Faculty Profiles

Aroujo, J., Parker, H., Boari, A., Mason, E., Otakpor, M. U., Betancourt, T., … Romo, D. (n.d.). Derivatization of ophiobolin A and cytotoxicity toward breast and glioblastoma cancer stem cells: Varying the ketone and unsaturated aldehyde moieties. Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 130112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bmcl.2025.130112

van der Westhuyzen, A. E., Ashraf, N., Conradie, D., Loots, L., Kaschula, C. H., Pelly, S. C., … van Otterlo, W. A. (2024). Improved Rigidin-Inspired Antiproliferative Agents with Modifications on the 7-Deazahypoxanthine C7/C8 Ring Systems. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 67(12), 9950–9975. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jmedchem.3c02473

Thapa, K., FitzSimons, T., Otakpor, M., Siller, M., Crowell, A., Zepeda, J., … Betancourt, T. (2023). Photothermal Modulation of Dynamic Covalent Poly(ethylene glycol)/PEDOT Composite Hydrogels for On-Demand Drug Delivery. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 15, 52180–52196. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.3c11288

Bretin, L., Husiev, Y., Ramu, V., Zhang, L., Hakkennes, M., Abyar, S., … Bonnet, S. (2023). Red-Light Activation of Microtubule Polymerization Inhibitor via Amide Functionalization of the Ruthenium Photocage. Angewandte Chemie, 63(5), e202316425. https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202316425

Haya, G., Runsewe, D. O., Otakpor, M., Pohlman, G., Towne, A., Betancourt, T., & Irvin, J. A. (2023). Functionalized Thiophene-Based Aptasensor for the Electrochemical Detection of Mucin 1. ACS Applied Polymer Materials. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsapm.2c01739

Heshmati Aghda, N., Amiri, M., Tunnell, J., & Betancourt, T. (2022). Design of Smart Nanomedicines for Effective Cancer Treatment. Int. J. Pharm., 621, 121791. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpharm.2022.121791

Heshmati Aghda, N., Torres Hurtado, S., Abdulsahib, S., Lara, E. J., Tunnell, J., & Betancourt, T. (2021). Dual Photothermal/Chemotherapy of Melanoma Cells with Albumin Nanoparticles Carrying Indocyanine Green and Doxorubicin Leads to Immunogenic Cell Death. Macromol. Biosci. https://doi.org/10.1002/mabi.202100353

Aksenov, A. V., Arutiunov, N. A., Kirilov, N. K., Aksenov, D. A., Grishin, I. Y., Aksenov, N. A., … Rubin, M. (2021). [3+2]-Annulation of pyridinium ylides with 1-chloro-2-nitrostyrenes unveils a tubulin polymerization inhibitor. Organic & Biomolecular Chemistry, 19, 7234. https://doi.org/doi: 10.1039/d1ob01141c

Rastogi, S. K., Zhao, Z., Gildner, M. B., Shoulders, B. A., Velasquez, T. L., Blumenthal, M. O., … Brittain, W. J. (2021). Synthesis, optical properties and in vitro cell viability of novel spiropyrans and their photostationary states. Tetrahedron, 80. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tet.2020.131854

Runsewe, D. O., Haya, G., Betancourt, T., & Irvin, J. A. (2021). Conducting polymer-based electrochemical aptasensor for the detection of adenosine. ACS Applied Polymer Materials, 3, 6674–6683. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1021/acsapm.1c01348

Nguyen, H. T. M., Katta, N., Widman, J. A., Takematsu, E., Feng, X., Torres-Hurtado, S. A., … Tunnell, J. W. (2021). Laser nanobubbles induce immunogenic cell death in breast cancer. Nanoscale, In Press. https://doi.org/10.1039/D0NR06587K

Huff, M. E., Gokmen, F. O., Barrera, J. S., Lara, E. J., Tunnell, J., Irvin, J. A., & Betancourt, T. (2020). Induction of Immunogenic Cell Death in Breast Cancer by Conductive Polymer Nanoparticle-Mediated Photothermal Therapy. ACS APPLIED POLYMER MATERIALS, 2(12), 5602–5620. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsapm.0c00938

Heshmati Aghda, N., Lara, E. J., Patel, P. N., & Betancourt, T. (2020). High Throughput Preparation of Poly(Lactic-Co-Glycolic Acid) Nanoparticles Using Fiber Fluidic Reactor. MATERIALS, 13(14), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma13143075

Heshmati Aghda, N., Abdulsahib, S. M., Severson, C., Lara, E. J., Hurtado, S. T., Yildiz, T., … Betancourt, T. (2020). Induction of immunogenic cell death of cancer cells through nanoparticle-mediated dual chemotherapy and photothermal therapy. International Journal of Pharmaceutics, 589, 119787. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpharm.2020.119787

Nguyen, H. T., Katta, N., Widman, J. A., Takematsu, E., Feng, X., Torres, S. H., … others. (2020). Laser nanobubbles induce immunogenic cell death in breast cancer. bioRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.09.04.283846

Rastogi, S. K., Zhao, Z., Gildner, M. B., Shoulders, B. A., Velasquez, T. L., Blumenthal, M. O., … others. (2020). Synthesis, Optical Properties and in vitro Cell Viability of Novel Spiropyrans and their Photostationary States. Tetrahedron, 80, 131854.

Runsewe, D. O., Betancourt, T., & Irvin, J. A. (2019). Biomedical applications of electroactive polymers in electrochemical sensors: a review. Materials, 12, 2629. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma12162629

Van Rixel, V. H. S., Ramu, V., Auyeung, A. B., Beztsinna, N., Leger, D. Y., Lameijer, L. N., … Bonnet, S. (2019). Photo-Uncaging of a Microtubule-Targeted Rigidin Analogue in Hypoxic Cancer Cells and in a Xenograft Mouse Model. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 141(46), 18444–18454. https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.9b07225

Wang, K. W., Betancourt, T., & Hall, C. K. (2018). Computational Study of DNA-Cross-Linked Hydrogel Formation for Drug Delivery Applications. Macromolecules, 51(23), 9758–9768. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.macromol.8b01505

Tugba, Y., Renpeng, G., S., Z., & Betancourt, T. (2018). Doxorubicin-Loaded Protease-Activated NIR Fluorescent Polymeric Nanoparticles for Imaging and Therapy of Cancer. International Journal of Nanomedicine, 13, 6961–6986. https://doi.org/10.2147/IJN.S174068

Wang, K. W., Barker, K., Betancourt, T., & Hall, C. (2018). Development of a simple coarse-grained DNA model for analysis of oligonucleotide complex formation. Molecular Simulations, 44(12), 1004–1015. https://doi.org/10.1080/08927022.2018.1469753

Cano Amaya, L., Betancourt, T., Collins, K. H., Hinojosa, O., & Corona, C. (2018). Undergraduate Research Experiences - Mentoring, Awareness, and Perceptions: A Case Study at a Hispanic Serving Institution. International Journal of STEM Education, 5, 9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-018-0105-8

Rastogi, S. K., Anderson, H. E., Lamas, J., Cantu, T., Zauscher, S., Brittain, W. J., & Betancourt, T. (2018). Enhanced Release of Molecules upon Ultraviolet (UV) Light Irradiation from Photoresponsive Hydrogels Prepared from Bifunctional Azobenzene and Four-Arm Poly(ethylene glycol). ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 10, 30071–30080. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.6b16183

Dasari, R., Blauz, A., Medellin, D. C., Kassim, R. M., Viera, C., Santarosa, M., … Kornienko, A. V. (2018). Microtubule-Targeting 7-Deazahypoxanthines Derived from Marine Alkaloid Rigidins: Exploration of the N3 and N9 Positions and Interaction with Multidrug-Resistance Proteins. Chem Med Chem, 14, 322–333. https://doi.org/10.1002/cmdc.201800658

Jamkhindikar, S. P., Stretz, H. A., Massingill, J. L., & Betancourt, T. (2017). High throughput fiber reactor process for organic nanoparticle production: Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), polyacrylamide, and alginate. Journal of Applied Polymer Science, 134(47), 45524. https://doi.org/10.1002/app.45524

Cantu, T., Walsh, K., Pattani, V., Moy, A., Tunnell, J., Irvin, J. A., & Betancourt, T. (2017). Conductive Polymer-Based Nanoparticle for Laser-Mediated Photothermal Ablation of Cancer: Synthesis, Characterization, and In Vitro Evaluation. International Journal of Nanomedicine, 12, 615–632. https://doi.org/10.2147/IJN.S116583

Ciavatta, M. L., Lefranc, F., Carbone, M., Mollo, E., Gavagnin, M., Betancourt, T., … Kiss, R. (2017). Anticancer Compounds from Marine Mollusks. Medicinal Research Reviews, 37, 702–801. https://doi.org/DOI 10.1002/med.21423

Cantu, T., Rodier, B., Iszard, Z., Kilian, A., Pattani, V., Walsh, K., … Irvin, J. (2016). Electroactive Polymer Nanoparticles Exhibiting Photothermal Properties. Journal of Visualized Experiments., (107), e53631. https://doi.org/10.3791/53631

Medellin, D., Zhou, Q., Scott, R., Hill, R., Frail, R., Dasari, R., … Kornienko, A. (2016). Novel Microtubule-Targeting 7-Deazahypoxanthines Derived from Marine Alkaloid Rigidins with Potent In Vitro and In Vivo Anticancer Activities. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 59, 480–485.

Gahami, T. A., Beall, G. W., & Betancourt, T. (2016). Synthesis, bioactivity and zeta potential investigations of chlorine and fluorine substituted hydroxyapatite. Materials Science and Engineering., 59, 78–85.

Hamon, C., Dorsey, C., Özel, T., Barnes, E., Hudnall, T., & Betancourt, T. (2016). Near Infrared Aza-BODIPY Dye Loaded Biodegradable Polymeric Nanoparticles for Optical Cancer Imaging. Journal of Nanoparticle Research, 18, 207. https://doi.org/10.​1007/​s11051-016-3518-7

Weigum, S. E., Munoz, C., McIvor, E., Sutton, M., Feng, R., Cantu, T., & Betancourt, T. (2016). Targeted Therapy of Hepatocellular Carcinoma with Aptamer-Functionalized Biodegradable Nanoparticles. Journal of Nanoparticle Research, 18, 341. https://doi.org/DOI 10.1007/s11051-016-3633-5

Barker, K., Rastogi, S. K., Dominguez, J., Cantu, T., Brittain, W., Irvin, J., & Betancourt, T. (2015). Biodegradable DNA-enabled poly(ethylene glycol) hydrogels prepared by copper-free click chemistry. Journal of Biomaterials Science, Polymer Edition, 27, 22–39. https://doi.org/10.1080/09205063.2015.1103590

Ozel, T., White, S., Nguyen, E., Moy, A., Brenes, N., Choi, B., & Betancourt, T. (2015). Enzymatically Activated Near Infrared Nanoprobes Based on Amphiphilic Block Copolymers for Optical Detection of Cancer. Journal Front Cover., 47, 579–594.

Gonzalez, C. M., Martin, B., & Betancourt, T. (2015). Photochemical synthesis of bimetallic and anisotropics Au-containing nanoparticles using a one-step protocol. J. Mater. Chem., 2, 17574–17585.

Weigum, S. E., Sutton, M., Barnes, E., Miller, S., & Betancourt, T. (2014). Targeting Hepatocellular Carcinoma with Aptamer-Functionalized PLGA/PLA-PEG Nanoparticles.

Gonzalez, C. M., Betancourt, T., Brittain, W., & Kirton, G. F. (2014). Facile synthesis of metal nanoparticles and quantum dots using ketyl radicals. ABSTRACTS OF PAPERS OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY, 247.

Frolova, L. V., Magedov, I. V., Romero, A. E., Karki, M., Otero, I., Hayden, K., … Kornienko, A. (2013). Exploring natural product chemistry and biology with multicomponent reactions. 5. Discovery of a novel tubulin-targeting scaffold derived from the rigidin family of marine alkaloids. J. Med. Chem., 56(17), 6886–6900.

Betancourt, T., Pardo, J., Soo, K., & Peppas, N. A. (2010). Characterization of pH-Responsive Hydrogels of Poly(itaconic acid-g-ethylene glycol) Prepared by UV-initiated Free Radical Polymerization as Biomaterials for Oral Delivery of Bioactive Agents. J. Biomed. Mater. Res. A, 93(1), 175–188.

Betancourt, T., Byrne, J. `D., Sunaryo, N., Crowder, S. W., Kadapakkam, M., Patel, S., … Brannon-Peppas, L. (2009). PEGylation Strategies for Active Targeting of PLA/PLGA Nanoparticles. J. Biomed. Mater. Res. A, 91(1), 263–276.

Betancourt, T., Shak, K., & Brannon-Peppas, L. (2009). Rhodamine-Loaded Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) Nanoparticles for Investigation of In Vitro Interactions with Breast Cancer Cells. J. Mater. Sci. Mater. Med., 20(1), 387–395.

Betancourt, T., Doiron, A., Homan, K., & Brannon-Peppas, L. (2008). Controlled Release and Nanotechnology. In M. M. de Villiers, P. Aramwit, & G. S. Kwon (Eds.), Nanotechnology in Drug Delivery. New York, NY: Eds. Springer.

Byrne, J. D., Betancourt, T., & Brannon-Peppas, L. (2008). Active Targeting Schemes for Nanoparticle Systems in Cancer Therapeutics. Adv. Drug. Deliv. Rev., 60(15), 1615–1626.

Betancourt, T., Brown, B., & Brannon-Peppas, L. (2007). Doxorubicin-Loaded PLGA Nanoparticles by Nanoprecipitation: Preparation, Characterization and In Vitro Evaluation. Nanomedicine (London), 2(2), 219–232.

Betancourt, T., Doiron, A., & Brannon-Peppas, L. (2006). Polymeric Nanoparticles for Tumor-Targeted Drug Delivery. In M. M. Aramwit (Ed.), Nanotechnology in Cancer Therapeutics. Boca Raton, FL: Ed. CRC Press.

Betancourt, T., & Brannon-Peppas, L. (2006). Micro- and Nanofabrication Methods in Nanotechnological Medical and Pharmaceutical Devices. Int J Nanomedicine, 1(4), 483–495.