Radiation synthesis of seroalbumin nanoparticles

Synthesis of small polymeric particles can be achieved by ionizing radiation technology via intramolecular crosslinking by gamma rays onto soluble polymer molecules in random coil conformation. Differently soluble globular proteins are naturally densely packed structures. Fragmentation and aggregation processes have been reported for irradiated globular proteins solutions with ionizing radiations.In this work we describe protein-based nanoparticles prepared by gamma irradiation of a soluble and globular protein, such as seroalbumin, as the basic building blocks keeping its original conformational shape. Protein nanoparticles in the range 20–40 nm were detected after gamma irradiation of the aqueous protein solution in the presence of polar organic solvents. Nanoparticles were characterized by DLS, fluorescence, and UV and CD spectroscopy, showing that the protein molecules keep their general three-dimensional structure into the created nanoparticle.