Cytotoxicity and Cellular Uptake of Amorphous Silica Nanoparticles in Human Cancer Cells

The cytotoxic effects of silica nanoparticles (SNPs) on different human cancer cells, as well as the uptake kinetics and pathways of SNPs have been studied here. SNPs with the diameter of ≈20 nm induced a dose‐dependent cytotoxicity in both gastric cancer cells (MGC80–3) and cervical adenocarcinoma epithelial cells (HeLa), but MGC80–3 cells were more susceptible to the cytotoxic effect induced by SNPs. Changes in the nuclear morphology and flow cytometric analysis with annexin V/PI double staining show that SNPs induced a higher degree of apoptosis in MGC80–3 cells. Accordingly, more remarkable reactive oxygen species (ROS) burst is detected in SNP‐treated MGC80–3 cells. Using fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)‐labeled SNPs and flow cytometry, it is found that the uptake of SNPs is more efficient in MGC80–3 than in HeLa cells. SNPs are internalized into both cancer cells through energy‐dependent pathway. Inhibitor studies with dynasore and methyl‐β‐cyclodextrin show that these cancer cells took up 20 nm SNPs mainly through the caveolin‐mediated endocytosis, while in HeLa cells SNPs internalization was also via dynamin‐dependent clathrin‐mediated pathway. These findings indicate that SNPs cause differential cytotoxic effects in different human cancer cells, which might be related to the uptake process and efficiency toward these cancer cells.     

The Internalization,Distribution, and Ultrastructure Damage of Silica Nanoparticles in Human Hepatic L‐02 Cells

Nowadays, due to the wide use of amorphous silica nanoparticles (SiNPs), their adverse effects on human beings are attracting more attention. Understanding the interaction between SiNPs and cells is a fundamental step for toxicity assessment. Therefore, the current study is aimed at elaborating the internalization process, subcellular distribution, ultrastructure damage, and cytotoxicity of two different sizes of SiNPs (Nano‐Si64 and Nano‐Si46) in L‐02 cells. The results indicate that the smaller‐sized SiNPs, Nano‐Si46, accumulate in cells more efficiently and produce a stronger cytotoxic effect than Nano‐Si64. Both types of nanoparticles can accumulate in L‐02 cells through the active endocytotic pathway and passive diffusion, and distribute within endocytotic vesicles or freely in cytoplasma and organelles. Microvillus fracture, membrane injury, mitochondria damage, degranulation of the rough endoplasmic reticulum, lamellar‐like structure, lysosome destruction, autophagosomes, and autophagy‐lysosomes are found in L‐02 cells. Oxidative damage and direct interaction between SiNPs and subcellular structure are responsible for the toxicity.     

Control of Surface Ligand Density on PEGylated Gold Nanoparticles for Optimized Cancer Cell Uptake

Surface chemistry plays a critical role in the solution phase behavior of gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) for applications such as in situ diagnostics and drug delivery. Polyethylene glycol (PEG), a hydrophilic polymer with low immunogenicity, is most commonly used for protecting Au NPs for biomedical applications. The ligand density and molecular weight of PEG on the gold nanoparticle surface are key factors that control the particles’ behavior. Specifically, the total density of PEG ligands gives rise to a transition from a disorganized, deformable polymer “mushroom” orientation to a more rigid “brush” orientation. Here, it is investigated how to rationally control this transition for Au NPs coated with PEG‐SH molecules within the weight range of 0.55 to 5 kDa, and evaluate their subsequent interaction with cancer cells. Several complementary methods are used to evaluate the effect of PEGylation on biologically relevant aspects, including surface ligand density, hydrodynamic size, dispersity, and cellular toxicity. In this work, the optimal synthesis ratios of PEG:Au NPs for achieving stability and maximum dispersity with 0.55, 1, 2, and 5 kDa PEG are determined to be 2500, 700, 500, and 300, respectively. Importantly, ratios that exceed those necessary for maximum dispersion of the Au NPs as determined by UV–vis and DLS are found to be the best ratios for highest cell viability.     

Characterization of the Optical Nonlinearities of Silver and Gold Nanoparticles

Optics and Spectroscopy - The synthesis of nanostructured materials took much attention due to their advanced optical and nonlinear optical properties, which can be used in various areas of...     

Extremophilic Polysaccharide for Biosynthesis and Passivation of Gold Nanoparticles and Photothermal Ablation of Cancer Cells

Extremophiles are the group of organisms that are far overlooked for exploring novel biomaterials in the field of material science and bionanotechnology. Extremophilic bacterial‐sulfated exopolysaccharide, mauran (MR), is employed for the bioreduction and passivation of gold nanoparticles (AuNps) to enhance the biocompatibility of AuNps and used for photothermal ablation of cancer cells. Here, various concentrations of MR solution are tested for the reduction of HAuCl₄ solution in the presence as well as in the absence of an external reducing agent, to produce mauran‐gold nanoparticles (MRAu Nps). These biocompatible nanocomposites are treated with cancer cell lines under in vitro conditions and NIR irradiated for complete ablation. MRAu Nps‐treated cancer cells on immediate exposure to infrared radiation from a femtosecond pulse laser of operating wavelength 800 nm are subjected to hyperthermia causing cell death. Biocompatible MR stabilization could fairly reduce the cytotoxicity caused by bare AuNps during biomedical applications. Application of a biocompatible polysaccharide from extremophilic bacterial origin for reduction and passivation of AuNps and used for a biomedical purpose is known to be first of its kind in bionanofusion studies.     

Size and Shape Effects in Optical Spectra of Silver and Gold Nanoparticles

Journal of Russian Laser Research - We report some theoretical results on the extinction, absorption, and scattering of light by individual silver and gold nanoparticles of different sizes and...     

Particle Shape Effects in the Extinction Spectra of Gold and Silver Nanoparticles

Particle shape effects in the absorption and scattering spectra of gold and silver nanoparticles are studied for optical-range radiation. Numerical calculations of extinction cross section are performed using the FDTD approach for particles of three shapes: disks, triangular prisms, and triradial-base prisms. It is established that the spectra of nanoparticles of different shapes differ qualitatively even if they are of the same characteristic dimensions. The obtained results can be used to develop a spectroscopic procedure for determining the shape of metallic nanoparticles and producing quantitative estimates of their characteristic dimensions.     

金和银纳米粒子二维周期阵列的光学性质

本文利用离散点偶极子近似方法(DDA)研究了金和银纳米粒子二维周期阵列的光学性质。研究结果表明二维周期阵列的消光性质及其表面等离子共振(SPR)波长受到阵列内粒子组成材料、粒子形状尺寸、阵列周期和阵列排布方式等因素的影响。对于二维正方阵列,当周期较小时(一般小于300 nm),阵列的共振波长主要取决于粒子组成材料和形状尺寸;当周期与阵列单体的共振波长附近时,阵列的消光谱中会出现极窄且锐的SPR共振峰,峰位只与阵列的周期值相关。改变阵列在平行和垂直于入射光偏振方向的周期,可以方便地调节二维长方阵列的共振峰的峰位和峰宽。     

金银核壳结构复合纳米颗粒的消光特性研究

利用离散偶极近似(Discrete Dipole Approximation-DDA)算法,从理论上模拟分析了金银核壳结构复合纳米颗粒的消光光谱以及不同核壳厚度、不同介质折射率情况下峰位的变化情况。研究结果表明,随着壳层厚度的增加,复合纳米颗粒的消光谱线先逐渐形成两个与单质金属纳米颗粒相似的消光峰,后又逐渐合为一个半峰宽度较宽的消光峰;在不同介质环境中复合纳米颗粒的消光峰都随着介电常数的增大出现红移;无论是作为核层还是壳层,银对总体消光谱线的作用都要比金强。     

金银纳米粒子的电化学性质及联苯胺的SERS研究

采用柠檬酸钠还原氯金酸,硼氢化钠还原硝酸银分别制备了较小粒径的金、银纳米粒子。运用紫外可见吸收光谱(UV-Vis)、扫描电子显微镜(SEM)、循环伏安法(CV)对金、银纳米粒子进行了表征。结果表明：所得金、银纳米粒子粒径分别约为16和10 nm,并能以亚单层形式组装于导电玻璃(ITO)表面;CV图显示金、银纳米粒子分别有一对不对称的氧化还原峰,而且纳米粒子的浓度对其氧化还原电位存在一定的影响。采用自组装方法,以联苯胺为偶联分子, 在粗糙金基底表面构筑了金/银纳米粒子的双层有序结构。表面增强拉曼光谱研究表明, 在有序金银纳米粒子组装体中偶联分子的拉曼散射得到了增强。     

Saccharide Sensing Using Gold and Silver Nanoparticles-A Review

We review new methodologies for glucose sensing from our laboratories based on the specific biological interactions between Con A, dextran-coated gold nanoparticles and glucose, and the interactions between dextran, glucose, and boronic-acid capped silver nanoparticles in solution. Our new approaches promise new tunable glucose sensing platforms. Dextran-coated gold nanoparticles were aggregated with the addition of Con A resulting in increase an in absorbance of nanoparticles at 650 nm, where the post-addition of glucose caused the dissociation of the aggregates and thus a decrease in the absorbance at 650 nm. The interaction of glucose and dextran with boronic acid-capped silver nanoparticles in solution resulted in enhanced luminescence intensity cumulatively due to surface-enhanced fluorescence and the decrease in absorbance at 400 nm, with an increase in absorbance at 640 nm. Lifetime measurements were used to distinguish the contribution from the surface-enhanced fluorescence. TEM was employed to assess the aggregation of nanoparticles.     

Silver Enhancement of Gold Nanoparticles for Biosensing: From Qualitative to Quantitative

Abstract

The establishment and rapid progress in sensitive biosensing using immunogold silver enhancement has occurred in the past 30 years. Its high sensitivity and simplicity have made immunogold silver enhancement a revolutionary technique for signal amplification in biosensing. This review focuses on the major applications of immunogold silver enhancement, with special emphasis on quantitative biosensing. In this review, the combinations of immunogold silver enhancement with a series of quantitative techniques, such as colorimetry, electrical and electrochemical methods, gravimetry, chemiluminescence, Raman spectroscopy, and inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), are discussed in detail. Immunogold silver enhancement has become one of the most useful methods in highly sensitive quantitative bioanalysis. The recent development of ICP-MS detection shows great potential in combination with immunogold silver enhancement.     

Effect of Epinephrine and Insulin on Glucose Metabolism in Isolated Fat Cells

Since epinephrine and insulin are known to counteract each other in several metabolic respects, it was found of interest to evaluate the interaction of these hormones on glucose metabolism in isolated fat cells. Results indicate that in spite of reduced lipolysis, insulin potentiates the conversion of glucose to glyceride-glycerol. This means that a certain degree of esterification of fatty acids must take place. So the low rate of lipolysis is sufficient to provide fatty acids for this esterification.     

A Correlative Analysis of Gold Nanoparticles Internalized by A549 Cells

Fluorescently labeled nanoparticles are widely used to investigate nanoparticle cell interactions by fluorescence microscopy. Owing to limited lateral and axial resolution, nanostructures (<100 nm) cannot be resolved by conventional light micro­scopy techniques. Especially after uptake into cells, a common fate of the fluorescence label and the particle core cannot be taken for granted. In this study, a correlative approach is presented to image fluorescently labeled gold nanoparticles inside whole cells by correlative light and electron microscopy (CLEM). This approach allows for detection of the fluorescently labeled particle shell as well as for the gold core in one sample. In this setup, A549 cells are exposed to 8 nm Atto 647N‐labeled gold nanoparticles (3.3 × 10⁹ particles mL^?1, 0.02 μg Au mL^?1) for 5 h and are subsequently imaged by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Eight fluorescence signals located at different intracellular positions are further analyzed by TEM. Five of the eight fluorescence spots are correlated with isolated or agglomerated gold nanoparticles. Three fluorescence signals could not be related to the presence of gold, indicating a loss of the particle shell.     

水相中金纳米颗粒催化的醛基选择性氧化

本文开发了一种新型的用生物质淀粉保护的金纳米颗粒作为催化剂,选择性氧化醛基得到羧酸的方法. 在4-羟甲基苯甲醛的催化氧化中,金纳米颗粒对醛基表现出了压倒性的选择性,而醇羟基则保持不变. 该非均相催化体系由可溶解的催化剂和不溶解的底物构成. 金催化剂的制备、储存、和使用都在水相中. 反应条件优化之后,双氧水被证明是最佳的氧化剂,可以得到100%转化率. 此外,在不同官能团取代的醛衍生物中,金纳米颗粒也表现出了很好的普适性. 反应结束之后,有机组分被有机溶剂萃取,而金颗粒被保留在水中通过分液分离以回收使用.     

Peptide‐Targeted Gold Nanoparticles for Photodynamic Therapy of Brain Cancer

Targeted drug delivery using epidermal growth factor peptide‐targeted gold nanoparticles (EGF_pep‐Au NPs) is investigated as a novel approach for delivery of photodynamic therapy (PDT) agents, specifically Pc 4, to cancer. In vitro studies of PDT show that EGF_pep‐Au NP‐Pc 4 is twofold better at killing tumor cells than free Pc 4 after increasing localization in early endosomes. In vivo studies show that targeting with EGF_pep‐Au NP‐Pc 4 improves accumulation of fluorescence of Pc 4 in subcutaneous tumors by greater than threefold compared with untargeted Au NPs. Targeted drug delivery and treatment success can be imaged via the intrinsic fluorescence of the PDT drug Pc 4. Using Pc 4 fluorescence, it is demonstrated in vivo that EGF_pep‐Au NP‐Pc 4 impacts biodistribution of the NPs by decreasing the initial uptake by the reticuloendothelial system (RES) and by increasing the amount of Au NPs circulating in the blood 4 h after IV injection. Interestingly, in vivo PDT with EGF_pep‐Au NP‐Pc 4 results in interrupted tumor growth when compared with EGF_pep‐Au NP control mice when selectively activated with light. These data demonstrate that EGF_pep‐Au NP‐Pc 4 utilizes cancer‐specific biomarkers to improve drug delivery and therapeutic efficacy over untargeted drug delivery.     

Selective Targeting of Lymphoma Cells by Monoclonal Antibody Grafted onto Zwitterionic-Functionalized Nanoparticles

Nanomedicine is considered a promising alternative to improve cancer diagnosis and treatment. Particularly, the use of nanoparticles (NPs) has enabled the encapsulation of highly toxic anticancer drugs, facilitated ultimate targeting, and allowed tailoring of drug delivery. However, when in biological fluids, these NPs are coated by proteins which hide the targeting moieties and suppress the engineered biological outcome. Herein, how the Ki-1 monoclonal antibody (mAb) can preserve its targetability through grafting on the surface of zwitterionic-functionalized nanoparticles, is unveiled. Zwitterions, known for their stealth ability, are used to minimize unspecific NPs protein adsorption and consequently maintain mAb functionality. In this work, Ki-1 mAb is used as it recognizes TNFRSF8 (CD30⁺) transmembrane protein overexpressed on CD30⁺ lymphoma cells such as L540 cells. While nonfunctionalized NPs show negligible toxic effects toward L540 cells, the Ki-1-functionalized structure demonstrates cytotoxicity, since they undergo cellular uptake, suggesting a receptor-mediated internalization. This dual-functionalization strategy provides a promising multifunctional nanoplatform toward future personalized medicine applications, minimizing unspecific protein adsorption on NPs and ensuring selective cancer cell targeting.     

Efficient Cellular Internalization and Transport of Bowl-Shaped Polydopamine Particles

In drug delivery applications, particle-based systems have been used widely due to their physicochemical properties such as size, shape, and surface charge to achieve desirable properties in intracellular environments. The way in which nanoparticles enter a biological cell is an important factor in determining their efficacy as drug carriers, their biodistribution, and toxicity. Most research thus far has focused on the comparison of spherical and rod-like particles on cellular internalization and transport. Here, the synthesis of bowl-shaped polydopamine (PDA) mesoporous nanoparticles with an average diameter of 200 nm and well-controlled radially oriented mesochannels are reported. By incubating bowl-shaped PDA nanoparticles and spherical nanoparticles with HeLa cells, their internalization behaviors are investigated using a suite of characterization techniques. Extensive experimental results demonstrate that bowl-shaped PDA nanoparticles adhere to the cell more efficiently and a faster rate of cellular uptake of bowl-shaped nanoparticles compared to their spherical counterparts. Overall, the cellular internalization behavior of particles is shape-dependent, and such information is crucial in designing nanoparticles for biomedical applications.     

Formation of Silver and Gold Dendrimer Nanocomposites

Structural types of dendrimer nanocomposites have been studied and the respective formation mechanisms have been described, with illustration of nanocomposites formed from poly(amidoamine) PAMAM dendrimers and zerovalent metals, such as gold and silver. Structure of {(Au(0))_n–PAMAM} and {(Ag(0))_n–PAMAM} gold and silver dendrimer nanocomposites was found to be the function of the dendrimer structure and surface groups as well as the formation mechanism and the chemistry involved. Three different types of single nanocomposite architectures have been identified, such as internal (I), external (E) and mixed (M) type nanocomposites. Both the organic and inorganic phase could form nanosized pseudo-continuous phases while the other components are dispersed at the molecular or atomic level either in the interior or on the surface of the template/container. Single units of these nanocomposites may be used as building blocks in the synthesis of nanostructured materials.     

银和去合金银-金纳米粒子的SERS活性研究

用乙二醇还原硝酸银,聚乙烯吡咯烷酮作表面活性剂合成了大量的银纳米颗粒。银纳米颗粒和HAuCl4发生置换反应后形成去合金银-金纳米粒子。以吡啶和SCN-作为探针分子研究了它们的SERS活性。结果表明,当探针分子吸附于银纳米颗粒和去合金银-金纳米粒子上时,探针分子的特征振动峰强度增强、频率发生位移。SERS可表征纳米粒子物理和化学性质的变化。