Spectroscopic Studies on the Thermodynamics of L-Cysteine Capped CdSe/CdS Quantum Dots—BSA Interactions

Molecularly imprinted probe based on CdTe QDs and magnetic nanoparticles for selective recognition of malachite green in seawater and its sensing mechanisms

A magnetic molecularly imprinted probe (MMIP@QD) was synthesized by reverse microemulsion method using CdTe QDs, Fe₃O₄, and molecularly imprinted polymer as the fluorophore, magnetic carrier, and recognition sites, respectively. The nanoparticle was characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, and vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM). In the optimal experimental condition, fluorescent emission intensity (measured at excitation wavelengths of 350 nm) was quenched linearly with increasing malachite green (MG) concentration from 0.8 to 28.0 μM with LOD of 0.67 μM. Simultaneously, it was observed that the maximum absorption wavelength was blue shifted gradually with the increase of MG concentration. The inner filter effect, static quenching, and band gap transition were interpreted as the mechanisms of fluorescence quenching and wavelength shift. Thermodynamic studies indicated that the quenching reaction proceeded spontaneously. The developed sensor was applied to detect MG in seawater samples. Satisfactory recoveries of MG in spiked seawater ranged from 83.6 to 122.1% with RSD < 1.8%.

Advancements in cell membrane camouflaged nanoparticles: A bioinspired platform for cancer therapy

The idea of employing natural cell membranes as a coating medium for nanoparticles (NPs) endows man-made vectors with natural capabilities and benefits. In addition to retaining the physicochemical characteristics of the NPs, the biomimetic NPs also have the functionality of source cell membranes. It has emerged as a promising approach to enhancing the properties of NPs for drug delivery, immune evasion, imaging, cancer-targeting, and phototherapy sensitivity. Several studies have been reported with a multitude of approaches to reengineering the surface of NPs using biological membranes. Owing to their low immunogenicity and intriguing biomimetic properties, cell-membrane-based biohybrid delivery systems have recently gained a lot of interest as therapeutic delivery systems. This review summarises different kinds of biomimetic NPs reported so far, their fabrication aspects, and their application in the biomedical field. Finally, it briefs on the latest advances available in this biohybrid concept.

A novel insight into mechanism of derangement of coagulation balance: interactions of quantum dots with coagulation-related proteins

Background

Quantum dots (QDs) have gained increased attention for their extensive biomedical and electronic products applications. Due to the high priority of QDs in contacting the circulatory system, understanding the hemocompatibility of QDs is one of the most important aspects for their biosafety evaluation. Thus far, the effect of QDs on coagulation balance haven’t been fully understood, and limited studies also have yet elucidated the potential mechanism from the perspective of interaction of QDs with coagulation-related proteins.

Results

QDs induced the derangement of coagulation balance by prolonging the activated partial thromboplastin time and prothrombin time as well as changing the expression levels of coagulation and fibrinolytic factors. The contact of QDs with PTM (prothrombin), PLG (plasminogen) and FIB (fibrinogen) which are primary coagulation-related proteins in the coagulation and fibrinolysis systems formed QDs-protein conjugates through hydrogen-bonding and hydrophobic interaction. The affinity of proteins with QDs followed the order of PTM > PLG > FIB, and was larger with CdTe/ZnS QDs than CdTe QDs. Binding with QDs not only induced static fluorescence quenching of PTM, PLG and FIB, but also altered their conformational structures. The binding of QDs to the active sites of PTM, PLG and FIB may promote the activation of proteins, thus interfering the hemostasis and fibrinolysis processes.

Conclusions

The interactions of QDs with PTM, PLG and FIB may be key contributors for interference of coagulation balance, that is helpful to achieve a reliable and comprehensive evaluation on the potential biological influence of QDs from the molecular level.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12989-022-00458-x.

Serum proteins on nanoparticles: early stages of the "protein corona"

Nanoparticles in biological systems such as the bloodstream are exposed to a complex solution of biomolecules. A "corona" monolayer of proteins has historically been thought to form on nanoparticles upon introduction into such environments. To examine the first steps of protein binding, Fluorescence Correlation/Cross Correlation Spectroscopy and Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer were used to directly analyze four different nanoparticle systems. CdSe/ZnS core/shell quantum dots, 100 nm diameter polystyrene fluospheres, 200 nm diameter polystyrene fluospheres, and 200 nm diameter PEG-grafted DOTAP liposomes were studied with respect to serum protein binding, using bovine serum albumin as a model. Surface heterogeneity is found to be a key factor in protein binding to these nanoparticles, and as such we present a novel conceptualization of the early hard corona as low-ratio, non-uniform binding rather than a uniform monolayer.

Probing the Interaction of Bovine Serum Albumin with Copper Nanoclusters: Realization of Binding Pathway Different from Protein Corona

With an aim to understand the interaction mechanism of bovine serum albumin (BSA) with copper nanoclusters (CuNCs), three different types CuNCs having chemically different surface ligands, namely, tannic acid (TA), chitosan, and cysteine (Cys), have been fabricated, and investigations are carried out in the absence and presence of protein (BSA) at ensemble-averaged and single-molecule levels. The CuNCs, capped with different surface ligands, are consciously chosen so that the role of surface ligands in the overall protein-NCs interactions is clearly understood, but, more importantly, to find whether these CuNCs can interact with protein in a new pathway without forming the "protein corona", which otherwise has been observed in relatively larger nanoparticles when they are exposed to biological fluids. Analysis of the data obtained from fluorescence, ζ-potential, and ITC measurements has clearly indicated that the BSA protein in the presence of CuNCs does not attain the binding stoichiometry (BSA/CuNCs > 1) that is required for the formation of "protein corona". This conclusion is further substantiated by the outcome of the fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) study. Further analysis of data and thermodynamic calculations have revealed that the surface ligands of the CuNCs play an important role in the protein-NCs binding events, and they can alter the mode and thermodynamics of the process. Specifically, the data have demonstrated that the binding of BSA with TA-CuNCs and Chitosan-CuNCs follows two types of binding modes; however, the same with Cys-CuNCs goes through only one type of binding mode. Circular dichroism (CD) measurements have indicated that the basic structure of BSA remains almost unaltered in the presence of CuNCs. The outcome of the present study is expected to encourage and enable better application of NCs in biological applications.

Study on AgInZnS-Graphene Oxide Non-toxic Quantum Dots for Biomedical Sensing

In recent years, non-toxic quantum dot has caught the attention of biomedical fields. However, the inherent cytotoxicity of QDs makes its biomedical application painful, and is a major drawback of this method. In this paper, a non-toxic and water-soluble quantum dot AgInZnS-GO using graphene oxide was synthesized. A simple model of state complex was also established, which is produced through a combination of quantum dots and protein. The interaction between AIZS-GO QDs and human serum albumin (HSA) has significant meaning in vivo biological application. Herein, the binding of AIZS-GO QDs and HSA were researched using fluorescence spectra, Uv-visible absorption spectra, FT-IR spectra, and circular dichroism (CD) spectra. The results of fluorescence spectra demonstrate that AIZS-GO QDs have an obvious fluorescence quenching effect on HSA. The quenching mechanism is static quenching, which implies that some type of complex was produced by the binding of QDs and HSA. These results were further proved by Uv-visible absorption spectroscopy. The Stern-Volmer quenching constant K_sv at various temperatures (298 K, 303 K, 308 K) were acquired from analyzing Stern-Volmer plots of the fluorescence quenching information. The Van't Hoff equation could describe the thermodynamic parameters, which demonstrated that the van der Waals and hydrogen bonds had an essential effect on the interaction. FT-IR spectra and CD spectra further indicate that AIZS-GO QDs can alter the structure of HSA. These spectral methods show that the quantum dot can combine well with HSA. The experimental results showed that AgInZn-GO water-soluble quantum dots have good biocompatibility, which can be combined with proteins to form new compounds which have no cytotoxicity and biological practicability. It provides an important basis for the combination of quantum dots and specific proteins as well as fluorescent labeling.

Comparative studies on the interaction of spermidine with carboxypeptidase A using multispectroscopic and docking methods

Carboxypeptidase A (CPA) (EC 3.4.17.1) is one of the main members of the M14 family that release one amino acid from the C-terminal region of the polypeptides at each time. The purpose of the present study was to study the effect of spermidine (NH₂(CH₂)₃NH(CH₂)₄NH₂) on the conformation, thermal stability, and activity of native CPA from bovine pancreas, by employing ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, intrinsic fluorescence, thermal stability, circular dichroism (CD), kinetic techniques and molecular docking. It was found that the decrease in the CPA, UV-Vis absorption could be due to the formation of the CPA-spermidine complexes. The results of fluorescence spectroscopic measurements at the temperatures of 308 and 318 K also revealed that spermidine had the capability to quench the intrinsic fluorescence of CPA with the static mode. Further, the thermodynamic parameters, (Gibbs free-energy, enthalpy and entropy changes) showed that the binding process of spermidine to CPA was spontaneous and the main force in stabilizing the complex was the van der Waals and hydrogen interactions, along with the molecular docking results. In addition, CD spectra and fluorescence results revealed that spermidine had a partial effect on the CPA structure, leading to some changes in its secondary structure. The T_m studies of the CPA-spermidine complex also indicated that the T_m values were enhanced with increasing the spermidine concentration. Kinetic studies further showed that by spermidine binding, the V_max value and activity of the enzyme were increased.

Thermodynamics of the interaction between antibiotics and extracellular polymeric substances within activated sludge

The removal of antibiotics in biological wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) has attracted an ever-increasing interest. Extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) play a crucial role in antibiotics' bio-adsorption using activated sludge, but the interaction mechanism between antibiotics and EPS remains unclear. In this study, the thermodynamics of interactions between EPS and antibiotics (acetaminophen (ACT) and sulfamethazine (SMZ)) were investigated via isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC). The results show that the extracellular proteins strongly combined with ACT and SMZ, and the binding process depended on entropy driven by the hydrophobic interaction as the main driving force. Environmental conditions have a significant impact on the adsorption performance. Therefore, binding of antibiotics and EPS at different pH and ionic strength were investigated to determine the optimal pH and ionic strength. At the near-neutral condition of pH 6.8, the binding reaction of EPS and antibiotics was the most favorable and the conformational change was the maximal. Ionic strength has an obvious effect on the interaction between EPS and antibiotics. The results of this study provided a better understanding of the interaction between antibiotics and EPS in the WWTPs.

Glycoproteins functionalized natural and synthetic polymers for prospective biomedical applications: A review

Glycoproteins have multidimensional properties such as biodegradability, biocompatibility, non-toxicity, antimicrobial and adsorption properties; therefore, they have wide range of applications. They are blended with different polymers such as chitosan, carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP), polycaprolactone (PCL), heparin, polystyrene fluorescent nanoparticles (PS-NPs) and carboxyl pullulan (PC) to improve their properties like thermal stability, mechanical properties, resistance to pH, chemical stability and toughness. Considering the versatile charateristics of glycoprotein based polymers, this review sheds light on synthesis and characterization of blends and composites of glycoproteins, with natural and synthetic polymers and their potential applications in biomedical field such as drug delivery system, insulin delivery, antimicrobial wound dressing uses, targeting of cancer cells, development of anticancer vaccines, development of new biopolymers, glycoproteome research, food product and detection of dengue glycoproteins. All the technical scientific issues have been addressed; highlighting the recent advancement.

The effect of spermine on the structure, thermal stability and activity of bovine pancreatic trypsin

This work studied the interaction between spermine and trypsin at pH 8.0.

Synthesis and characterization of zinc sulfide quantum dots and their interaction with snake gourd (Trichosanthes anguina) seed lectin

Owing to the use of quantum dots in biological labeling, and the specific interaction of lectins with tumor cells, studies on lectin-QDs interaction are of potential interest. Herein, we report a facile method to prepare zinc sulfide quantum dots (ZnS QDs) using pectin as a capping agent and studied their interaction with snake gourd seed lectin (SGSL) by fluorescence spectroscopy. The QDs were characterized by X-ray diffraction, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, UV-Vis absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy. The thermodynamic forces governing the interaction between ZnS-QDs and SGSL have been delineated from the temperature dependent association constant. These results suggest that the binding between ZnS QDs and SGSL is governed by enthalpic forces with negative entropic contribution. The red shift of synchronous fluorescence spectra showed that the microenvironment around the tryptophan residues of SGSL was perturbed by ZnS-QDs. The obtained results suggest that the development of optical bioimaging agents by using the conjugated lectin-QDs would be possible to diagnose cancerous tissues.

The interaction between ionic liquids modified magnetic nanoparticles and bovine serum albumin and the cytotoxicity to HepG-2 cells

The interaction between ionic liquids modified magnetic Fe3O4 (Fe2) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) is reported and is compared with NH2 functionalized magnetic nanoparticles Fe3O4 (Fe1) based on the UV-visible spectrum, steady-state fluorescence measurements, synchronous fluorescence and DSC methods. The results indicate a static quenching mechanism operating in both nanoparticles. The binding constant of the Fe2-BSA complex calculated from fluorescence data shows that BSA has a low binding affinity for Fe2 than Fe1. DSC data reveal that the thermal stability process of BSA in the Fe2-BSA complex is semi-reversible. This demonstrates that the ionic liquid modified magnetic nanoparticles (Fe2) enhance the thermostability of BSA in the range of 20-40°C, and protein attached Fe2 has higher thermal stability than free BSA. Moreover, the in vitro assay results show that Fe2 shows low cytotoxicity to HepG-2 cells.

Systematic investigation of the toxicity interaction of ZnSe@ZnS QDs on BSA by spectroscopic and microcalorimetry techniques

The interaction of ZnSe@ZnS quantum dots (QDs) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) was investigated by means of fluorescence (FL) spectrometry, circular dichroism (CD) spectra, and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC). The fluorescence intensity of BSA decreased regularly with the increasing of QDs concentration. The decrease of BSA fluorescence intensity was proved to be a kind of static quenching. CD results show the helicity of BSA decreased from 38.04% to 26.51% with the addition of QDs, which suggests a stronger structural change that is related to a low degree of surface coverage. And also, both ion strength and pH value could affect the interaction between BSA and QDs, suggesting that both the static electronic attraction and H-bond contribute to the interaction between BSA and QDs. The thermodynamics of interaction between BSA and QDs were calculated from ITC data. Both enthalpy and entropy changes were favorable for the interaction in Tris-buffer, while only enthalpy change was favorable for the interaction in NaCl or HCl solution.

Quantum dot applications endowing novelty to analytical proteomics

This review surveys all the state-of-art applications of quantum dots (QDs) in conventional and modern analytical methods in proteomic studies. A brief introduction of QDs and their properties is initially presented followed by outlining the application of QDs in fluorescence, MS, imaging, and cancer-based proteomics. The in-depth application of QDs in MALDI-MS and surface assisted laser desorption/ionization-MS has been elaborately discussed, summarizing the speculated mechanism behind the protein-QDs interactions during QD matrix applications leading to enhanced detection sensitivity.

Study on the Interaction between Cadmium Sulphide Nanoparticles and Proteins by Resonance Rayleigh Scattering Spectra

The interaction of cadmium sulphide nanoparticles[(CdS)n]with proteins has been studied by resonance Rayleigh scattering spectra (RRS). Below the isoelectric point, proteins such as bovine serum albumin (BSA), human serum albumin (HSA), lysozyme (Lys), hemoglobin (HGB), and ovalbumin (OVA) can bind withCdSnto form macromolecules by virtue of electrostatic attraction and hydrophobic force. It can result in the enhancement of resonance Rayleigh scattering spectra (RRS) intensity. Their maximum scattering peaks were 280 nm, and there was a smaller peak at 370 nm. The scattering enhancement (ΔIRRS) is directly proportional to the concentration of proteins. A new RRS method for the determination of trace proteins using uncappedCdSnnanoparticles probe has been developed. The detection limits are 19.6 ng/mL for HSA, 16.7 ng/mL for BSA, 18.5 ng/mL for OVA, 80.2 ng/mL for HGB, and 67.4 ng/mL for Lys, separately. In this work, the optimum condition of reaction, the effect of foreign, and the analytical application had been investigated.

Characterization of the organic ligand shell of semiconductor quantum dots by fluorescence quenching experiments

We present the characterization of the organic ligand shell of CdSe/Cd(x)Zn(1-x)S/ZnS nanoparticles by means of fluorescence quenching experiments. Both electron scavengers and acceptors for resonance energy transfer were employed as probes. Different quenching behavior for short and long chain thiol ligands in water was found. It could be shown that poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO)-capping of the particles comprises a densely packed inner shell and a loosely packed outer shell in which ions and small molecules diffuse unhindered. A quantitative uptake of quencher molecules into the PEO shell was observed, through which the particle volume including the ligand sphere could be determined.