Identification of physicochemical properties that modulate nanoparticle aggregation in blood

• Ludovica Soddu,
• Duong N. Trinh,
• Eimear Dunne,
• Dermot Kenny,
• Giorgia Bernardini,
• Ida Kokalari,
• Arianna Marucco,
• Marco P. Monopoli and
• Ivana Fenoglio

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 550–567, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.44

• purpose of investigating the role of surface curvature and chemistry on platelet aggregation, activation and adhesion. Substantial differences were found in the composition of the protein corona depending on the chemical nature of the nanoparticles, while the surface curvature was found to play a minor

• platelet deposition in post-capillary venules in the liver and heart, suggesting the role of this protein in nanoparticle-mediated platelet aggregation [14][15]. Silica nanoparticles (SNPs) of different sizes were found to activate glycoprotein IIb/IIIa and to induce the expression of P-selectin in

• chemistry of the particles. Strong repulsive electrostatic charges and steric hindrance may stabilize the NPs and prevent agglomeration. In the bloodstream, agglomeration is related to the formation of a biocorona that modifies the electrostatic and steric repulsion among particles [22]. Finally, protein

Luminescent gold nanoclusters for bioimaging applications

• Nonappa

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 533–546, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.42

• complexes primarily rely on chelation of metal ions with carboxylic groups, therefore the diversity of ligand design is limited. The discovery of green fluorescent protein (GFP) led to remarkable progress in bioimaging including protein quantification, tracking, sensing as well as imaging various

• noncovalent interaction between streptavidin and biotin was exploited. To achieve the immunoassay, an antibody–antigen–antibody sandwich approach was utilized (Figure 3). The substrates were first coated with capture antibodies that will interact strongly with HIV-1 p24 antigen, a target viral protein

• [100]. Li et al. reported nanoparticle assemblies of pea protein isolate (PPI)-capped AuNCs with red fluorescence for in vitro and in vivo imaging. The nanoparticles were coated with red blood cell membranes to improve their blood circulation and enhance their enrichment in tumors [101]. Lai et al

Multilayer capsules made of weak polyelectrolytes: a review on the preparation, functionalization and applications in drug delivery

• Varsha Sharma and
• Anandhakumar Sundaramurthy

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 508–532, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.41

• drug release time could be extended by increasing the crystal size and thickness of the multilayer films. Alternatively, the protein aggregates or DNA could also be used as templates to encapsulate them in PLL-succinylated PLL layers for model viral assembly or gene transfer [66]. Another way of

• porous nature. They can encapsulate both hydrophilic as well as hydrophobic compounds. The encapsulation of proteins in such porous structures can be done by either adsorbing model protein into core particles before PE multilayer deposition [77] or co-precipitation of protein molecules during the

• , the poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-based post-functionalization of pH-responsive click capsules of biodegradable PLL and poly(ʟ-glutamic acid) (PGA) rendered their low fouling capability against specific protein binding [94]. Hydrogen bonded films and hollow capsules of alkyne-modified PVP and PMA were

Preparation and in vivo evaluation of glyco-gold nanoparticles carrying synthetic mycobacterial hexaarabinofuranoside

• Gennady L. Burygin,
• Polina I. Abronina,
• Nikita M. Podvalnyy,
• Sergey A. Staroverov,
• Leonid O. Kononov and
• Lev A. Dykman

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 480–493, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.39

• glycan 2 containing the Ara6 epitope increased the sensitivity of serodiagnosis by 10–15% as compared to the use of unmodified proteins. Here, instead of using protein carriers, conjugation of glycans with GNPs, which is experimentally much easier, was carried out. The obtained Ara6-GNPs 3 and 4 could

• of glyco-GNPs bearing the hexasaccharide epitope of LAM/AG for the activation of a specific immune response against carbohydrate antigens in laboratory animals (rabbits). The results are helpful in the development of synthetic protein- and peptide-free glycoconjugate vaccines based on glyco-GNPs. It

Nanoarchitectonics: bottom-up creation of functional materials and systems

• Katsuhiko Ariga

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 450–452, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.36

• ] gives insight into this interesting field of research which has great potential. The nanoarchitectonics concept has been applied for various bio-related applications, for example, in the small-protein-induced cellular uptake of complex nanohybrids [30], the controlled drug release from layered double

Brome mosaic virus-like particles as siRNA nanocarriers for biomedical purposes

• Alfredo Nuñez-Rivera,
• Pierrick G. J. Fournier,
• Danna L. Arellano,
• Ana G. Rodriguez-Hernandez,
• Rafael Vazquez-Duhalt and
• Ruben D. Cadena-Nava

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 372–382, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.28

• ) without packaging signal. The gene silencing was demonstrated by VLPs loaded with siGFP and tested on breast tumor cells that constitutively express the green fluorescent protein (GPF). After VLP-siGFP treatment, GFP expression was efficiently inhibited corroborating the cargo release inside tumor cells

• ][19][20]. The capsids of these viruses result from the assembly of 180 identical proteins with T = 3 symmetry that forms the icosahedral shell with a diameter of 28 nm [21]. The N-terminal region of the capsid protein is highly basic and positively charged, which allows for the binding of the viral

• RNA genome [22]. Also, the casid protein able to encapsidate anionic molecules, such as heterologous RNAs [23], enzymes [24], drugs [25], or gold nanoparticles [26] by charge complementarity with the possibility of directing them to target cells through the functionalization of the external surface of

Poly(1-vinylimidazole) polyplexes as novel therapeutic gene carriers for lung cancer therapy

• Gayathri Kandasamy,
• Elena N. Danilovtseva,
• Vadim V. Annenkov and
• Uma Maheswari Krishnan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 354–369, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.26

• and the enzyme glucose oxidase for glucose-sensing applications [11]. A hydrogel of xanthan gum and poly(1-vinylimidazole) was recently explored for protein encapsulation and delivery. The system exerted no toxic effects on cells and maintained the functionality of the protein [12]. A pyrrole

• quantified using SYBR green (BioRad, USA). The relative gene expression was calculated using the ΔΔCt method. β-actin was used as the house-keeping gene. The sequences of the primers used in the study are given in Table 1. Western blot analysis: Total protein was isolated from the A549 cells using cell lysis

• buffer (1× RIPA buffer, PMSF, 1% protease and protease inhibitors cocktail, Cell Signaling Technology, USA) and quantified using Lowry’s method. An aliquot of the cell lysate containing 50 µg protein was loaded in 12% sodium dodecyl sulfate–polyacrylamide gel. The membrane was blocked for 1 h with

Interactions at the cell membrane and pathways of internalization of nano-sized materials for nanomedicine

• Valentina Francia,
• Daphne Montizaan and
• Anna Salvati

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 338–353, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.25

• elasticity can be tailored in order to meet various needs [3][8]. This high engineering potential can be exploited to control the distribution and behaviour of nanomedicines in biological environments. By tuning nanomedicine design, parameters such as serum–protein interactions, sequestration by the immune

• to reduce protein adsorption and corona formation. This can be achieved for instance by grafting hydrophilic polymers such as polyethylene glycol (PEG) on the surface of nanomedicines, or by introducing zwitterionic modifications to make nanomaterials almost neutral [42][43][44][45]. These

• specific carriers) [72][73], membrane bending, which occurs through different mechanisms, including the insertion of hydrophobic protein motifs in the membrane, local recruitment of membrane-bending domains, or scaffolding by proteins (the classic example being clathrin) [72][73][77][78], and scission of

Understanding nanoparticle flow with a new in vitro experimental and computational approach using hydrogel channels

• Armel Boutchuen,
• Dell Zimmerman,
• Abdollah Arabshahi,
• John Melnyczuk and
• Soubantika Palchoudhury

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 296–309, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.22

• NPs can essentially transport a large drug payload past the complex physiological microenvironment inside the human body to the target site. In cases of injection of the NPs to the blood stream, the particles must first flow through vascular regimes with high plasma protein concentrations, followed by

Facile biogenic fabrication of hydroxyapatite nanorods using cuttlefish bone and their bactericidal and biocompatibility study

• Satheeshkumar Balu,
• Manisha Vidyavathy Sundaradoss,
• Swetha Andra and
• Jaison Jeevanandam

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 285–295, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.21

• after annealing which may be due to the removal of organic products such as collagen and protein. Chemicals and reagents Marine waste cuttlefish bones were collected as a source of calcium from Kasimedu fish market, which is located in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. All chemicals used for this study were

Using gold nanoparticles to detect single-nucleotide polymorphisms: toward liquid biopsy

• María Sanromán Iglesias and
• Marek Grzelczak

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 263–284, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.20

• classified: Single-point mutations or single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP). A base substitution at one nucleotide that may result in a change of the amino acid sequence of the encoded protein or premature truncation of the protein (Figure 2). Copy-number alteration. Duplications, insertions or deletions of

• one or a few nucleotides leading to the addition or subtraction of amino acids in the protein. Exon or gene copy-number changes. Large duplications or deletions encompassing entire exons (protein-encoding regions in a gene) and affecting the functional domains of the protein. Structural modifications

• ), hence, possibly altering the function of the corresponding protein (Figure 2) [49][50]. Approximately, 50% of all SNPs occur in noncoding regions, 25% are silent mutations with no effect on gene function and phenotype, and the remaining 25% lead to mutations of the gene function [52][53]. These SNPs can

Rational design of block copolymer self-assemblies in photodynamic therapy

• Maxime Demazeau,
• Laure Gibot,
• Anne-Françoise Mingotaud,
• Patricia Vicendo,
• Clément Roux and
• Barbara Lonetti

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 180–212, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.15

• , the porphyrin photosensitizer was released and the size of the nanoobjects in solution increased (Figure 5d) [77]. For a combined photodynamic therapy/photothermal therapy (PDT/PTT) approach, indocyanine green (ICG) has been encapsulated in a protein, namely human serum albumin. First human serum

Nonclassical dynamic modeling of nano/microparticles during nanomanipulation processes

• Moharam Habibnejad Korayem,
• Ali Asghar Farid and
• Rouzbeh Nouhi Hefzabad

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 147–166, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.13

• of protein bonds and Young’s modulus of nanoparticles, Clifford and Seah determined the AFM cantilever normal spring constant [6]. Korayem and Zakeri studied the effects of different parameters on the times and forces in a 2D manipulation. Using their proposed algorithm, the location of the

• . They used the single-walled carbon nanotubes as a probe and performed a series of simulations for studying the effects of various conditions on the success of the nanomanipulation process. They also studied two different strategies for protein manipulation [23]. In another study, using molecular

Molecular architectonics of DNA for functional nanoarchitectures

• Debasis Ghosh,
• Lakshmi P. Datta and
• Thimmaiah Govindaraju

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 124–140, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.11

• , DNA origami is anticipated to have possible applications in the fields of biosciences, the design of protein scaffolds, and plasmonics [51][52][53]. Shih and co-workers utilized DNA origami nanotechnology for the structural determination of plasma membrane proteins [54]. They reported the construction

• construction of a DNA origami-based nanorobot for the cargo delivery of payloads into cancer cells [56]. The autonomous DNA nanorobot was constructed using a nucleolin-binding DNA aptamer and was loaded with thrombin protease. The nucleolin protein was overexpressed in tumor-associated endothelial cells, which

• ligated by DNA via direct amidation, and the covalent attachment allowed the insertion of an array of porphyrin segments along the nucleotide sequence. Recently, a transmembrane lipid bilayer nanopore comprised of folded DNA became the center of attraction by mimicking natural protein pores. Howorka and

Internalization mechanisms of cell-penetrating peptides

• Ivana Ruseska and
• Andreas Zimmer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 101–123, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.10

• cargo by chemical cross-linking or by cloning, followed by the expression of a CPP fusion protein. Such interactions have been seen in several CPPs such as TAT derivatives, penetratin or polyarginines [10]. It seems that covalent modification is most suitable for charge-neutral oligonucleotides such as

• inverted micelles was initially reported for penetratin as a mechanism involved at the early stages of cellular uptake [24]. Penetratin is a protein transduction domain derived from the homeoprotein Antennapeadia. It is one of the first peptides described that was able to successfully carry active

• of integral membrane protein pumps and channels. Macromolecules, however, require a different machinery in order to traverse the cellular membrane, which usually needs energy. Endocytosis is the active process in which macromolecules are carried into the cell in vesicles or vacuoles pinched-off of

The different ways to chitosan/hyaluronic acid nanoparticles: templated vs direct complexation. Influence of particle preparation on morphology, cell uptake and silencing efficiency

• Arianna Gennari,
• Julio M. Rios de la Rosa,
• Erwin Hohn,
• Maria Pelliccia,
• Enrique Lallana,
• Roberto Donno,
• Annalisa Tirella and
• Nicola Tirelli

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2594–2608, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.250

• protein adsorption on chitosan-containing nanoparticles [14] and a receptor-mediated mechanism of internalization [15]. A larger size of the anionic component corresponds to a higher avidity toward chitosan, thus polyelectrolyte complexes are more stable but also difficult to reverse; this irreversibility

• , cells were washed with PBS and incubated for 1 h at 37 °C in medium containing 5% (v/v) of MTS solution. Cell viability was measured by reading the absorbance values at 490 nm (Synergy2 Biotek plate reader using Gen5 software) and normalized against the total protein content in each well (BCA assay

• calibration curve from nanoparticle aqueous suspensions diluted in cell lysates (range 0.12–125 µg/mL). Measurements were obtained by using a Synergy2 Biotek plate reader (Ex 540/25, Em 620/40 nm), Gen5 software; top 50% optical position. Uptake results were normalized against the total protein content per

Long-term stability and scale-up of noncovalently bound gold nanoparticle-siRNA suspensions

• Anna V. Epanchintseva,
• Julia E. Poletaeva,
• Dmitrii V. Pyshnyi,
• Elena I. Ryabchikova and
• Inna A. Pyshnaya

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2568–2578, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.248

• silencing the protein synthesis to improve abnormal protein production caused by genomic disorders or diseases [6][7][8]. Different variants of AuNP-based nanoconstructions bearing siRNA have been published, and most of them were created by applying the layer-by-layer principle [9]. The core of these

• nucleic acids [18][19][20][21]. Then, we used AuNP-siRNA as a core for nanoconstruction by covering this with a lipid envelope and doping with an amphiphilic peptide. The construction was shown to penetrate cells that consistently expressed the green fluorescent protein (GFP) and effectively suppress the

• synthesis of the target protein. In this work, we have shown the possibility of a ten-fold scaling of synthesis of AuNP-siRNA and demonstrated of their stability in different buffer solutions. The suspensions of AuNP-siRNA could be stored for a long time without losing of their colloidal stability and siRNA

Bombesin receptor-targeted liposomes for enhanced delivery to lung cancer cells

• Mohammad J. Akbar,
• Pâmela C. Lukasewicz Ferreira,
• Melania Giorgetti,
• Leanne Stokes and
• Christopher J. Morris

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2553–2562, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.246

• ]. The GRP receptor, hereafter termed GRPR, is a G-protein-coupled receptor and member of the bombesin (BB) receptor family: BB1 receptor is activated by neuromedin B (NMB); BB2 (also called GRPR) is activated by GRP; the BB3 receptor shares only 50% homology with BB1 and BB2 and is an orphan receptor

• solutions are used in combination [13]. In preclinical studies, improved therapeutic responses have been achieved by adopting an active targeting approach. Typically, this involves the incorporation of a surface-bound moiety that selectively binds to a cognate receptor/protein on the tumour cell surface

• polydisperse proteins of different sizes [27]. Indeed, the surface properties of various nanoparticles have been shown to change dramatically in the presence of plasma or serum [28] with the establishment of an adsorbed protein corona around the nanoparticle. It is now widely accepted that the particle protein

Evaluation of click chemistry microarrays for immunosensing of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP)

• Seyed Mohammad Mahdi Dadfar,
• Sylwia Sekula-Neuner,
• Vanessa Trouillet,
• Hui-Yu Liu,
• Ravi Kumar,
• Annie K. Powell and
• Michael Hirtz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2505–2515, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.241

• -fetoprotein (AFP-L3) [10][12][13], des-gamma-carboxyprothrombin (DCP) [9][10][13], glypican-3 (GPC-3) [14][15], cytokeratin 19 (CK19) [15], golgi protein 73 (GP73) [16], microRNA (miRNA) [17][18], osteopontin (OPN) [11][19], annexin A2 [20] and midkine (MDK) [21]. According to the five-phase program adopted

• our setup. Negative control samples (no AFP present) yielded no fluorescence signal (Supporting Information File 1, Figure S2a). Furthermore, unspecific binding of non-target proteins is assumed to be low as revealed by a control experiment with fluorescently labeled streptavidin as model protein

• implementation of a sensitive fluorescent immunosensor for the detection of AFP, which is used as a common cancer-related model protein. We compared the AFP microarray sensors resulting from six different fabrication routes based on different functionalization methods (DBCO-, thiol- and epoxy-termination) and

Small protein sequences can induce cellular uptake of complex nanohybrids

• Jan-Philip Merkl,
• Malak Safi,
• Christian Schmidtke,
• Fadi Aldeek,
• Johannes Ostermann,
• Tatiana Domitrovic,
• Sebastian Gärtner,
• John E. Johnson,
• Horst Weller and
• Hedi Mattoussi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2477–2482, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.238

• various proteins, and among them the human transferrin protein was found to induce the highest intracellular uptake following 24 h incubation of these hybrids with cell cultures [5]. In the second, functional colloidal superstructures assembled using DNA linkers elicited a reduction in the response of

• membranes [18][19]. Here, we report on the use of a lytic gamma peptide (γ-peptide) derived from the Nudaurelia Capensis Omega virus (NωV), which was genetically fused onto maltose binding protein appended with 6-histidine tag, (His6-MBP-γ), to promote the intracellular delivery of hybrid QD-AuNP assemblies

• superposition between the QD and the Cy5 signal, scale bar 10 µm. Supporting Information Expression of the fusion protein His6-MBP-gamma, particle synthesize, hybrid assembly and characterization, DLS characterization and colloidal stability assessment, cellular incubation, amylose column, HeLa cellular

Atomic force acoustic microscopy reveals the influence of substrate stiffness and topography on cell behavior

• Yan Liu,
• Li Li,
• Xing Chen,
• Ying Wang,
• Meng-Nan Liu,
• Jin Yan,
• Liang Cao,
• Lu Wang and
• Zuo-Bin Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2329–2337, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.223

• treatments have been reported to support the cell spreading [36], the small changes observed here may be due to the littleness of the surface modifications. A recent study documents that protein coating or oxygen plasma treatment of substrate surfaces may influence the phenotypic equilibrium of cells [37

Design of a nanostructured mucoadhesive system containing curcumin for buccal application: from physicochemical to biological aspects

• Sabrina Barbosa de Souza Ferreira,
• Gustavo Braga,
• Évelin Lemos Oliveira,
• Jéssica Bassi da Silva,
• Hélen Cássia Rosseto,
• Lidiane Vizioli de Castro Hoshino,
• Mauro Luciano Baesso,
• Wilker Caetano,
• Craig Murdoch,
• Helen Elizabeth Colley and
• Marcos Luciano Bruschi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2304–2328, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.222

• drug has been evidenced and shown to act on a variety of molecular targets that regulate the proliferation and apoptosis, decrease the expression of NF-κB and increase insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 5 (IGFBP-5) and cytochrome P450, family 1, member A1 (CYP1A1) [32][33][34]. Moreover, CUR

Mannosylated brush copolymers based on poly(ethylene glycol) and poly(ε-caprolactone) as multivalent lectin-binding nanomaterials

• Stefania Ordanini,
• Wanda Celentano,
• Anna Bernardi and
• Francesco Cellesi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2192–2206, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.212

• : atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP); glycopolymer; lectin; poly(ethylene glycol); poly(ε-caprolactone); ring-opening polymerization (ROP); Introduction Carbohydrate–protein interactions are involved in many biological processes, including cell recognition and cell–cell adhesion. These

• interactions drive pathological events, such as cellular infections by viruses (e.g., HIV and Ebola [1][2]) and toxins (e.g., Shiga and Cholera toxins [3]). Carbohydrate–protein interactions in biological systems are mostly multivalent, which allows one to enhance their strength with respect to the weak single

• saccharide–protein connections. Carbohydrate-binding proteins are known as lectins. A way to interfere with pathological carbohydrate–protein interactions is the use of artificial ligands able to antagonize lectins, possibly with higher affinity than the natural ligands. Multivalent glycoconjugates have been

Use of data processing for rapid detection of the prostate-specific antigen biomarker using immunomagnetic sandwich-type sensors

• Camila A. Proença,
• Tayane A. Freitas,
• Thaísa A. Baldo,
• Elsa M. Materón,
• Flávio M. Shimizu,
• Gabriella R. Ferreira,
• Frederico L. F. Soares,
• Ronaldo C. Faria and
• Osvaldo N. Oliveira Jr.

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2171–2181, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.210

• diseases [1]. Protein biomarkers are commonly measured using conventional immunoassays such as enzyme-linked immuno-sorbent assay (ELISA) [1], radioimmunoassay (RIA) [2], fluorescence methods [3], and chemiluminescence [4]. Unfortunately, these standard methodologies have high cost, long analysis times

• antigen-enriched calf serum were added to the composite bioconjugate complex mixture. The mixture was then incubated at 37 °C for 30 min, and dilutions were required to decrease the protein concentration. The devices were also evaluated with real samples, including culture medium of cancerous and control

• cells (lineage of LNCap and PNT-2 cells, respectively). The cell lines PNT-2 and LNCap were acquired from the Banco de Células do Rio de Janeiro (BCRJ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil). The samples were diluted to a 1:30000 ratio. The resulting conjugate, Ab2-MNP-HRP-protein, was magnetically separated and

Nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond for nanoscale magnetic resonance imaging applications

• Alberto Boretti,
• Lorenzo Rosa,
• Jonathan Blackledge and
• Stefania Castelletto

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2128–2151, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.207

• -geometry discrimination ability to resolve protein structures. Since protonic spin lifetimes are on the scale of seconds, long-range detection is limited by the coupling resolution (on the order of 100 MHz), when long-range (up to five or more bonds away) weaker couplings can be detected by transferring to