicator in advanced oxidation processes. It was concluded that the arrangement of LEDs in each photoreactor significantly influences phenol degradation under the same reaction conditions.
Mentoring women in STEM: empowering through social technologies for enhanced inclusivity and professional growth. A case study Coral J. Pacheco Figueroa, Mayra A. Alvarez Lemus Frontiers in Education, 2025 The use of social technologies for on-line training of women in STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics) areas was explored for empowering women. Here, a case study on the implementation of a mentoring program focused on fostering the professional careers of women from the Juarez Autonomous University of Tabasco (UJAT), at the southeast of Mexico is presented. By means of an international initiative from the British Council, 32 participants were trained as mentors and mentees at UJAT, and further matched to accomplish a 3 months mentoring relationship. Throughout the sessions, the participants’ advances in soft skills (assertiveness, networking, leadership, active listening, self-confidence, ability to set SMART objectives, among others) were analyzed, showing how the use of social technologies promoted the professional development of women through empowerment as a strategy for reducing the gender gap in scientific and technological careers in Latin America.
Dopamine stabilized in ultra-nanoreservoirs for controlled delivery in parkinson’s disease Francisco J. Padilla-Godínez, Tessy López-Goerne, Evelyn Y. Calvillo-Muñoz, Mayra Angélica Álvarez-Lemus, Juan Navarrete-Bolaños, et al. Nanomedicine, 2025 Aims Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder caused by the progressive degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta, leading to impaired dopamine (DA) signaling and motor control. Intermittent dosing of current DA precursors results in side effects, prompting research into controlled drug release mechanisms for sustained and targeted delivery of DA. Materials & methods In this work, we stabilized DA within a nanostructured silicate matrix (nanoreservoir) using the sol-gel method. We examined the physicochemical properties, kinetics of drug release, and biocompatibility in dopaminergic neurons and fibroblasts. Results The optimized synthesis method allowed for the stabilization of DA by preventing its oxidation. The physicochemical and controlled release analysis showed a direct relationship between the mesoporous structure, interaction of the DA with the matrix, and the release kinetics followed, proving the possibility to modify the rate of release by adjusting the synthesis parameters. Furthermore, the nanoreservoirs were biocompatible with dopaminergic neurons and fibroblasts in vitro. Conclusions The research sets the stage for potential in vivo evaluations and new strategies for managing PD, offering hope for improved treatments based on DA and not derivatives.
Titanium Dioxide 1D Nanostructures as Photocatalysts for Degradation and Removal of Pollutants in Water Dora María Frías Márquez, José Ángel Méndez González, Rosendo López González, Cinthia García Mendoza, Francisco Javier Tzompantzi Morales, et al. Catalysts, 2024 The oxidation of organic pollutants in water is the most reported application of a Titanium dioxide (TiO2) photocatalyst. During the last decade, photoreduction with TiO2 has also been explored but simultaneous capabilities for unmodified TiO2 have not been reported yet. Here, we reported on the fabrication of TiO2 nanorods using hydrothermal treatment and compared the effect of two different TiO2 powders as the starting material: P-25 and TiO2 sol–gel (N-P25 and N-TiO2, respectively) which were further calcined at 400 °C (N-P25-400 and N-TiO2-400). XPS and XRD analyses confirmed the presence of sodium and hydrogen titanates in N-P25, but also an anatase structure for N-TiO2. The specific surface area of the calcined samples decreased compared to the dried samples. Photocatalytic activity was evaluated using phenol and methyl orange for degradation, whereas 4-nitrophenol was used for photoreduction. Irradiation of the suspension was performed under UV light (λ = 254 nm). The results demonstrated that the nanorods calcined at 400 °C were more photoactive since methyl orange (20 ppm) degradation reached 86% after 2 h, when N-TiO2-400 was used. On the other hand, phenol (20 ppm) was completely degraded by the presence of N-P25-400 after 2 h. Photoreduction of 4-nitrophenol (5 ppm) was achieved by the N-TiO2-400 during the same period. These results demonstrate that the presence of Ti3+ and the source of TiO2 have a significant effect on the photocatalytic activity of TiO2 nanorods. Additionally, the removal of methylene blue (20 ppm) was performed, demonstrating that N-TiO2 exhibited a high adsorption capacity for this dye.
Photocatalytic degradation of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid over ZrO 2, Cu/ZrO2 and Fe/ZrO2 photocatalysts synthesized by sol gel method Journal of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, 2008
Sessile culture as a strategy to enhance the production of emulsifying exopolysaccharides by Glutamicibacter sp. XHA18 L Herrera-Candelario, S De la Rosa-García, E Zarza, K Guillen-Navarro, ... International Biodeterioration & Biodegradation 206, 106213 , 2026 2026 Citations: 1
Alumina nanoparticles obtained via a glycerol-modified sol-gel route and the assessment of their ecotoxicological potential in Artemia salina and Eisenia foetida in … EG Gallegos Martínez, VW Velázquez Vázquez, PQ Owen, ... Journal of Sol-Gel Science and Technology, 1-17 , 2025 2025
Analysis and Application of UV-LED Photoreactors for Phenol Removal B Ildefonso-Ojeda, M Hernández-Chávez, MA Álvarez-Lemus, ... Catalysts 15 (8), 748 , 2025 2025 Citations: 2
Antibacterial activity of TiO 2 , CuO, and CuO/TiO 2 nanomaterials and their potential application on construction surfaces Z Martínez-Corona, DS García-Zaleta, R López-González, ... Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Engineering 20 (1), 70 , 2025 2025 Citations: 11
Dopamine stabilized in ultra-nanoreservoirs for controlled delivery in parkinson’s disease FJ Padilla-Godínez, T López-Goerne, EY Calvillo-Muñoz, ... Nanomedicine, 1-16 , 2025 2025
Mentoring women in STEM: empowering through social technologies for enhanced inclusivity and professional growth. A case study CJ Pacheco Figueroa, MA Alvarez Lemus Frontiers in Education 10, 1512143 , 2025 2025 Citations: 3
Medicinal Plants Extract for the Bio-Assisted Synthesis of Ag/AgCl Nanoparticles with Antibacterial Activity JL Torres-López, S Lázaro-Mass, D la Rosa-García, MA Alvarez-Lemus, ... Journal of Cluster Science 36 (1), 1-17 , 2025 2025 Citations: 13
Titanium Dioxide 1D Nanostructures as Photocatalysts for Degradation and Removal of Pollutants in Water DM Frías Márquez, JÁ Méndez González, R López González, ... Catalysts 14 (12), 896 , 2024 2024 Citations: 2
Antifungal Activity of ZnO Nanoparticles Synthesized from Eichhornia crassipes Extract for Construction Applications R Vargas Hernández, MA Alvarez Lemus, S De la Rosa García, ... Nanomaterials 14 (12), 1007 , 2024 2024 Citations: 18
Relationship of CaZn 2 (OH) 6 ·2H 2 O nanoparticles synthesized by different methods with its antifungal activity M Soria-Castro, P Quintana, S De la Rosa-García, S Lázaro-Mass, ... Journal of Materials Science, 1-13 , 2024 2024 Citations: 6
Photocatalytic performance of Nd/TiO 2 and Nb/TiO 2 nanomaterials in the degradation of p -cresol at room temperature de la Cruz-de los Santos, Jesus Eduardo, DS Garcia-Zaleta, ... JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY AND BIOTECHNOLOGY , 2024 2024
ZnO nanomaterials with enhanced antimicrobial activity obtained by Eichhornia crassipes aqueous extract-mediated synthesis RL Gonzalez, MH Gutierrez, RL Garcia, SAG Cornelio, C Lobato, ... JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY AND BIOTECHNOLOGY , 2024 2024
ZnO nanomaterials with enhanced antimicrobial activity obtained by Eichhornia crassipes aqueous extract‐mediated synthesis R López González, MH Gutiérrez, RL García, SA Gómez Cornelio, ... Journal of Chemical Technology & Biotechnology , 2024 2024 Citations: 9
Effect of chitosan on the electrokinetic, spectroscopic, and textural properties of TiO2 CONTENIDO nanoparticles V um 8 K Macias-Collado, LT Ballesteros-Rozo, VW Velazquez-Vazquez, ... REVISTA MEXICANA DE INGENIERIA QUIMICA 23 (1) , 2024 2024
Effect of phenol concentration on the photocatalytic performance of ZnO nanoparticles RL González, O de la Fuente, RL García, M del Carmen Uribe López, ... Journal of Chemical Technology & Biotechnology , 2023 2023 Citations: 6
Photodegradation of 4‐chlorophenol using as photocatalyst ZnFe 2 O 4 spinels: influence of the complexing agent in the photocatalytic activity D Hernández‐Acosta, G Jácome‐Acatitla, C García‐Mendoza, ... Journal of Chemical Technology & Biotechnology 97 (10), 2932-2944 , 2022 2022 Citations: 4
Comparative Effect of Adsorption and Photodegradation on Benzene and Naphthalene Using Bismuth Oxide Modify Graphene Oxide JM Osorio Jiménez, R López González, C García Mendoza, ... Journal of the Mexican Chemical Society 66 (3), 371-384 , 2022 2022 Citations: 5
Antiproliferative effect of 1, 10-Phenanthroline coupled to sulfated ZnO nanoparticles in SiHa cervix cancer cell line LA Ramón, EN de la Cruz Hernández, RL González, MFH Landero, ... Journal of Sol-Gel Science and Technology, 1-13 , 2022 2022 Citations: 1
One‐step synthesis of ZnS/ZnO using HMDA as precursor and active part for high photocatalytic hydrogen production C García‐Mendoza, WE Sánchez Rivera, MA Alvárez‐Lemus, ... Journal of Chemical Technology & Biotechnology , 2022 2022 Citations: 6
Photocatalytic Reduction of 4-Nitrophenol over Bismuth Sulfur/Titanium Dioxide Heterojunction: Influence of Bismuth Sulfur Content on the Reaction Efficiency C García-Mendoza, MA Alvarez-Lemus, R López-González, ... Journal of Nano Research 74, 47-57 , 2022 2022 Citations: 1
MOST CITED SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS
Photocatalytic activity of ZnO nanoparticles and the role of the synthesis method on their physical and chemical properties MC Uribe-López, MC Hidalgo-López, R López-González, ... Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology A: Chemistry 404, 112866 , 2021 2021 Citations: 317
Study of the stabilization of zinc phthalocyanine in sol-gel TiO2 for photodynamic therapy applications T Lopez, E Ortiz, M Alvarez, J Navarrete, JA Odriozola, F Martinez-Ortega, ... Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine 6 (6), 777-785 , 2010 2010 Citations: 144
Synthesis and Characterization of ZnO-ZrO2 Nanocomposites for Photocatalytic Degradation and Mineralization of Phenol U López, A Lemus, MC Hidalgo, R López González, P Quintana Owen, ... Journal of Nanomaterials 2019 , 2019 2019 Citations: 124
2, 4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2, 4-D) photodegradation using an Mn+/ZrO2 photocatalyst: XPS, UV–vis, XRD characterization M Alvarez, T López, JA Odriozola, MA Centeno, MI Domínguez, M Montes, ... Applied Catalysis B: Environmental 73 (1-2), 34-41 , 2007 2007 Citations: 108
Autophagic and apoptotic pathways as targets for chemotherapy in glioblastoma C Trejo-Solís, N Serrano-Garcia, Á Escamilla-Ramírez, ... International journal of molecular sciences 19 (12), 3773 , 2018 2018 Citations: 102
Effect of the degree of oxidation of graphene oxide on As (III) adsorption AC Reynosa-Martínez, GN Tovar, WR Gallegos, H Rodríguez-Meléndez, ... Journal of hazardous materials 384, 121440 , 2020 2020 Citations: 94
Catalytic nanomedicine: A new field in antitumor treatment using supported platinum nanoparticles. In vitro DNA degradation and in vivo tests with C6 animal model on Wistar rats T Lopez, F Figueras, J Manjarrez, J Bustos, M Álvarez, J Silvestre-Albero, ... European journal of medicinal chemistry 45 (5), 1982-1990 , 2010 2010 Citations: 68
Photocatalytic degradation of 2, 4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid using nanocrystalline cryptomelane composite catalysts MA Lemus, T López, S Recillas, DM Frías, M Montes, JJ Delgado, ... Journal of Molecular Catalysis A: Chemical 281 (1-2), 107-112 , 2008 2008 Citations: 67
Spectroscopic, structural and textural properties of CaO and CaO–SiO2 materials synthesized by sol–gel with different acid catalysts J García, T López, M Álvarez, DH Aguilar, P Quintana Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids 354 (2-9), 729-732 , 2008 2008 Citations: 58
Pt/TiO2 brain biocompatible nanoparticles: GBM treatment using the C6 model in Wistar rats T López, S Recillas, P Guevara, J Sotelo, M Alvarez, JA Odriozola Acta Biomaterialia 4 (6), 2037-2044 , 2008 2008 Citations: 50
Effect of UV radiation on the structure of graphene oxide in water and its impact on cytotoxicity and As (III) adsorption WR Gallegos-Pérez, AC Reynosa-Martínez, C Soto-Ortiz, ... Chemosphere 249, 126160 , 2020 2020 Citations: 49
Photocatalytic degradation of 2,4-dichlorophenoxiacetic acid and 2,4,6-trichlorophenol with ZrO 2 and Mn/ZrO 2 sol-gel materials T Lopez, M Alvarez, F Tzompantzi, M Picquart Journal of sol-gel science and technology 37 (3), 207-211 , 2006 2006 Citations: 47
Study of bacterial sensitivity to Ag-TiO2 nanoparticles TM Lopez Goerne, MA Alvarez Lemus, VA Morales, EG López, ... J Nanomed Nanotechol S 5, 2 , 2012 2012 Citations: 40
ZrO 2 and Cu/ZrO 2 Sol–Gel Materials Spectroscopic Characterization T López, M Alvarez, R Gómez, DH Aguilar, P Quintana Journal of sol-gel science and technology 33 (1), 93-97 , 2005 2005 Citations: 40
Zero valent iron core–iron oxide shell nanoparticles as small magnetic particle imaging tracers L Gloag, M Mehdipour, M Ulanova, K Mariandry, MA Nichol, ... Chemical Communications 56 (24), 3504-3507 , 2020 2020 Citations: 39
Synthesis, characterization and in vitro cytotoxicity of Pt-TiO 2 nanoparticles T López, M Alvarez, RD González, MJ Uddin, J Bustos, S Arroyo, ... Adsorption 17 (3), 573-581 , 2011 2011 Citations: 31
Photodegradation of 4-chloropehol in aqueous media using LaBO3 (B= Fe, Mn, Co) perovskites: Study of the influence of the transition metal ion in the photocatalytic activity G Jácome-Acatitla, M Álvarez-Lemus, R López-González, ... Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology A: Chemistry 390, 112330 , 2020 2020 Citations: 27
Combination of Mn oxidation states improves the photocatalytic degradation of phenol with ZnAl LDH materials without a source of O2 in the reaction system G Morales-Mendoza, M Alvarez-Lemus, R López, F Tzompantzi, ... Catalysis Today 266, 62-71 , 2016 2016 Citations: 26
Obtaining of sol-gel ketorolac-silica nanoparticles: characterization and drug release kinetics L Goerne, MG López García, G Rodríguez Grada, I Ortiz Pérez, ... Journal of Nanomaterials 2013 , 2013 2013 Citations: 22
Photocatalytic reduction of Cr (VI) by using stacked ZnS layers of ZnS (en) x complex A Hernández-Gordillo, C García-Mendoza, MA Alvarez-Lemus, R Gómez Journal of environmental chemical engineering 3 (4), 3048-3054 , 2015 2015 Citations: 19