Journal of Nanobiotechnology

Journal: Journal of Nanobiotechnology

Abbreviation

J Nanobiotechnology

Publisher

BioMed Central

ISSN

1477-3155

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Publications 1 - 10 of 15

Interaction of silver nanoparticles with algae and fish cells: a side by side comparison
Yue, Yang; Li, Xiaomei; Sigg, Laura; et al. (2017)
Journal of Nanobiotechnology
Background Silver nanoparticles (AgNP) are widely applied and can, upon use, be released into the aquatic environment. This raises concerns about potential impacts of AgNP on aquatic organisms. We here present a side by side comparison of the interaction of AgNP with two contrasting cell types: algal cells, using the algae Euglena gracilis as model, and fish cells, a cell line originating from rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) gill (RTgill-W1). The comparison is based on the AgNP behavior in exposure media, toxicity, uptake and interaction with proteins. Results (1) The composition of exposure media affected AgNP behavior and toxicity to algae and fish cells. (2) The toxicity of AgNP to algae was mediated by dissolved silver while nanoparticle specific effects in addition to dissolved silver contributed to the toxicity of AgNP to fish cells. (3) AgNP did not enter into algal cells; they only adsorbed onto the cell surface. In contrast, AgNP were taken up by fish cells via endocytic pathways. (4) AgNP can bind to both extracellular and intracellular proteins and inhibit enzyme activity. Conclusion Our results showed that fish cells take up AgNP in contrast to algal cells, where AgNP sorbed onto the cell surface, which indicates that the cell wall of algae is a barrier to particle uptake. This particle behaviour results in different responses to AgNP exposure in algae and fish cells. Yet, proteins from both cell types can be affected by AgNP exposure: for algae, extracellular proteins secreted from cells for, e.g., nutrient acquisition. For fish cells, intracellular and/or membrane-bound proteins, such as the Na+/K+-ATPase, are susceptible to AgNP binding and functional impairment.
Critical review of the safety assessment of titanium dioxide additives in food
Winkler, Hans Christian; Notter, Tina; Meyer, Urs; et al. (2018)
Journal of Nanobiotechnology
Nanosensors and particles: a technology frontier with pitfalls
Vogel, Viola (2019)
Journal of Nanobiotechnology
As we are approaching 20 years after the US National Nanotechnology Initiative has been announced, whereby most of that funding was spend to engineer, characterize and bring nanoparticles and nanosensors to the market, it is timely to assess the progress made. Beyond revolutionizing nonmedical applications, including construction materials and the food industry, as well as in vitro medical diagnostics, the progress in bringing them into the clinic has been far slower than expected. Even though most of the advances in nanosensor and nanoparticle research and development have been paid for by disease-oriented funding agencies, much of the gained knowledge can now be applied to treat or learn more about our environment, including water, soil, microbes and plants. As the amount of engineered nanoparticles that enter our environment is currently exponentially increasing, much tighter attention needs to be paid to assessing their health risk. This is urgent as the asbestos story told us important lessons how financial interests arising from a rapid build up of a flourishing industry has blocked and is still preventing a worldwide ban on asbestos, nearly 100 years after the first health risks were reported.
Elasticity spectra as a tool to investigate actin cortex mechanics
Lüchtefeld, Ines; Bartolozzi, Alice; Mejía Morales, Julián; et al. (2020)
Journal of Nanobiotechnology
Background The mechanical properties of single living cells have proven to be a powerful marker of the cell physiological state. The use of nanoindentation-based single cell force spectroscopy provided a wealth of information on the elasticity of cells, which is still largely to be exploited. The simplest model to describe cell mechanics is to treat them as a homogeneous elastic material and describe it in terms of the Young’s modulus. Beside its simplicity, this approach proved to be extremely informative, allowing to assess the potential of this physical indicator towards high throughput phenotyping in diagnostic and prognostic applications. Results Here we propose an extension of this analysis to explicitly account for the properties of the actin cortex. We present a method, the Elasticity Spectra, to calculate the apparent stiffness of the cell as a function of the indentation depth and we suggest a simple phenomenological approach to measure the thickness and stiffness of the actin cortex, in addition to the standard Young’s modulus. Conclusions The Elasticity Spectra approach is tested and validated on a set of cells treated with cytoskeleton-affecting drugs, showing the potential to extend the current representation of cell mechanics, without introducing a detailed and complex description of the intracellular structure.
Magnetic separation-based blood purification: a promising new approach for the removal of disease-causing compounds?
Herrmann, Inge K.; Schlegel, Andrea; Graf, Rolf; et al. (2015)
Journal of Nanobiotechnology
Recent studies report promising results regarding extracorporeal magnetic separation-based blood purification for the rapid and selective removal of disease-causing compounds from whole blood. High molecular weight compounds, bacteria and cells can be eliminated from blood within minutes, hence offering novel treatment strategies for the management of intoxications and blood stream infections. However, risks associated with incomplete particle separation and the biological consequences of particles entering circulation remain largely unclear. This article discusses the promising future of magnetic separation-based purification while keeping important safety considerations in mind.
Probabilistic modelling of prospective environmental concentrations of gold nanoparticles from medical applications as a basis for risk assessment
Mahapatra, Indrani; Sun, Tian Yin; Clark, Julian R.A.; et al. (2015)
Journal of Nanobiotechnology
Background The use of gold nanoparticles (Au-NP) based medical applications is rising due to their unique physical and chemical properties. Diagnostic devices based on Au-NP are already available in the market or are in clinical trials and Au-NP based therapeutics and theranostics (combined diagnostic and treatment modality) are in the research and development phase. Currently, no information on Au-NP consumption, material flows to and concentrations in the environment are available. Therefore, we estimated prospective maximal consumption of Au-NP from medical applications in the UK and US. We then modelled the Au-NP flows post-use and predicted their environmental concentrations. Furthermore, we assessed the environment risks of Au-NP by comparing the predicted environmental concentrations (PECs) with ecological threshold (PNEC) values. Results The mean annual estimated consumption of Au-NP from medical applications is 540 kg for the UK and 2700 kg for the US. Among the modelled concentrations of Au-NP in environmental compartments, the mean annual PEC of Au-NP in sludge for both the UK and US was estimated at 124 and 145 μg kg−1, respectively. The mean PEC in surface water was estimated at 468 and 4.7 pg L−1, respectively for the UK and US. The NOEC value for the water compartment ranged from 0.12 up to 26,800 μg L−1, with most values in the range of 1000 μg L−1. Conclusion The results using the current set of data indicate that the environmental risk from Au-NP used in nanomedicine in surface waters and from agricultural use of biosolids is minimal in the near future, especially because we have used a worst-case use assessment. More Au-NP toxicity studies are needed for the soil compartment.
The biodistribution of self-assembling protein nanoparticles shows they are promising vaccine platforms
Yang, Yongkun; Neef, Tobias; Mittelholzer, Christian; et al. (2013)
Journal of Nanobiotechnology
Background Because of the need to limit side-effects, nanoparticles are increasingly being studied as drug-carrying and targeting tools. We have previously reported on a scheme to produce protein-based self-assembling nanoparticles that can act as antigen display platforms. Here we attempted to use the same system for cancer-targeting, making use of a C-terminal bombesin peptide that has high affinity for a receptor known to be overexpressed in certain tumors, as well as an N-terminal polyhistidine tag that can be used for radiolabeling with technetium tricarbonyl. Results In order to increase circulation time, we experimented with PEGylated and unPEGylated varities typo particle. We also tested the effect of incorporating different numbers of bombesins per nanoparticle. Biophysical characterization determined that all configurations assemble into regular particles with relatively monodisperse size distributions, having peaks of about 33 – 36 nm. The carbonyl method used for labeling produced approximately 80% labeled nanoparticles. In vitro, the nanoparticles showed high binding, both specific and non-specific, to PC-3 prostate cancer cells. In vivo, high uptake was observed for all nanoparticle types in the spleens of CD-1 nu/nu mice, decreasing significantly over the course of 24 hours. High uptake was also observed in the liver, while only low uptake was seen in both the pancreas and a tumor xenograft. Conclusions The data suggest that the nanoparticles are non-specifically taken up by the reticuloendothelial system. Low uptake in the pancreas and tumor indicate that there is little or no specific targeting. PEGylation or increasing the amount of bombesins per nanoparticle did not significantly improve targeting. In particular, the uptake in the spleen, which is a primary organ of the immune system, highlights the potential of the nanoparticles as vaccine carriers. Also, the decrease in liver and spleen radioactivity with time implies that the nanoparticles are broken down and cleared. This is an important finding, as it shows that the nanoparticles can be safely used as a vaccine platform without the risk of prolonged side effects. Furthermore, it demonstrates that technetium carbonyl radiolabeling of our protein-based nanoparticles can be used to evaluate their pharmacokinetic properties in vivo.
Biochemical functionality of magnetic particles as nanosensors: how far away are we to implement them into clinical practice?
Doswald, Simon; Stark, Wendelin J.; Beck-Schimmer, Beatrice (2019)
Journal of Nanobiotechnology
Magnetic nanosensors have become attractive instruments for the diagnosis and treatment of different diseases. They represent an efficient carrier system in drug delivery or in transporting contrast agents. For such purposes, magnetic nanosensors are used in vivo (intracorporeal application). To remove specific compounds from blood, magnetic nanosensors act as elimination system, which represents an extracorporeal approach. This review discusses principles, advantages and risks on recent advances in the field of magnetic nanosensors. First, synthesis methods for magnetic nanosensors and possibilities for enhancement of biocompatibility with different coating materials are addressed. Then, attention is devoted to clinical applications, in which nanosensors are or may be used as carrier- and elimination systems in the near future. Finally, risk considerations and possible effects of nanomaterials are discussed when working towards clinical applications with magnetic nanosensors.
Alternative moth-eye nanostructures: antireflective properties and composition of dimpled corneal nanocoatings in silk-moth ancestors
Kryuchkov, Mikhail; Lehmann, Jannis; Schaab, Jakob; et al. (2017)
Journal of Nanobiotechnology
Moth-eye nanostructures are a well-known example of biological antireflective surfaces formed by pseudoregular arrays of nipples and are often used as a template for biomimetic materials. Here, we provide morphological characterization of corneal nanostructures of moths from the Bombycidae family, including strains of domesticated Bombyx mori silk-moth, its wild ancestor Bombyx mandarina, and a more distantly related Apatelodes torrefacta. We find high diversification of the nanostructures and strong antireflective properties they provide. Curiously, the nano-dimple pattern of B. mandarina is found to reduce reflectance as efficiently as the nanopillars of A. torrefacta. Access to genome sequence of Bombyx further permitted us to pinpoint corneal proteins, likely contributing to formation of the antireflective nanocoatings. These findings open the door to bioengineering of nanostructures with novel properties, as well as invite industry to expand traditional moth-eye nanocoatings with the alternative ones described here.
Antireflective nanocoatings for UV-sensation: the case of predatory owlfly insects
Kryuchkov, Mikhail; Lehmann, Jannis; Schaab, Jakob; et al. (2017)
Journal of Nanobiotechnology
Moth-eye nanostructures, discovered to coat corneae of certain nocturnal insects, have inspired numerous technological applications to reduce light reflectance from solar cells, light-emitting diodes, and optical detectors. Technological developments require such nanocoatings to possess broadband antireflective properties, transcending the visual light spectrum, in which animals typically operate. Here we describe the corneal nanostructures of the visual organ exclusive in UV sensation of the hunting insect Libelloides macaronius and report their supreme anti-light-reflectance capacity.

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