{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,10]],"date-time":"2026-09-10T09:07:39Z","timestamp":1789031259409,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":35,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"18","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,8]],"date-time":"2026-09-08T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1788825600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Ministry of Science of the Republic of Serbia","award":["451-03-33\/2026-03\/200017"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["451-03-33\/2026-03\/200017"]}]},{"name":"Ministry of Science of the Republic of Serbia","award":["451-03-33\/2026-03\/200168"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["451-03-33\/2026-03\/200168"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Polymers"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of PEG functionalization of hydrothermal carbon (HTC) on quercetin adsorption and desorption kinetics and, through that, evaluate the potential of functionalized HTC as a carrier for quercetin. Hydrothermal carbon (HTC) was synthesized using fructose as a precursor at a temperature of 160 \u00b0C. Structural and morphological analyses using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed an amorphous carbon structure and microspherical particles with an average size of 5.6 \u00b5m. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy characterization revealed a surface enriched with hydroxyl and carboxyl groups, which facilitated successful PEG modification. Surface modification was further corroborated by a zeta potential shift from \u201326.4 mV to \u201316.4 mV. Cytotoxicity assays in MRC-5 and HeLa cell lines confirmed high biocompatibility, with cell viability remaining above 70%. Quercetin binding experiments showed that PEG functionalization increased binding capacity up to 14%, reaching 19.50 mg\/g for PEG-functionalized fructose-derived carbon. Desorption kinetics followed a pseudo-second-order model, with the PEG-modified sample exhibiting significantly slower rates than the unmodified sample. These findings indicate that PEG functionalization can improve the adsorption\/desorption properties of HTC compared with the pristine material, highlighting its potential as a promising, environmentally friendly, and efficient delivery system for quercetin.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/polym18182189","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,8]],"date-time":"2026-09-08T13:46:33Z","timestamp":1788875193000},"page":"2189","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["From Carbohydrate to Biocompatible Carriers: Impact of Pegylation on the Physicochemical Properties and Quercetin Delivery Performance of Fructose Hydrothermal Carbons"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"18","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8526-8633","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ivan","family":"Bracanovi\u0107","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials, \u201cVin\u010da\u201d Institute of Nuclear Sciences-National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Mike Petrovi\u0107a Alasa 12-14, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"},{"role":"conceptualization","vocabulary":"credit"},{"role":"investigation","vocabulary":"credit"},{"role":"writing-original-draft","vocabulary":"credit"},{"role":"formal-analysis","vocabulary":"credit"}]},{"given":"Ana","family":"Kalijadis","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials, \u201cVin\u010da\u201d Institute of Nuclear Sciences-National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Mike Petrovi\u0107a Alasa 12-14, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"},{"role":"conceptualization","vocabulary":"credit"},{"role":"investigation","vocabulary":"credit"},{"role":"writing-review-editing","vocabulary":"credit"},{"role":"supervision","vocabulary":"credit"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5497-284X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Lela","family":"Kori\u0107anac","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Molecular Biology and Endocrinology, \u201cVin\u010da\u201d Institute of Nuclear Sciences-National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Mike Petrovi\u0107a Alasa 12-14, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"},{"role":"formal-analysis","vocabulary":"credit"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2335-455X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Miljana","family":"Mirkovi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials, \u201cVin\u010da\u201d Institute of Nuclear Sciences-National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Mike Petrovi\u0107a Alasa 12-14, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"},{"role":"formal-analysis","vocabulary":"credit"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4311-1731","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mario","family":"Zlatovi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Chemistry, University of Belgrade, Studentski trg 12-16, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4724-9087","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Svetlana","family":"Butulija","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials, \u201cVin\u010da\u201d Institute of Nuclear Sciences-National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Mike Petrovi\u0107a Alasa 12-14, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"},{"role":"formal-analysis","vocabulary":"credit"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7418-6723","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Aleksandar","family":"Krsti\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Physical Chemistry, \u201cVin\u010da\u201d Institute of Nuclear Sciences-National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Mike Petrovi\u0107a Alasa 12-14, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"},{"role":"investigation","vocabulary":"credit"},{"role":"conceptualization","vocabulary":"credit"},{"role":"methodology","vocabulary":"credit"},{"role":"formal-analysis","vocabulary":"credit"},{"role":"writing-review-editing","vocabulary":"credit"},{"role":"validation","vocabulary":"credit"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,8]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"126084","DOI":"10.1016\/j.biortech.2021.126084","article-title":"Hydrothermal carbonization and Liquefaction: Differences, progress, challenges, and opportunities","volume":"343","author":"Abaide","year":"2022","journal-title":"Bioresour. Technol."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4747","DOI":"10.1039\/D0GC00998A","article-title":"Recent advances in hydrothermal carbonisation: From tailored carbon materials and biochemicals to applications and bioenergy","volume":"22","author":"Nicolae","year":"2020","journal-title":"Green Chem."},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"164929","DOI":"10.1016\/j.apsusc.2025.164929","article-title":"Synthesis and functionalization of glucose and fructose derived hydrothermal carbons\u2014Potential application as quercetin carriers","volume":"718","author":"Kalijadis","year":"2026","journal-title":"Appl. Surf. Sci."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"108998","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jece.2022.108998","article-title":"Synthesis of nitrogen doped and nitrogen and sulfur co-doped carbon cryogels and their application for pharmaceuticals removal from water","volume":"10","author":"Kalijadis","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Environ. Chem. Eng."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"181","DOI":"10.1039\/D1RA07554C","article-title":"Modification of carbon-based nanomaterials by polyglycerol: Recent advances and applications","volume":"12","author":"Rafiee","year":"2021","journal-title":"RSC Adv."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"144838","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jclepro.2025.144838","article-title":"Hydrothermal carbonization\u2014A critical overview of its environmental and economic sustainability","volume":"491","author":"Cavali","year":"2025","journal-title":"J. Clean. Prod."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Veerapandian, M., Ramasundaram, S., Jerome, P., Chellasamy, G., Govindaraju, S., Yun, K., and Oh, T.H. (2023). Drug Delivery Application of Functional Nanomaterials Synthesized Using Natural Sources. J. Funct. Biomater., 14.","DOI":"10.3390\/jfb14080426"},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"20550","DOI":"10.1038\/s41598-022-14704-x","article-title":"Facile preparation of aqueous-soluble fluorescent polyethylene glycol functionalized carbon dots from palm waste by one-pot hydrothermal carbonization for colon cancer nanotheranostics","volume":"12","author":"Sangjan","year":"2022","journal-title":"Sci. Rep."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Croitoru, A.M., Kara\u00e7elebi, Y., Saatcioglu, E., Altan, E., Ulag, S., Aydo\u011fan, H.K., Sahin, A., Motelica, L., Oprea, O., and Tihauan, B.M. (2021). Electrically triggered drug delivery from novel electrospun poly(Lactic acid)\/graphene oxide\/quercetin fibrous scaffolds for wound dressing applications. Pharmaceutics, 13.","DOI":"10.3390\/pharmaceutics13070957"},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"24369","DOI":"10.1007\/s11356-020-08591-w","article-title":"The impact of hydrothermal carbonization on the surface functionalities of wet waste materials for water treatment applications","volume":"27","author":"Niinipuu","year":"2020","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res."},{"key":"ref_11","first-page":"8459095","article-title":"Quercetin and Heart Health: From Molecular Pathways to Clinical Findings","volume":"2023","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. Food Biochem."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Georgiou, N., Kakava, M.G., Routsi, E.A., Petsas, E., Stavridis, N., Freris, C., Zoupanou, N., Moschovou, K., Kiriakidi, S., and Mavromoustakos, T. (2023). Quercetin: A Potential Polydynamic Drug. Molecules, 28.","DOI":"10.3390\/molecules28248141"},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"100217","DOI":"10.1016\/j.crphar.2025.100217","article-title":"Anti-inflammatory potential of quercetin: From chemistry and mechanistic insight to nanoformulations","volume":"8","author":"Aggarwal","year":"2025","journal-title":"Curr. Res. Pharmacol. Drug Discov."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"110372","DOI":"10.1016\/j.biopha.2020.110372","article-title":"Drug delivery based pharmacological enhancement and current insights of quercetin with therapeutic potential against oral diseases","volume":"128","author":"Wang","year":"2020","journal-title":"Biomed. Pharmacother."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"118062","DOI":"10.1016\/j.lfs.2020.118062","article-title":"Electrospun poly-caprolactone\/graphene oxide\/quercetin nanofibrous scaffold for wound dressing: Evaluation of biological and structural properties","volume":"257","author":"Faraji","year":"2020","journal-title":"Life Sci."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"113175","DOI":"10.1016\/j.inoche.2024.113175","article-title":"Development and characterization of a novel pH-Responsive nanocarrier for enhanced quercetin delivery and cytotoxicity in lung cancer","volume":"170","author":"Pourmadadi","year":"2024","journal-title":"Inorg. Chem. Commun."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"111621","DOI":"10.1016\/j.inoche.2023.111621","article-title":"Chitosan-Carbon nanotube Composite: An approach for controlled release of Quercetin, Modified with carboxymethyl Cellulose, for potential Anti-Cancer therapy","volume":"158","author":"Pourmadadi","year":"2023","journal-title":"Inorg. Chem. Commun."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e12512","DOI":"10.1016\/j.heliyon.2022.e12512","article-title":"Gefitinib conjugated PEG passivated graphene quantum dots incorporated PLA microspheres for targeted anticancer drug delivery","volume":"8","author":"Gautam","year":"2022","journal-title":"Heliyon"},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"142256","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijbiomac.2025.142256","article-title":"Synthesis and characterization of self-crosslinked carboxymethyl chitosan-based hydrogel and its composites with gelatin and PEG-GO for drug delivery applications","volume":"308","author":"Shahzad","year":"2025","journal-title":"Int. J. Biol. Macromol."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"100677","DOI":"10.1016\/j.apmt.2020.100677","article-title":"Polyethylene glycol (PEG) derived carbon dots: Preparation and applications","volume":"20","author":"Peng","year":"2020","journal-title":"Appl. Mater. Today"},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"100062","DOI":"10.1016\/j.onano.2022.100062","article-title":"Carbon-based nanomaterials in gene therapy","volume":"7","author":"Mostafavi","year":"2022","journal-title":"OpenNano"},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"115836","DOI":"10.1016\/j.biopha.2023.115836","article-title":"PEG-modified carbon-based nanoparticles as tumor-targeted drug delivery system reducing doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity","volume":"168","author":"Wang","year":"2023","journal-title":"Biomed. Pharmacother."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"16777","DOI":"10.1038\/s41598-024-67720-4","article-title":"Molecular insights into the interactions between PEG carriers and drug molecules from Celastrus hindsii: A multi-scale simulation study","volume":"14","author":"Ho","year":"2024","journal-title":"Sci. Rep."},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1107","DOI":"10.1093\/jnci\/82.13.1107","article-title":"New Colorimetric Cytotoxicity Assay for Anticancer-Drug Screening","volume":"82","author":"Skehan","year":"1990","journal-title":"JNCI J. Natl. Cancer Inst."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4859","DOI":"10.1039\/D5RA08562D","article-title":"Functionalization of carbon nanospheres with curcumin, polyethylene glycol and folic acid: Potential use as drug carriers","volume":"16","year":"2026","journal-title":"RSC Adv."},{"key":"ref_26","first-page":"13877","article-title":"Hydrothermal Carbonization of Fructose: Growth Mechanism and Kinetic Model, ACS Sustain","volume":"6","author":"Jung","year":"2018","journal-title":"Chem. Eng."},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"137827","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cej.2022.137827","article-title":"Hydrothermal carbonization of glucose: Secondary char properties, reaction pathways, and kinetics","volume":"449","author":"Ischia","year":"2022","journal-title":"Chem. Eng. J."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"75","DOI":"10.1016\/j.carbon.2022.01.038","article-title":"High-energy X-Ray diffraction study of multiwalled carbon nanotubes fabricated by arc discharge plasma process","volume":"191","author":"Bagautdinov","year":"2022","journal-title":"Carbon"},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"202300345","DOI":"10.1002\/pssb.202300345","article-title":"Analysis of Carbon Dots Synthesized at Different Hydrothermal Carbonization Temperatures and Their Ferric Ion Detection Performances","volume":"261","author":"Ahn","year":"2024","journal-title":"Phys. Status Solidi B Basic Res."},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"202200208","DOI":"10.1002\/aenm.202200208","article-title":"The Role of Hydrothermal Carbonization in Sustainable Sodium-Ion Battery Anodes","volume":"12","author":"Xu","year":"2022","journal-title":"Adv. Energy Mater."},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Wang, L., Wang, W., Wang, Y., Tao, W., Hou, T., Cai, D., Liu, L., Liu, C., Jiang, K., and Lin, J. (2024). The Graphene Quantum Dots Gated Nanoplatform for Photothermal-Enhanced Synergetic Tumor Therapy. Molecules, 29.","DOI":"10.3390\/molecules29030615"},{"key":"ref_32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Vallorz, E.L., Encinas-Basurto, D., Schnellmann, R.G., and Mansour, H.M. (2022). Design, Development, Physicochemical Characterization, and In Vitro Drug Release of Formoterol PEGylated PLGA Polymeric Nanoparticles. Pharmaceutics, 14.","DOI":"10.3390\/pharmaceutics14030638"},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Iqbal, H.M.N., and Keshavarz, T. (2017). The challenge of biocompatibility evaluation of biocomposites. Biomedical Composites, Elsevier.","DOI":"10.1016\/B978-0-08-100752-5.00014-7"},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Assad, M., and Jackson, N. (2019). Biocompatibility Evaluation of Orthopedic Biomaterials and Medical Devices: A Review of Safety and Efficacy Models. Encyclopedia of Biomedical Engineering, Elsevier.","DOI":"10.1016\/B978-0-12-801238-3.11104-3"},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"124482","DOI":"10.1016\/j.molliq.2024.124482","article-title":"The role of chemical functional groups in dewaterability of hydrochar: A molecular simulation study","volume":"400","author":"Ha","year":"2024","journal-title":"J. Mol. Liq."}],"container-title":["Polymers"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2073-4360\/18\/18\/2189\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,10]],"date-time":"2026-09-10T08:20:15Z","timestamp":1789028415000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2073-4360\/18\/18\/2189"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,8]]},"references-count":35,"journal-issue":{"issue":"18","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9]]}},"alternative-id":["polym18182189"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/polym18182189","relation":{},"ISSN":["2073-4360"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2073-4360","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,8]]}}}