硅烷化修饰的固态纳米孔

作为一种重要的单分子检测技术,纳米孔的表面特性至关重要。作者利用聚焦离子束刻蚀方法制备得到了一系列形貌可控的氮化硅纳米孔,并对纳米孔进行了表面改性修饰。结果发现,经过化学处理的氮化硅表面具有大量的硅羟键,非常利于和硅烷发生反应,从而在纳米孔表面引入活性基团,如氨基、正辛基和巯基等。通过对修饰有不同硅烷的纳米孔的表面特性和电导特性的研究发现,当硅烷分子将氮化硅表面的硅羟键变为其它功能基团时,材料表面电荷会发生变化,亲、疏水性也发生变化,从而导致电渗流的改变,影响纳米孔的电导。同时,修饰硅烷分子后,材料表面的电荷特性发生了改变,也会导致纳米孔器件的膜电容减小,介电噪声降低。     

聚乙二醇介导鹅掌楸悬浮细胞与CdSe／ZnS量子点纳米颗粒共孵育的互作特征

利用纳米材料介导的药物靶向治疗和动物细胞转基因等相关研究,日益受到人们的关注．但植物因存在细胞壁的障碍,无论原位还是离体细胞培养条件下,利用纳米技术进行基因转移均存在很大难度．因此设想,如通过纳米颗粒材料物理尺寸的改变和表面化学修饰,能改变纳米颗粒与植物细胞壁界面上的生物物理或生物化学特征,从而有利于纳米颗粒材料穿越植物细胞壁进入植物细胞,将对推动纳米技术在植物转基因领域中的应用产生重要意义．根据以上设想,研究了不同的共孵育时间和温度等条件下,杂交鹅掌楸的胚性悬浮细胞与经不同表面化学修饰的CdSe／ZnS纳米颗粒之间相互作用过程的细胞生物学特征,以及CdSe／ZnS量子点的细胞毒性．结果表明,在共孵育后3h以内,激光共聚焦显微镜和电子扫描显微镜下,均可观察到经表面后修饰带正电荷的CdSe／ZnS纳米颗粒．同时,胞吞进入细胞内部的表面携带正电荷的CdSe／ZnS纳米颗粒的量明显与共培养时间、温度有明显的依赖关系,表明它们可以通过细胞的液相胞吞作用进入杂交鹅掌楸细胞内,且不影响细胞的活性;而表面带负电荷的CdSe／ZnS纳米颗粒则主要聚集在细胞外壁附近．在培养溶液中添加20％（质量比）聚乙二醇,可进一步提高鹅掌楸细胞胞吞CdSe／ZnS纳米颗粒的量和减轻CdSe／ZnS纳米颗粒的细胞毒性．本研究表明,以表面携带正电荷的CdSe／ZnS量子点纳米材料作为基因载体,在植物悬浮细胞的转基因研究和应用中具有广泛的前景．     

材料表面特征对生物膜形成的影响及其应用

生物膜是微生物细胞粘附于材料表面的群体性生长方式。在实践应用中,有目的地调控微生物在材料表面的成膜进程具有重要意义。本文概述了生物膜在材料表面的形成机制及其影响因素,综述了材料表面的电荷特征、亲疏水性、形貌模式和功能性化学修饰等物化特性对细胞粘附和生物膜形成的影响,并介绍了目前在不同实际应用场景中抑制成膜和促进成膜材料的研发现状。     

RGD/FA双靶纳米金棒的制备及其在肿瘤细胞协同靶向成像与光热治疗中的应用

目的:通过制备RGD/FA双靶纳米金考察其与高表达整合素与叶酸受体B16细胞的协同靶向成像与热疗作用;方法:采用功能化PEG分子将靶向小分子RGD与叶酸通过强健Au-S键连接至纳米金棒表面,利用激光共聚焦与808 nm近红外激光器评价修饰纳米金的协同靶向作用;结果:RGD与叶酸分子被成功连接于纳米金表面,且双靶纳米金对小鼠黑色素瘤细胞具有较好的协同靶向作用;结论:同时靶向同一肿瘤细胞的不同表位,可克服单一靶向功能化纳米粒子难以在肿瘤位点有效积累的问题,本研究为多功能纳米金棒在临床肿瘤早期诊断与光热治疗中的应用提供研究基础。     

5-ALA表面修饰TiO2诱导的光动力疗法体外灭活HL60细胞实验研究

利用表面修饰的方法制备了5-ALA表面修饰的TiO2（5-ALA／TiO2）,并利用傅里叶红外光谱,拉曼光谱以及紫外-可见光吸收光谱（uV—Vis）对样品进行了表征。利用CellCountingKit-8（CCK-8）法检测研究5-ALA／TiO2对HL60细胞的灭活效应。结果显示,5-ALA／TiO2能够显著地抑制HL60细胞的生长,5-ALA／TiO2对HL60细胞的灭活效率要明显高于5-ALA以及TiO2,实验中5-ALA／TiO2的灭活效率达到77．9％,相衬显微镜细胞形态学无损观察表明,细胞凋亡开始于细胞膜的破裂。同时,激光显微拉曼光谱检测显示,TiO2纳米粒子能够进入细胞内部,与细胞发生相互作用。     

人脐血CD133细胞的分离及其体外扩增的研究

目的:探讨免疫磁性纳米粒子分离人脐血CD133细胞的方法,了解分离出的CD133细胞在体外短期培养中的变化及其在体外扩增的可能性。方法:通过化学沉淀法制备具有超顺磁性的r-Fe_2O_3纳米粒子,在其表面包裹具有生物亲合性的二氧化硅,并在其表面通过化学修饰使其成为生物功能化的磁性纳米粒子。再通过一定的化学连接方法将单克隆抗体CD133连接到生物功能化的磁性纳米粒子表面使其成为免疫磁性纳米粒子,然后利用自制的免疫磁性纳米粒子从单个核细胞中分离出CD133细胞,并分别对单个核细胞和CD133细胞在体外短期培养中的动态变化进行了初步观察和比较。结果:经免疫磁性纳米粒子分离的脐血中CD133细胞平均数为(5±1．4)×10~7/ml,占单个核细胞数的(3±0．3)%;单个核细胞(对照组)和CD133细胞(实验组)分别进行红、粒系集落扩增培养14天、21天,实验组中两种造血祖细胞集落扩增倍数都明显高于对照组(P＜0．01)。结论:使用自制的免疫磁性纳米粒子能较好的分离脐血中的CD133细胞,分离与纯化出来的CD133细胞不仅细胞活力不受影响,而且与单个核细胞相比具有更强的增殖能力。     

间隔子修饰引物对扩增产物电泳行为的作用初探

目的:初步研究利用C3Spacer间隔子修饰引物对扩增产物电泳行为的影响及作用。方法:选取1个常用短串联重复序列(STR)位点,利用间隔子修饰该位点荧光标记引物,以DNA标准物质为模板进行PCR扩增,记录相应扩增产物DNA片段长度,进行修饰与长度变化的相关性分析。结果:选取STR位点D13S317,分别利用TTTTC3SpacerC3Spacer、TTTTC3Spacer、TTTT修饰R0X标记引物,相应扩增产物长度为182.67±0.05、182.19±0.11和181.6±0.19bp,未进行修饰的对照组引物扩增产物长度为177.09±0.15 bp,产物DNA片段长度随不同修饰基团的修饰发生规律性变化。结论:发现了一种修饰基团,用该基团修饰引物后,可在体外通过PCR反应改变扩增产物等位基因片段的大小,从而在不改变特异性引物信息的前提下使产物发生规律性位移,修饰基团与DNA片段大小呈内在相关性。     

真菌疏水蛋白HGFI自组装分子机制和材料表面修饰功能的研究

真菌疏水蛋白是高等丝状真菌在特定生理时期分泌的一类小分子量、两亲性蛋白质,其可以在两相界面处通过自我装配形成纳米级蛋白膜,改变介质表面的亲水性和疏水性.疏水蛋白独特的自组装性质使其在不同的领域均具有应用潜力,如材料表面修饰、乳化、蛋白纯化、药物传送和生物传感器制作等.本文主要介绍了真菌疏水蛋白的国内外研究进展,并针对本课题组发现的灰树花真菌疏水蛋白,介绍其自组装分子机制、在材料表面修饰以及药物缓/控释等方面的应用研究.     

纳米级Fe3O4磁性粒子与人肝癌细胞HepG-2及人正常肝细胞L02作用的生物学行为的实验研究

目的:对纳米级Fe3O4磁性粒子与人肝癌细胞HepG-2及人正常肝细胞L02作用的生物学行为进行实验研究。方法:通过化学沉淀法制备粒径为10nm左右的纳米级Fe3O4磁性粒子,观察其表征;将不同浓度纳米级Fe3O4粒子加入培养液分别与HepG-2混合培养检测凋亡坏死率;将相同浓度粒子分别与HepG-2和L02混合培养,对两者作用的差异进行动态观察比较。结果:纳米级Fe3O4磁性粒子能在肝癌细胞HepG-2细胞内稳定存在72小时以上,有良好的生物相容性;透射电镜观察到Fe3O4磁性粒子主要分布于细胞的溶酶体及吞噬泡内。共培养1小时后即有较多的纳米磁性粒子进入HepG-2内,而3小时后才见L02细胞内有少量的磁性粒子进入。结论:此实验结果为磁性纳米粒子与肿瘤细胞微观结构的作用提供了有意义的实验数据,并可能对应用磁性纳米粒子治疗恶性肿瘤提供有价值的依据。     

RGD修饰包载超顺磁性氧化铁纳米粒用于脑胶质瘤的靶向研究

目的：采用PLGA-PEG为聚合材料,制备RGD修饰包载超顺磁性四氧化三铁纳米粒子（RGD-NP—Fe3O4）,用于脑胶质瘤细胞靶向核磁共振成像纳米探针。方法：采用沉淀法制备RGD修饰的栽超顺磁性纳米粒,考察纳米粒的粒径,电位等理化指标以及细胞毒性。通过细胞以及肿瘤球摄取实验,考察RGD．NP—Fe304的脑胶质瘤细胞靶向性。结果：制备得到的RGD-NP-Fe3O4粒径在85±7．5nm,电位为18＋1．15mV。纳米粒浓度在300μg/mL范围内,对脑胶质瘤细胞均无显著毒性。经过RGD修饰后脑胶质瘤细胞U87对纳米粒的摄取效率大大提高,纳米粒穿透肿瘤球能力显著增强。结论：RGD修饰包载超顺磁性氧化铁纳米粒是一种潜在的高效的脑胶质瘤细胞靶向诊断纳米探针和靶向给药系统。     

Nanoparticle-triggered release from lipid membrane vesicles

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles are used in a rapidly expanding number of research and practical applications in biotechnology and biomedicine. We highlight how recent developments in iron oxide nanoparticle design and understanding of nanoparticle membrane interactions have led to applications in magnetically triggered, liposome delivery vehicles with controlled structure. Nanoscale vesicles actuated by incorporated nanoparticles allow for controlling location and timing of compound release, which enables e.g. use of more potent drugs in drug delivery as the interaction with the right target is ensured. This review emphasizes recent results on the connection between nanoparticle design, vesicle assembly and the stability and release properties of the vesicles. While focused on lipid vesicles magnetically actuated through iron oxide nanoparticles, these insights are of general interest for the design of capsule and cell delivery systems for biotechnology controlled by nanoparticles.     

Detection of Fluorescent Nanoparticle Interactions with Primary Immune Cell Subpopulations by Flow Cytometry

Engineered nanoparticles are endowed with very promising properties for therapeutic and diagnostic purposes. This work describes a fast and reliable method of analysis by flow cytometry to study nanoparticle interaction with immune cells. Primary immune cells can be easily purified from human or mouse tissues by antibody-mediated magnetic isolation. In the first instance, the different cell populations running in a flow cytometer can be distinguished by the forward-scattered light (FSC), which is proportional to cell size, and the side-scattered light (SSC), related to cell internal complexity. Furthermore, fluorescently labeled antibodies against specific cell surface receptors permit the identification of several subpopulations within the same sample. Often, all these features vary when cells are boosted by external stimuli that change their physiological and morphological state. Here, 50 nm FITC-SiO₂ nanoparticles are used as a model to identify the internalization of nanostructured materials in human blood immune cells. The cell fluorescence and side-scattered light increase after incubation with nanoparticles allowed us to define time and concentration dependence of nanoparticle-cell interaction. Moreover, such protocol can be extended to investigate Rhodamine-SiO₂ nanoparticle interaction with primary microglia, the central nervous system resident immune cells, isolated from mutant mice that specifically express the Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) in the monocyte/macrophage lineage. Finally, flow cytometry data related to nanoparticle internalization into the cells have been confirmed by confocal microscopy.     

Quantifying uncertainties in the microvascular transport of nanoparticles

The character of nanoparticle dispersion in the microvasculature is a driving factor in nanoparticle-based therapeutics and bio-sensing. It is difficult, with current experimental and engineering capability, to understand dispersion of nanoparticles because their vascular system is more complex than mouse models and because nanoparticle dispersion is so sensitive to in vivo environments. Furthermore, uncertainty cannot be ignored due to the high variation of location-specific vessel characteristics as well as variation across patients. In this paper, a computational method that considers uncertainty is developed to predict nanoparticle dispersion and transport characteristics in the microvasculature with a three step process. First, a computer simulation method is developed to predict blood flow and the dispersion of nanoparticles in the microvessels. Second, experiments for nanoparticle dispersion coefficients are combined with results from the computer model to suggest the true values of its unknown and unmeasurable parameters—red blood cell deformability and red blood cell interaction—using the Bayesian statistical framework. Third, quantitative predictions for nanoparticle transport in the tumor microvasculature are made that consider uncertainty in the vessel diameter, flow velocity, and hematocrit. Our results show that nanoparticle transport is highly sensitive to the microvasculature.     

Dissociation coefficients of protein adsorption to nanoparticles as quantitative metrics for description of the protein corona: A comparison of experimental techniques and methodological relevance

Protein adsorption to nanoparticles is described as a chemical reaction in which proteins attach to binding sites on the nanoparticle surface. This process is defined by a dissociation coefficient, which tells how many proteins are adsorbed per nanoparticle in dependence of the protein concentration. Different techniques to experimentally determine dissociation coefficients of protein adsorption to nanoparticles are reviewed. Results of more than 130 experiments in which dissociation coefficients have been determined are compared. Data show that different methods, nanoparticle systems, and proteins can lead to significantly different dissociation coefficients. However, we observed a clear tendency of smaller dissociation coefficients upon less negative towards more positive zeta potentials of the nanoparticles. The zeta potential thus is a key parameter influencing protein adsorption to the surface of nanoparticles. Our analysis highlights the importance of the characterization of the parameters governing protein–nanoparticle interaction for quantitative evaluation and objective literature comparison.     

The interplay of lung surfactant proteins and lipids assimilates the macrophage clearance of nanoparticles

The peripheral lungs are a potential entrance portal for nanoparticles into the human body due to their large surface area. The fact that nanoparticles can be deposited in the alveolar region of the lungs is of interest for pulmonary drug delivery strategies and is of equal importance for toxicological considerations. Therefore, a detailed understanding of nanoparticle interaction with the structures of this largest and most sensitive part of the lungs is important for both nanomedicine and nanotoxicology. Astonishingly, there is still little known about the bio-nano interactions that occur after nanoparticle deposition in the alveoli. In this study, we compared the effects of surfactant-associated protein A (SP-A) and D (SP-D) on the clearance of magnetite nanoparticles (mNP) with either more hydrophilic (starch) or hydrophobic (phosphatidylcholine) surface modification by an alveolar macrophage (AM) cell line (MH-S) using flow cytometry and confocal microscopy. Both proteins enhanced the AM uptake of mNP compared with pristine nanoparticles; for the hydrophilic ST-mNP, this effect was strongest with SP-D, whereas for the hydrophobic PL-mNP it was most pronounced with SP-A. Using gel electrophoretic and dynamic light scattering methods, we were able to demonstrate that the observed cellular effects were related to protein adsorption and to protein-mediated interference with the colloidal stability. Next, we investigated the influence of various surfactant lipids on nanoparticle uptake by AM because lipids are the major surfactant component. Synthetic surfactant lipid and isolated native surfactant preparations significantly modulated the effects exerted by SP-A and SP-D, respectively, resulting in comparable levels of macrophage interaction for both hydrophilic and hydrophobic nanoparticles. Our findings suggest that because of the interplay of both surfactant lipids and proteins, the AM clearance of nanoparticles is essentially the same, regardless of different intrinsic surface properties.     

Adhesion of nanoparticles to vesicles: a Brownian dynamics simulation

We studied the interaction of bilayer vesicles and adhesive nanoparticles using a Brownian dynamics simulation. The nanoparticles are simple models of proteins or colloids. The adhering nanoparticle induces the morphological change of the vesicle: budding, formation of two vesicles in which only outer monolayers are connected, and fission. We also show that the nanoparticle promotes the fusion process: fusion-pore opening from a stalk intermediate, a neck-like structure that only connects outer monolayers of two vesicles. The nanoparticle bends the stalk, and induces the pore opening.     

Induction of inflammasome-dependent pyroptosis by carbon black nanoparticles

Inhalation of nanoparticles has been implicated in respiratory morbidity and mortality. In particular, carbon black nanoparticles are found in many different environmental exposures. Macrophages take up inhaled nanoparticles and respond via release of inflammatory mediators and in some cases cell death. Based on new data, we propose that exposure of macrophages (both a macrophage cell line and primary human alveolar macrophages) to carbon black nanoparticles induces pyroptosis, an inflammasome-dependent form of cell death. Exposure of macrophages to carbon black nanoparticles resulted in inflammasome activation as defined by cleavage of caspase 1 to its active form and downstream IL-1β release. The cell death that occurred with carbon black nanoparticle exposure was identified as pyroptosis by the protective effect of a caspase 1 inhibitor and a pyroptosis inhibitor. These data demonstrate that carbon black nanoparticle exposure activates caspase 1, increases IL-1β release after LPS priming, and induces the proinflammatory cell death, pyroptosis. The identification of pyroptosis as a cellular response to carbon nanoparticle exposure is novel and relates to environmental and health impacts of carbon-based particulates.     

Oligonucleotide-coated metallic nanoparticles as a flexible platform for molecular imaging agents

Targeted metallic nanoparticles have shown promise as contrast agents for molecular imaging. To obtain molecular specificity, the nanoparticle surface must be appropriately functionalized with probe molecules that will bind to biomarkers of interest. The aim of this study was to develop and characterize a flexible approach to generate molecular imaging agents based on gold nanoparticles conjugated to a diverse range of probe molecules. We present two complementary oligonucleotide-based approaches to develop gold nanoparticle contrast agents which can be functionalized with a variety of biomolecules ranging from small molecules, to peptides, to antibodies. The size, biocompatibility, and protein concentration per nanoparticle are characterized for the two oligonucleotide-based approaches; the results are compared to contrast agents prepared using adsorption of proteins on gold nanoparticles by electrostatic interaction. Contrast agents prepared from oligonucleotide-functionalized nanoparticles are significantly smaller in size and more stable than contrast agents prepared by adsorption of proteins on gold nanoparticles. We demonstrate the flexibility of the oligonucleotide-based approach by preparing contrast agents conjugated to folate, EGF peptide, and anti-EGFR antibodies. Reflectance images of cancer cell lines labeled with functionalized contrast agents show significantly increased image contrast which is specific for the target biomarker. To demonstrate the modularity of this new bioconjugation approach, we use it to conjugate both fluorophore and anti-EGFR antibodies to metal nanoparticles, yielding a contrast agent which can be probed with multiple imaging modalities. This novel bioconjugation approach can be used to prepare contrast agents targeted with biomolecules that span a diverse range of sizes; at the same time, the bioconjugation method can be adapted to develop multimodal contrast agents for molecular imaging without changing the coating design or material.     

A comparative ecotoxicity analysis of α- and γ-phase aluminium oxide nanoparticles towards a freshwater bacterial isolate Bacillus licheniformis

Crystalline structure of nanoparticles may influence their physicochemical behaviour as well as their toxicological impact on biota. The differences in orientation of the atoms result in the variations in chemical stability. Thus, toxicological impacts of different crystalline phases of aluminium oxide nanoparticles are expected to vary. The present study brings out a comparative toxicity analysis of γ-phase and α-phase aluminium oxide nanoparticles of comparable hydrodynamic size range towards a freshwater bacterial isolate Bacillus licheniformis at low exposure concentrations (5, 1, 0.5 and 0.05 µg/mL). Upon 2-h exposure, the α-aluminium oxide particles showed lower toxicity than the γ-phase aluminium oxide. The lower level of oxidative stress generation and cell membrane damage in case of the α-phase aluminium oxide nanoparticles substantiated the toxicity results. The involvement of protein, lipopolysaccharides in nanoparticle–cell surface interaction, was noted in both the cases. To conclude, the crystallinity of aluminium oxide nanoparticles played an important role in the interaction and the toxicity response.     

Magnetic force microscopy of iron oxide nanoparticles and their cellular uptake

Magnetic force microscopy has the capability to detect magnetic domains from a close distance, which can provide the magnetic force gradient image of the scanned samples and also simultaneously obtain atomic force microscope (AFM) topography image as well as AFM phase image. In this work, we demonstrate the use of magnetic force microscopy together with AFM topography and phase imaging for the characterization of magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles and their cellular uptake behavior with the MCF7 carcinoma breast epithelial cells. This method can provide useful information such as the magnetic responses of nanoparticles, nanoparticle spatial localization, cell morphology, and cell surface domains at the same time for better understanding magnetic nanoparticle‐cell interaction. It would help to design magnetic‐related new imaging, diagnostic and therapeutic methods. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 2009