Sublingual administration of drugs offers advantages including avoidance of first pass metabolism and quick absorption into the systemic circulation. In spite of being one of the oldest routes of drug delivery, there is dearth of literature on characterization of the barrier properties of the sublingual mucosa. Therefore, the aim of this research was to gain an insight into the barrier properties of the porcine sublingual mucosa. The studies conducted in this dissertation research focused on an important aspect of sublingual permeation, the dependence of permeability on different physicochemical properties of the permeant such as the degree of ionization, distribution coefficient and molecular weight/size on drug transport across sublingual mucosa. Further the data from the sublingual permeation of model compounds was used in development of a predictive model which provided us with some understanding regarding the important descriptors required for sublingual drug delivery. A series of β-blockers were employed as the model drugs to study the dependence of permeability on lipophilicity across the sublingual mucosa. Eighth different β-blockers with log D (distribution coefficient) values ranging from -1.30 to 1.37 were used in this study. The most hydrophilic drug atenolol showed the lowest permeability (0.19 ± 0.04 x 10 -6 ) cm/sec and the most lipophilic drug propranolol showed the highest permeability (38.25 ± 4.30 x 10 -6 ) cm/sec. The log-log plot of permeability coefficient and the distribution coefficient showed a linear relationship. It was concluded that the increase in lipophilicity results in improved partitioning across the lipid bilayers of sublingual mucosa which results in increased permeation for the drugs. As the sublingual mucosa contains a significant amount of the polar lipids bonded with water molecules, therefore, it was hypothesized that the hydrophilic or ionized permeants will have significant permeation across the sublingual mucosa. The objective of this research was to study the effect of ionization on permeation across sublingual mucosa using a model drug nimesulide. Based on the relationship between the permeability coefficient and distribution coefficient of nimesulide at different pH, the lipoidal route was suggested as the dominant transport route for nimesulide across the sublingual mucosa. The contribution of individual ionic species of nimesulide to the total drug flux was quantitatively delineated. It was observed that the ionized species of nimesulide contributes significantly to the total flux across the sublingual mucosa. The contribution of the ionized species to total flux was almost (90%) at a pH where the drug was almost completely ionized. Polyethylene glycols (PEGs) were used as the model permeants to study the dependence of permeability on molecular weight. An inverse relationship between molecular weight and permeability coefficients was observed. This relationship was used to estimate the molecular weight cut off for the sublingual mucosa. The molecular weight cut off was estimated to be around 1675 daltons. Further, the Renkin function was used to estimate the theoretical pore size of the sublingual mucosa and the pore size of the sublingual mucosa was estimated to be around 30–53 Å based on two separate calculations using the radius of gyration and Stokes-Einstein radius for PEG molecules, respectively. No specific model is present in literature to predict the in vitro sublingual drug permeability. In this dissertation a specific model was developed and validated by performing permeation studies of 14 small molecules across the porcine sublingual mucosa. It was shown that the lipophilicity (logD 6.8 ) and the number of hydrogen bond donors (HBD) were the most significant descriptors affecting sublingual permeability. Research conducted in this dissertation provided an in-depth understanding about the barrier properties of the porcine sublingual mucosa and role of different physicochemical properties on sublingual transport. Such an understanding will hopefully expand the suitable lead candidates for sublingual delivery.

No description available.

Yes / Understanding the structure-property relationships of drug delivery system (DDS) components is critical for their development and the prediction of bodily performance. This study investigates the effects of introducing polyethylene oxide (PEO) homopolymers, over a wide range of molecular weights, into Pluronic injectable smart hydrogel formulations. These smart DDSs promise to enhance patient compliance, reduce adverse effects and dosing frequency. Pharmaceutically, Pluronic systems are attractive due to their unique sol-gel phase transition in the body, biocompatibility, safety and ease of injectability as solutions before transforming into gel matrices at body temperature. This paper presents a systematic and comprehensive evaluation of gelation and the interplay of microscopic and macroscopic properties under both equilibrium and non-equilibrium conditions in controlled environments, as measured by rheology in conjunction with time-resolved Small Angle Neutron Scattering (SANS). The non-equilibrium conditions investigated in this work offer a better understanding of the two polymeric systems’ complex interactions affecting the matrix thermo-rheological behaviour and structure and therefore the future release of an active pharmaceutical ingredient from the injectable DDS.

Made available in DSpace on 2017-07-21T20:42:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Melina Correa Gabriel.pdf: 5915390 bytes, checksum: bae67fca28fd7999823fa6ec6ac98844 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-03-29 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The intention of this exploratory research is to study the modifications provided by high-energy mechanical milling in ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) and mixtures of this polymer with polyethylene glycol (PEG). These modifications can be of interest for future processing of UHMWPE. The mechanical milling was performed in an attritor mill, a type of mill that can be used in laboratory as well as in industry. The millings of UHMWPE were performed in different rotation speeds. For mixtures of UHMWPE and PEG, the amounts of PEG were also different. The samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The mechanical milling modified the UHMWPE particles morphology: with milling, the almost rounded shape became flat-like shape. This caused the reduction of apparent density of polymer after milling. The mechanical milling also provided structural changes. With the increasing of the rotation speed,there was the increasing of the monoclinic phase and the decreasing of the orthorhombic, up to 500 rpm. For 600 rpm, the amount of monoclinic phase decreased. In this rotation, the deformation rate probably increased the process temperature, allowing the monoclinic phase to return to its initial structural orthorhombic form. In mixtures of UHMWPE and PEG, after mechanical milling, the particles of PEG were probably reduced and better dispersed in the UHMWPE matrix. Changes in thermal characteristics of polymers also could be noted. The kinetics of UHMWPE crystal growth changed, as well as the behavior of PEG crystallization. Feasibly, dispersed particles of PEG acted as physical barriers against the crystalline phase growth of UHMWPE and the crystallization temperature of PEG decreased, when the UHMWPE and PEG mixtures were milled. / Este trabalho exploratório teve por objetivo estudar as modificações promovidas por moagem de alta energia no de polietileno de ultra-alta massa molar (PEUAMM) e sua mistura com polietileno glicol (PEG), que podem ser de interesse para auxiliar um posterior processamento do PEUAMM. As moagens foram realizadas em um moinho do tipo attritor, um tipo de moinho que pode ser usado tanto em laboratório quanto em escala industrial. Foram variadas as velocidades de rotação na moagem do PEUAMM, além das concentrações de PEG, quando feita a mistura. As amostras foram caracterizadas por microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV), microscopia de força atômica (MFA), calorimetria exploratória diferencial (DSC) e difração de raios X. A moagem de alta energia do material modificou a forma das partículas de PEUAMM, passando de arredondadas a flakes, com a evolução do processo de moagem, fazendo com que a densidade aparente do polímero diminuísse muito comparado ao polímero não moído. A moagem também proporcionou mudança estrutural, permitindo a formação de fase monoclínica em detrimento da ortorrômbica. A medida que se aumentou a rotação do moinho até 500 rpm, houve um crescimento da fase monoclínica. Apenas para 600 rpm, a quantidade dessa fase sofreu decréscimo, devido possivelmente ao aumento da frequência de choques e da temperatura de processamento, fazendo com que a estrutura monoclínica retornasse à estrutura ortorrômbica original. Na mistura de PEUAMM com PEG, a moagem provavelmente permitiu redução das partículas e a melhor dispersão de PEG na matriz de PEUAMM. Também se observaram mudanças nas características térmicas dos polímeros na mistura após moagem. Ocorreu mudança na cinética de crescimento dos cristais de PEUAMM e mudança no comportamento de cristalização do PEG, comportamento este que não ocorreu para o PEUAMM moído ou para a mistura de PEUAMM com PEG antes da moagem. Possivelmente, as partículas dispersas de PEG atuaram como barreiras ao crescimento da fase cristalina do PEUAMM e houve diminuição da temperatura de cristalização do PEG, na mistura com PEUAMM após moagem.

L'objet de cette thèse est l'étude de la pénétration des actifs cosmétiques dans la peau. Les axes d'investigation principaux ont concerné l'influence des propriétés physicochimiques des actifs et des ingrédients de la formule sur les mécanismes de pénétration. Les actifs cosmétiques choisis sont le rétinol, actif lipophile, et la caféine, actif hydrophile. Les formulations investiguées sont des émulsions de type huile dans eau, comparées aux solutions de tensioactifs correspondantes. Trois huiles cosmétiques ont été utilisées: Butylène glycol de cocoate, Octyldodecyl myristate et la Paraffine liquide, stabilisées en émulsion avec des tensioactifs ester de polyéthylène glycol (PEG20 et PEG6) possédant des longueurs de chaîne carbonées variables (C8, C12, C18 et C18:1). La pénétration percutanée a été mesurée quantitativement en utilisant la méthode des cellules de diffusion de Franz en fonctionnement statique et dynamique et qualitativement par la microscopie confocale Raman. Avec cette combinaison de techniques analytiques, il est possible, de mesurer la pénétration et d’évaluer l'impact de chaque composant de la formulation sur la pénétration cutanée d'un actif. Une corrélation a pu être établie entre l’effet fluidifiant d’une huile et l’augmentation de la pénétration du rétinol. Par ailleurs les tensioactifs, même s’ils ont montré un effet moindre en terme de fluidification conduisent également à une augmentation de la pénétration en raison d’une variation du coefficient de partage de l’actif entre la formule et la peau. Concernant la caféine, l’influence de la structure des tensioactifs et en particulier de la longueur de chaîne carbonée a été mise en évidence / The purpose of this thesis is to study the penetration of cosmetics actives into the skin. The main lines of investigation concerned the influence of actives and formulation components physicochemical properties on the penetration mechanisms. The selected cosmetic actives are retinol, lipophilic, and caffeine, hydrophilic. The investigated formulations are oil in water emulsions, compared to their corresponding surfactant solutions. Three cosmetic oils were used: Butylene glycol cocoate, Octyldodecyl myristate and liquid paraffin. Emulsions are stabilized with polyethylene glycol ester surfactants (PEG20 and PEG6) having variable carbon chain lengths (C8, C12, C18 and C18: 1). Percutaneous penetration was measured quantitatively using Franz diffusion cells in a static and dynamic way and qualitatively by confocal Raman microscopy. With this combination of analytical techniques, it is possible to measure the penetration and evaluate the impact of each formulation component on skin penetration of an active. A correlation could be established between the fluidizing effect of an oil and the increase in retinol penetration. Moreover, the surfactants, although they showed less effect in terms of fluidizing also lead to an increase in penetration due to a variation of the active partition coefficient between the formula and the skin. Regarding caffeine, the influence of the surfactant structure and in particular the carbon chain length has been pointed out

Depuis plus d’une cinquantaine d’années, de formidables avancées ont été initiées dans le domaine de l’ingénierie tissulaire cutanée menant à la reconstruction in vitro de substituts de peau. La plupart sont des substituts dermiques destinés à être utilisés comme aide à la cicatrisation des plaies aigües et chroniques en complément des traitements de greffes conventionnels ainsi que pour l’augmentation des tissus mous. Bien qu’un nombre croissant de patients aient pu bénéficier de ces matrices dermiques, leur application clinique reste encore restreinte, en raison de leur coût élevé mais également à cause de résultats cicatriciels parfois peu satisfaisants. Par conséquent, il reste un défi de taille, celui de développer des substituts dermiques stimulant activement la cicatrisation, présentant un faible coût de production, sans propriétés antigéniques et possédant des propriétés mécaniques adaptées. Dans ce cadre, les hydrogels à base de fibrine constituent des candidats prometteurs, en particulier en raison du rôle central de cette protéine dans la cicatrisation. Le principal inconvénient est qu’à concentration physiologique, ces hydrogels sont faibles mécaniquement, ce qui les rend difficilement manipulables. L’objectif de cette thèse a été la mise au point ainsi que la caractérisation de différents hydrogels destinés à être utilisés comme substituts dermiques. Ces derniers présentent l’avantage d’associer les propriétés biologiques de la fibrine avec les propriétés mécaniques d’un polymère synthétique, le polyéthylène glycol dans une architecture de réseaux interpénétrés de polymères (RIP). Les résultats obtenus ont permis : - de confirmer les propriétés physico-chimiques des RIP développés initialement par nos collaborateurs de l’université de Cergy-Pontoise, - de valider en trois étapes (in vitro, ex vivo puis in vivo) la biocompatibilité de ces nouvelles matrices, destinées à être utilisées comme supports de culture 2D et pour l’augmentation des tissus mous, - d’élaborer et de caractériser des matrices macroporeuses, optimisées pour la culture 3D de fibroblastes de dermes humains. / Over the past five decades, we assisted in extraordinary advances in the field of skin tissue engineering which led to the in vitro reconstruction of a wide range of skin substitutes. Most of them are dermal substitutes: Their clinical application ranges from treating acute and chronic wounds to soft tissue augmentation. Although increasing numbers of patients have been treated with dermal substitutes, their clinical application has been limited by their substantial cost and some poor healing outcomes. Hence, there is still a challenge to produce a dermal substitute which enhance sufficiently wound healing. To this end, the substitute should exhibit suitable properties for enabling the repair process. Other requirements such as excellent biocompatibility, minimal antigenicity, ease to handle and cost-effective production are also essential. In this context, fibrin hydrogels constitute promising candidates for skin tissue engineering since fibrin fibers form a physiological and provisional backbone during wound healing. However, the poor mechanical properties of fibrin-based hydrogels at physiological concentration are an obstacle to their use. In this study, our aim was to design and characterize mechanically reinforced fibrin-based hydrogels by combining the intrinsic properties of a fibrin network with the mechanical features of a polyethylene glycol network using an interpenetrating polymer network (IPN) architecture. They are intended to be used as dermal scaffolds. The results obtained in this thesis: - Confirmed the suitable physico-chemical properties of IPN, first developed by our partner of the University of Cergy-Pontoise. - Validated their biocompatibility using a three-step approach (in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo assays). - Led to the synthesis and characterization of a new type of fibrin-based macroporous matrices, optimized for 3D dermal fibroblast culture.

Protoplast fusion of Lolium perenne and Lotus corniculatus for gene introgression by Sanjeev V. Raikar Lolium perenne is one of the most important forage crops globally and in New Zealand. Lotus corniculatus is a dicotyledonous forage that contains valuable traits such as high levels of condensed tannins, increased digestibility, and high nitrogen fixing abilities. However, conventional breeding between these two forage crops is impossible due to their markedly different taxonomic origin. Protoplast fusion (somatic hybridisation) provides an opportunity for gene introgression between these two species. This thesis describes the somatic hybridisation, the regeneration and the molecular analysis of the putative somatic hybrid plants obtained between L. perenne and L. corniculatus. Callus and cell suspensions of different cultivars of L. perenne were established from immature embryos and plants were regenerated from the callus. Of the 10 cultivars screened, cultivars Bronsyn and Canon had the highest percentage of callus induction at 36% each on 5 mg/L 2,4-D. Removal of the palea and lemma which form the seed coat was found to increase callus induction ability of the embryos. Plant regeneration from the callus was achieved when the callus was plated on LS medium supplemented with plant growth regulators at different concentrations. Variable responses to shoot regeneration was observed between the different cultivars with the cv Kingston having the lowest frequency of shoot formation (12%). Different factors affecting the protoplast isolation of L. perenne were investigated. The highest protoplast yield of 10×106 g-1FW was obtained when cell suspensions were used as the tissue source, with enzyme combination ‘A’ (Cellulase Onozuka RS 2%, Macerozyme R-10 1%, Driselase 0.5%, Pectolyase 0.2%), for 6 h incubation period in 0.6 M mannitol. Development of microcolonies was only achieved when protoplasts were plated on nitrocellulose membrane with a L. perenne feeder layer on PEL medium. All the shoots regenerated from the protoplast-derived calli were albino shoots. The highest protoplast yield (7×106 g-1FW) of L. corniculatus was achieved from cotyledons also with enzyme combination ‘A’ (Cellulase Onozuka RS 2%, Macerozyme R-10 1%, Driselase 0.5%, Pectolyase 0.2%), for 6 h incubation period in 0.6 M mannitol. The highest plating efficiency for L. corniculatus of 1.57 % was achieved when protoplasts were plated on nitrocellulose membrane with a L. perenne feeder layer on PEL medium. The highest frequency of shoot regeneration (46%) was achieved when calli were plated on LS medium with NAA (0.1 mg/L) and BA (0.1 mg/L). Protoplast fusion between L. perenne and L. corniculatus was performed using the asymmetric somatic hybridisation technique using PEG as the fusogen. L. perenne protoplasts were treated with 0.1 mM IOA for 15 min and L. corniculatus protoplasts were treated with UV at 0.15 J/cm2 for 10 min. Various parameters affecting the fusion percentage were investigated. Successful fusions were obtained when the fusions were conducted on a plastic surface with 35% PEG (3350 MW) for 25 min duration, followed by 100 mM calcium chloride treatment for 25 min. A total of 14 putative fusion colonies were recovered. Shoots were regenerated from 8 fusion colonies. Unexpectedly, the regenerated putative hybrid plants resembled L. corniculatus plants. The flow cytometric profile of the putative somatic hybrids resembled that of L. corniculatus. Molecular analysis using SD-AFLP, SCARs and Lolium specific chloroplast microsatellite markers suggest that the putative somatic hybrids could be L. corniculatus escapes from the asymmetric protoplast fusion process. This thesis details a novel Whole Genome Amplification technique for plants using Strand Displacement Amplification technique.

To survive, neurons and other eukaryotic cells must rapidly repair (seal) plasmalemmal damage. Such repair occurs by an accumulation of intracellular vesicles at or near the plasmalemmal disruption. Diacylglycerol (DAG)-dependent and cAMP-dependent proteins are involved in many vesicle trafficking pathways. Although recent studies have implicated the signaling molecule cAMP in sealing, no study has investigated how DAG and DAG-dependent proteins affect sealing and, whether pharmacological inhibition of such proteins could promote immediate repair of damaged mammalian axons. To this end, I investigated the role of DAG, protein kinase C (PKC) and other DAG-activated proteins in plasmalemmal sealing in B104 neurons in vitro and rat sciatic nerves in vivo. Using dye exclusion to assess Ca2+-dependent vesicle-mediated sealing of transected neurites of individually identifiable rat hippocampal B104 cells, I now report that, compared to non-treated controls, sealing probabilities and rates are increased by DAG and cAMP analogs that activate PKC and Munc13-1, and protein kinase A (PKA). Sealing is decreased by inhibiting DAG-activated novel protein kinase C isozymes η (nPKCη) and θ (nPKCθ) and, Munc13-1, the PKC effector myristoylated alanine rich PKC substrate (MARCKS) or phospholipase C (PLC). DAG-increased sealing is prevented by inhibiting MARCKS or PKA. Sealing probability is further decreased by simultaneously inhibiting nPKCη, nPKCθ and PKA. Extracellular Ca2+, DAG or cAMP analogs do not affect this decrease in sealing. I also report that applying inhibitors of nPKC and PKA to rat sciatic axons crush-severed in vivo under physiological calcium, do not promote immediate repair by polyethylene glycol (PEG), as assessed by compound action potential conduction and dye diffusion through crush sites. These and other data suggest that DAG increases sealing through MARCKS and that nPKCη, nPKCθ and PKA are all required to seal plasmalemmal damage in B104 neurons, and likely all eukaryotic cells. / text

The growing demand in portable and compact consumer devices and appliances has resulted in the need for the miniaturisation of electronic components. These miniaturised electronic components are sensitive and susceptible to damage by voltages as low as 20V. Electrically conductive styrenic thermoplastics are widely used in electronic packaging applications to protect these sensitive electronic components against electro-static discharge (ESD) during manufacturing, assembly, storage and shipping. Such ESD applications often require the optimal volume resistance range of ≥ 1.0x105 to < 1.0x108 Ω. The best known method to render styrenic thermoplastics conductive is by the incorporation of conductive fillers, such as carbon black but the main limitation is the difficulty in controlling the conductivity level due to the steep percolation curve. Thus the aim of this research is to develop electrically conductive styrenic thermoplastics by blending several styrenic resins with polymeric conductive additives to achieve optimal volume resistance range for ESD applications with the ease in controlling the conductivity level.

The emergence of novel electronic, optical and magnetic properties in ordered two-dimensional (2D) nanoparticle ensembles, due to collective dipolar interactions of surface plasmons or excitons or magnetic moments have motivated intense research efforts into fabricating functional nanostructure assemblies. Such functional assemblies (i.e., highly-integrated and addressable) have great potential in terms of device performance and cost benefits. Presently, there is a paradigm shift from lithography based top-down approaches to bottom-up approaches that use self-assembly to engineer addressable architectures from nanoscale building blocks. The objective of this dissertation was to develop appropriate processing tools that can overcome the common challenges faced in fabricating floating gate memory devices using self-assembled 2D metal nanoparticle arrays as charge storage nodes. The salient challenges being to synthesize monodisperse nanoparticles, develop large scale guided self-assembly processes and to integrate with Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) memory device fabrication processes, thereby, meeting the targets of International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS) – 2017, for non-volatile memory devices. In the first part of the thesis, a simple and robust process for the formation of wafer-scale, ordered arrays using dodecanethiol capped gold nanoparticles is reported. Next, the results of ellipsometric measurements to analyze the effect of excess ligand on the self-assembly of dodecanethiol coated gold nanoparticles at the air-water interface are discussed. In a similar vein, the technique of drop-casting colloidal solution is extended for tuning the interparticle spacing in the sub-20 nm regime, by altering the ligand length, through thiol-functionalized polystyrene molecules of different molecular weights. The results of characterization, using the complementary techniques of Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and Field-Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), of nanoparticle arrays formed by polystyrene thiol (average molecular weight 20,000 g/mol) grafted gold nanoparticles (7 nm diameter) on three different substrates and also using different solvents is then reported. The substrate interactions were found to affect the interparticle spacing in arrays, changing from 20 nm on silicon to 10 nm on a water surface; whereas, the height of the resultant thin film was found to be independent of substrate used and to correlate only with the hydrodynamic diameter of the polymer grafted nanoparticle in solution. Also, the mechanical properties of the nanoparticle thin films were found to be significantly altered by such compression of the polymer ligands. Based on the experimental data, the interparticle spacing and packing structure in these 2D arrays, were found to be controlled by the substrate, through modulation of the disjoining pressure in the evaporating thin film (van der Waals interaction); and by the solvent used for drop casting, through modulation of the hydrodynamic diameter. This is the first report on the ability to vary interparticle spacing of metal nanoparticle arrays by tuning substrate interactions alone, while maintaining the same ligand structure. A process to fabricate arrays with square packing based on convective shearing at a liquid surface induced by miscibility of colloidal solution with the substrate is proposed. This obviates the need for complex ligands with spatially directed molecular binding properties. Fabrication of 3D aggregates of polymer-nanoparticle composite by manipulating solvent-ligand interactions is also presented. In flash memory devices, charges are stored in a floating gate separated by a tunneling oxide layer from the channel, and the tunneling oxide thickness is scaled down to minimize power consumption. However, reduction in tunneling oxide thickness has reached a stage where data loss can occur due to random defects in the oxide. Using metal nanoparticles as charge-trapping nodes will minimize the data loss and enhance reliability by compartmentalizing the charge storage. In the second part of the thesis, a scalable and CMOS compatible process for fabricating next-generation, non-volatile, flash memory devices using the self-assembled 2D arrays of gold nanoparticles as charge storage nodes were developed. The salient features of the fabricated devices include: (a) reproducible threshold voltage shifts measured from devices spread over cm2 area, (b) excellent retention (>10 years) and endurance characteristics (>10000 Program/Erase cycles). The removal of ligands coating the metal nanoparticles using mild RF plasma etching was found, based on FESEM characterization as well as electrical measurements, to be critical in maintaining both the ordering of the nanoparticles and charge storage capacity. Results of Electrostatic Force Microscope (EFM) measurements are presented, corroborating the need for ligand removal in obtaining reproducible memory characteristics and reducing vertical charge leakage. The effect of interparticle spacing on the memory characteristics of the devices was also studied. Interestingly, the arrays with interparticle spacing of the order of nanoparticle diameter (7 nm) gave rise to the largest memory window, in comparison with arrays with smaller (2 nm) or larger interparticle spacing (20 nm). The effect of interparticle spacing and ligand removal on memory characteristics was found to be independent of different top-oxide deposition processes employed in device fabrication, namely, Radio-frequency magnetron sputtering (RF sputtering), Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) and electron-beam evaporation. In the final part of the thesis, a facile method for transforming polydisperse citrate capped gold nanoparticles into monodisperse gold nanoparticles through the addition of excess polyethylene glycol (PEG) molecules is presented. A systematic study was conducted in order to understand the role of excess ligand (PEG) in enabling size focusing. The size focusing behavior due to PEG coating of nanoparticles was found to be different for different metals. Unlike the digestive ripening process, the presence of PEG was found to be critical, while the thiol functionalization was not needed. Remarkably, the amount of adsorbed carboxylate-PEG mixture was found to play a key role in this process. The stability of the ordered nanoparticle films under vacuum was also reported. The experimental results of particle ripening draw an analogy with the well-established Pechini process for synthesizing metal oxide nanostructures. The ability to directly self-assemble nanoparticles from the aqueous phase in conjunction with the ability to transfer these arrays to any desired substrate using microcontact printing can foster the development of applications ranging from flexible electronics to sensors. Also, this approach in conjunction with roll-to-roll processing approaches such as doctor-blade casting or convective assembly can aid in realizing the goal of large scale nanostructure fabrication without the utilization of organic solvents.