Graphene oxide–chloroquine conjugate induces DNA damage in A549 lung cancer cells through autophagy modulation

• Braham Dutt Arya,
• Sandeep Mittal,
• Prachi Joshi,
• Alok Kumar Pandey,
• Jaime E. Ramirez-Vick,
• Govind Gupta and
• Surinder P. Singh

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 316–332, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.24

• ]. Graphene oxide has been shown to sensitize CT26 (mouse colorectal fibroblast carcinoma cells), Skov-3 (human ovarian epithelial cancer cells), HeLa (human cervical epithelial adenocarcinoma cells), and Tramp-C1 (mouse prostate epithelial adenocarcinoma) cancer cells to chemotherapeutics through enhanced

Radiosensitizing properties of dual-functionalized carbon nanostructures loaded with temozolomide

• Radmila Milenkovska,
• Nikola Geskovski,
• Dushko Shalabalija,
• Ljubica Mihailova,
• Petre Makreski,
• Dushko Lukarski,
• Igor Stojkovski,
• Maja Simonoska Crcarevska and
• Kristina Mladenovska

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 229–251, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.18

• evaluated. In the study of Zhang et al. [77] in which cellular accumulation and cytotoxicity of NDs, MWCNTs, and GO in HeLa cells were compared, concentration- and time-dependent cytotoxicity was observed, with an uptake via non-specific mechanisms and rates in the following order: NDs > MWCNTs > GO. The

Biomimetic nanocarriers: integrating natural functions for advanced therapeutic applications

• Hugo Felix Perini,
• Beatriz Sodré Matos,
• Carlo José Freire de Oliveira and
• Marcos Vinicius da Silva

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1619–1626, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.127

• nanoparticle was demonstrated by inhibiting proliferation through negative regulation of cyclin D1, halting the G0/G1 cell cycle in HeLa and SiHa cervical cancer cells [67][68]. Biomimetic-specific targets provide opportunities for personalized cancer therapies [10][11][12]. Coated nanocarriers have also been

Polymer lipid hybrid nanoparticles for phytochemical delivery: challenges, progress, and future prospects

• Iqra Rahat,
• Pooja Yadav,
• Aditi Singhal,
• Mohammad Fareed,
• Jaganathan Raja Purushothaman,
• Mohammed Aslam,
• Raju Balaji,
• Sonali Patil-Shinde and
• Md. Rizwanullah

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1473–1497, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.118

Synthesis, characterization and anticancer effect of doxorubicin-loaded dual stimuli-responsive smart nanopolymers

• Ömür Acet,
• Pavel Kirsanov,
• Burcu Önal Acet,
• Inessa Halets-Bui,
• Dzmitry Shcharbin,
• Şeyda Ceylan Cömert and
• Mehmet Odabaşı

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1189–1196, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.96

• step, the cytotoxicity of the DOX–nanopolymer complexes against the HeLa cancer cell line at different concentrations and incubation times was studied. The DOX release depended on temperature and pH value of the release medium, with the highest release at pH 6.0 and 41 °C. This effect was similar to

• that observed for the commercial liposomal formulation of doxorubicin Doxil. The obtained results demonstrated that smart nanopolymers can be efficiently used to create new types of doxorubicin-based drugs. Keywords: cancer cell line HeLa; cytotoxicity; doxorubicin; drug delivery; smart nanopolymers

• characterize the SNPs. In addition to experiments regarding the DOX loading capacity of the SNPs at different concentrations, the effect of pH and temperature on the release of DOX was also investigated. Finally, the cytotoxicity of DOX-SNPs against the cancer cell line HeLa at different concentrations and

Classification and application of metal-based nanoantioxidants in medicine and healthcare

• Nguyen Nhat Nam,
• Nguyen Khoi Song Tran,
• Tan Tai Nguyen,
• Nguyen Ngoc Trai,
• Nguyen Phuong Thuy,
• Hoang Dang Khoa Do,
• Nhu Hoa Thi Tran and
• Kieu The Loan Trinh

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 396–415, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.36

Elasticity, an often-overseen parameter in the development of nanoscale drug delivery systems

• Agnes-Valencia Weiss and
• Marc Schneider

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 1149–1156, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.95

• . HeLa cells show an enhanced uptake by RGD functionalization but it is still reduced in comparison to all hard formulations. Particles with RGD-modified surfaces are superior in tumor accumulation for both soft and hard HNPs, with softer particles showing an overall higher retention in the tumor. This

Polymer nanoparticles from low-energy nanoemulsions for biomedical applications

• Santiago Grijalvo and
• Carlos Rodriguez-Abreu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 339–350, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.29

• were obtained upon solvent removal. High colloidal stability (longer than three months without sedimentation), high encapsulation efficiency (>99%), slow drug release (only 15% of the drug after five days), and low cytotoxicity against HeLa cells (cell viability > 80%) were observed. In vivo tests

• surface charge (ca. −11 mV). The drug encapsulation efficiencies were higher than 98%, although loadings were not enough to achieve therapeutic concentrations. The GAL release from the nanoparticles was slower than that from aqueous GAL solutions and surfactant micelles. Viabilities of HeLa and SH-SY5Y

• wt % PLGA in ethyl acetate/ethanol) (O) system were functionalized with a cell-penetrating peptide (Tat) using carbodiimide chemistry [57]. The hydrodynamic diameter ranged from 48 to 65 nm depending on the Tat fraction. The functionalized nanoparticles showed dose-dependent cytotoxicity on Hela and

Recent progress in cancer cell membrane-based nanoparticles for biomedical applications

• Qixiong Lin,
• Yueyou Peng,
• Yanyan Wen,
• Xiaoqiong Li,
• Donglian Du,
• Weibin Dai,
• Wei Tian and
• Yanfeng Meng

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 262–279, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.24

• cancer cells, which may be attributed to the expression of cross antigens on different cells. Pan et al. found that breast cancer MDA-MB-231 membrane-coated NPs also showed a certain affinity for the cervical cancer cell line HeLa [39]. 2.2 Modulation of the immune system Cancer cells exhibit excellent

• antitumor protein RB and sensitivity to PTX. The biomimetic NPs accumulated three times more than bare NPs in the tumor region after being wrapped by HeLa cell membranes. In subsequent treatments, the biomimetic NPs exhibited an efficient tumor suppression rate of 83.6% with no significant toxic effects on

• the distribution of cancer cell membrane-encapsulated NPs in a tumor-bearing mouse model. (A) UM-SCC-7 tumor-bearing mice were injected with Dox (d) and different types of NPs via tail vein (a: UM-SCC-7; b: COS7; c: Hela). (B) Distribution of different NPs with equivalent doses of DOX 24 h after

Structural, optical, and bioimaging characterization of carbon quantum dots solvothermally synthesized from o-phenylenediamine

• Zoran M. Marković,
• Milica D. Budimir,
• Martin Danko,
• Dušan D. Milivojević,
• Pavel Kubat,
• Danica Z. Zmejkoski,
• Vladimir B. Pavlović,
• Marija M. Mojsin,
• Milena J. Stevanović and
• Biljana M. Todorović Marković

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 165–174, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.17

• oxygen species production, and showed low dark cytotoxicity. By investigating the cellular uptake, it was established that these dots penetrated the HeLa cells and could be used as probes for bioimaging. Keywords: antibacterial; bioimaging; carbon quantum dots; precursor; reactive oxygen species

• test internalization of CQDs, Hela cells were treated for 48 h with a concentration of 200 µg/mL CQDs. As shown in Figure 6b, fluorescence imaging demonstrated that CQDs penetrated Hela cells well (compared to Hela cells treated with vehicle control, shown in Figure 6a) and were mainly in the cytoplasm

• assay by measuring the absorbance at 540 nm on Tecan Infinite 200 Pro multiplate reader (Tecan Group, Männedorf, Switzerland). The cytotoxicity results were presented as a percentage of the control (untreated cells), which was arbitrary set to 100%. Fluorescence microscopy Hela cells were grown in low

Recent advances in green carbon dots (2015–2022): synthesis, metal ion sensing, and biological applications

• Aisha Kanwal,
• Naheed Bibi,
• Sajjad Hyder,
• Arif Muhammad,
• Hao Ren,
• Jiangtao Liu and
• Zhongli Lei

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1068–1107, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.93

• Fe3+/Fe2+ in water, H2O2 can be split into hydroxyl radicals, and the ensuing radical is an incredibly potent oxidizing species. The treatment time lasted from 10 to 60 min, with 40 min yielding the highest CD luminescence. The resulting CDs (2–10 nm) have excellent penetration into HeLa cells

Detection and imaging of Hg(II) in vivo using glutathione-functionalized gold nanoparticles

• Gufeng Li,
• Shaoqing Li,
• Rui Wang,
• Min Yang,
• Lizhu Zhang,
• Yanli Zhang,
• Wenrong Yang and
• Hongbin Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 549–559, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.46

• incubated in HeLa cells. We expect that this new system based on the molecular regulation of functionalized GNPs can have potential applications in pollution monitoring, biosensing, and cellular imaging. Results and Discussion Synthesis and spectral signature of GNPs-GSH-Rh6G2 As shown in Figure 1a, 13 nm

• was performed after different cell incubation times (0–2.5 h). As shown in Figure 6a and Figure 6d, when cultured HeLa cells were incubated with GSH-Rh6G2 and GNPs-GSH-Rh6G2 without Hg2+, there are no obvious intracellular fluorescence signals. After Hg2+ was added (10 µM) for 1.5 h, fluorescence in

• and GNPs-GSH-Rh6G2 at different concentrations (0.01, 0.02, 0.03, 0.04, and 0.05 µmol) on HeLa cells was evaluated through CKK-8 assays. Figure 6g shows that the viability of HeLa cells increases with increasing concentration after 24 h of incubation with free GSH-Rh6G2 and GNPs-GSH-Rh6G2. In addition

Photothermal ablation of murine melanomas by Fe₃O₄ nanoparticle clusters

• Xue Wang,
• Lili Xuan and
• Ying Pan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 255–264, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.20

• (DeTAB, 99%) and 1,2-hexadecanediol (97%) were purchased from TCI Chemical Industry Development Co., Ltd. (Shanghai). Chloroform (99%), ethylene glycol (96%), and ethanol (99.7%) were purchased from Beijing Chemical Works. Nitrogen gas was purchased from Juyang Gas (Changchun). Hela cells were purchased

Engineered titania nanomaterials in advanced clinical applications

• Padmavati Sahare,
• Paulina Govea Alvarez,
• Juan Manual Sanchez Yanez,
• Gabriel Luna-Bárcenas,
• Samik Chakraborty,
• Sujay Paul and
• Miriam Estevez

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 201–218, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.15

• reported by Rehman [8], who used the photodynamic properties of TiO2 for killing HeLa cancer cells. The hydrophobic nature of photosensitizers commonly used in photodynamic therapy led to selectivity and aggregation issues that jeopardize their effectiveness. Therefore, TiO2 nanoparticles (nps), which

• a significant photodynamic effect exhibited by PEGylated undoped-TiO2 with 75% killing of HeLa cells at a concentration of 5.5 μg/mL in response to UV or sunlight radiation [113]. TiO2 and ZnO2 are the most effective photosensitizers used in PDT. Yurt et al. conducted experiments in breast and

• insertion into the inner membrane, for precise mitochondria-targeted cancer treatment as presented in Figure 8B. The efficiency of G-TiO2−x-TPP was scrutinized in mice having HeLa tumors, and the results showed excellent mitochondria-targeting potential and strong phototherapeutic efficacy under a single

Theranostic potential of self-luminescent branched polyethyleneimine-coated superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles

• Rouhollah Khodadust,
• Ozlem Unal and
• Havva Yagci Acar

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 82–95, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.6

• factor receptor (EGFR). Pro-apoptotic polyinosinic–polycytidylic acid sodium (PIC) was delivered to HeLa cells with SPION@bPEI and caused a dramatic reduction in the cell viability at otherwise non-toxic nanoparticle concentrations, proving that bPEI coating is still an effective component for the

• -Erb was used for the delivery of a GFP plasmid wherein the transfection was confirmed by the luminescence of the expressed gene within the transfected cells. Poor GFP expression in MCF7, a slightly better expression in HeLa, and a significant enhancement in the transfection of HCT116 cells proved a

• signal was demonstrated. Then, a pro-apoptotic oligonucleotide (polyinosinic–polycytidylic acid sodium salt) (PIC) was transfected into HeLa cells to demonstrate that luminescent bPEI coating is still an effective component for the delivery of an anionic cargo and it may deliver oligonucleotides in a

Alteration of nanomechanical properties of pancreatic cancer cells through anticancer drug treatment revealed by atomic force microscopy

• Xiaoteng Liang,
• Shuai Liu,
• Xiuchao Wang,
• Dan Xia and
• Qiang Li

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1372–1379, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.101

• the physical properties of HeLa cells treated by docetaxel are different from that of untreated ones [9]. Therefore, the study of drug–cell interaction regarding cellular mechanics could be an effective way for drug evaluation. Important information, including drug efficacy and safety can be obtained

Use of nanosystems to improve the anticancer effects of curcumin

• Andrea M. Araya-Sibaja,
• Norma J. Salazar-López,
• Krissia Wilhelm Romero,
• José R. Vega-Baudrit,
• J. Abraham Domínguez-Avila,
• Carlos A. Velázquez Contreras,
• Ramón E. Robles-Zepeda,
• Mirtha Navarro-Hoyos and
• Gustavo A. González-Aguilar

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1047–1062, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.78

• has been previously reported when using glutathione-responsive self-delivery nanocapsules (100 nm), a strategy that increases cellular uptake efficiency, intracellular CUR delivery, and transport to the nucleus, which results in growth inhibition of HeLa (human cervical carcinoma) cells [75]. Similar

• superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles functionalized with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and coated with chitosan (40–45 nm), were able to induce apoptosis (IC50 30 µg/mL) in HeLa (cervical cancer) cells by damaging the DNA and increasing caspase-3 [136]. Curcumin-loaded, pH-sensitive Janus magnetic mesoporous

Comprehensive review on ultrasound-responsive theranostic nanomaterials: mechanisms, structures and medical applications

• Sepand Tehrani Fateh,
• Lida Moradi,
• Elmira Kohan,
• Michael R. Hamblin and
• Amin Shiralizadeh Dezfuli

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 808–862, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.64

The impact of molecular tumor profiling on the design strategies for targeting myeloid leukemia and EGFR/CD44-positive solid tumors

• Nikola Geskovski,
• Nadica Matevska-Geshkovska,
• Simona Dimchevska Sazdovska,
• Marija Glavas Dodov,
• Kristina Mladenovska and
• Katerina Goracinova

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 375–401, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.31

Imaging of SARS-CoV-2 infected Vero E6 cells by helium ion microscopy

• Natalie Frese,
• Patrick Schmerer,
• Martin Wortmann,
• Matthias Schürmann,
• Matthias König,
• Michael Westphal,
• Friedemann Weber,
• Holger Sudhoff and
• Armin Gölzhäuser

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 172–179, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.13

• observed for human coronavirus229E and quantified in HeLa cells by Wang and co-workers [38]. However, the metal coating applied by Wang et al. is clearly visible at high resolution in the SEM images as a rough layer on the cell membrane that hides the true topography [25][39]. In contrast, the HIM images

Bio-imaging with the helium-ion microscope: A review

• Matthias Schmidt,
• James M. Byrne and
• Ilari J. Maasilta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1–23, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.1

• mitotic HeLa cells that HIM is ready for ultrastructure research in cell biology. Research on the ultrastructure of cells with the HIM was subsequently continued by Schürmann et al., who presented HIM micrographs of cell-membrane nanodomains in mammalian cells [16]. HIM entered the field of virology in

• excite IL in biological specimens [52]. In this Ph.D. thesis, Alexa Fluor 514-labelled HeLa cells were imaged with 2 MeV protons. Furthermore, optimisation protocols for the design of luminescent lanthanide-doped nanoparticles with a quantum yield of up to 0.673 were presented. In the aforementioned work

Photothermally active nanoparticles as a promising tool for eliminating bacteria and biofilms

• Mykola Borzenkov,
• Piersandro Pallavicini,
• Angelo Taglietti,
• Laura D’Alfonso,
• Maddalena Collini and
• Giuseppe Chirico

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1134–1146, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.98

• , the bacteria was selectively eliminated from the HeLa cells. In a later study, published in 2017, the photothermally active Prussian blue nanoparticles were grafted on a glass surface via a layer-by-layer approach [74]. The self-assembled monolayers demonstrated photothermally induced antibacterial

Applications of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles in drug and therapeutic delivery, and biotechnological advancements

• Maria Suciu,
• Corina M. Ionescu,
• Alexandra Ciorita,
• Septimiu C. Tripon,
• Dragos Nica,
• Hani Al-Salami and
• Lucian Barbu-Tudoran

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1092–1109, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.94

• HeLa cells up to 400 µg/mL, but the coating enhanced the effect of the hyperthermia water-bath treatment [45]. This effect of biocompatibility at 37 °C and cytotoxicity at 42 °C, even at micromolar concentrations, was noted already earlier by other groups [89][90]. Recently, in a study of SPION

Luminescent gold nanoclusters for bioimaging applications

• Nonappa

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

• ). The Au-MUDA-NLS NCs were easily internalized and distributed in the nucleus when studied using HeLa cell lines (Figure 4A). The intracellular and nuclear distribution was studied using a membrane dye WGA-Alexa 594 and a nuclear dye, SYTO59. This suggested that Au-MUDA-NLS NCs were well distributed in

• , HeLa, HepG2 and A375, as well as a normal HEK cell line (Figure 5B). Confocal imaging confirmed the internalization of the nanocarriers. After incubating the cell lines with sodium azide, there was a decrease by 82% of uptake of the nanocarriers, suggesting that the internalization is through

• be identical with a fast release up to 6 h and a slow release up to 20 h in PBS buffer, possibly due to diffusion-driven drug release. DPML-MF remained stable in human blood serum up to 24 h. DPML-MF showed a significant effect on HeLa, HepG2 and A375 cell lines with IC50 values 200-fold higher

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