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Kostopoulou A, Brintakis K, Fragogeorgi E, Anthousi A, Manna L, Begin-Colin S, Billotey C, Ranella A, Loudos G, Athanassakis I, Lappas A. Iron Oxide Colloidal Nanoclusters as Theranostic Vehicles and Their Interactions at the Cellular Level. Nanomaterials (Basel) 2018; 8:E315. [PMID: 29747449 PMCID: PMC5977329 DOI: 10.3390/nano8050315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2018] [Revised: 05/04/2018] [Accepted: 05/04/2018] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Advances in surfactant-assisted chemical approaches have led the way for the exploitation of nanoscale inorganic particles in medical diagnosis and treatment. In this field, magnetically-driven multimodal nanotools that perform both detection and therapy, well-designed in size, shape and composition, are highly advantageous. Such a theranostic material—which entails the controlled assembly of smaller (maghemite) nanocrystals in a secondary motif that is highly dispersible in aqueous media—is discussed here. These surface functionalized, pomegranate-like ferrimagnetic nanoclusters (40⁻85 nm) are made of nanocrystal subunits that show a remarkable magnetic resonance imaging contrast efficiency, which is better than that of the superparamagnetic contrast agent Endorem©. Going beyond this attribute and with their demonstrated low cytotoxicity in hand, we examine the critical interaction of such nanoprobes with cells at different physiological environments. The time-dependent in vivo scintigraphic imaging of mice experimental models, combined with a biodistribution study, revealed the accumulation of nanoclusters in the spleen and liver. Moreover, the in vitro proliferation of spleen cells and cytokine production witnessed a size-selective regulation of immune system cells, inferring that smaller clusters induce mainly inflammatory activities, while larger ones induce anti-inflammatory actions. The preliminary findings corroborate that the modular chemistry of magnetic iron oxide nanoclusters stimulates unexplored pathways that could be driven to alter their function in favor of healthcare.
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Affiliation(s)
- Athanasia Kostopoulou
- Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Foundation for the Research and Technology, Hellas, Vassilika Vouton, 711 10 Heraklion, Greece.
| | - Konstantinos Brintakis
- Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Foundation for the Research and Technology, Hellas, Vassilika Vouton, 711 10 Heraklion, Greece.
| | - Eirini Fragogeorgi
- Institute of Nuclear & Radiological Sciences, Technology, Energy & Safety, NCSR "Demokritos", 153 41 Aghia Paraskevi, Athens, Greece.
| | - Amalia Anthousi
- Department of Biology, University of Crete, Vassilika Vouton, 710 03 Heraklion, Greece.
| | - Liberato Manna
- Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy.
| | - Sylvie Begin-Colin
- Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, Institut de Physique et Chimie des Matériaux de Strasbourg, UMR 7504, F-67034 Strasbourg, France.
| | - Claire Billotey
- Université de Lyon, Université Jean Monnet, EA 3738, Ciblage Thérapeutique en Oncologie, UJM-UCBL-HCL, Hôpital E. Herriot, 5 place d'Arsonval, 69437 Lyon CEDEX 03, France.
| | - Anthi Ranella
- Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Foundation for the Research and Technology, Hellas, Vassilika Vouton, 711 10 Heraklion, Greece.
| | - George Loudos
- Bioemission Technology Solutions, Alexandras 116, 117 42 Athens, Greece.
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technological Educational Institute, 122 10 Egaleo, Athens, Greece.
| | - Irene Athanassakis
- Department of Biology, University of Crete, Vassilika Vouton, 710 03 Heraklion, Greece.
| | - Alexandros Lappas
- Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Foundation for the Research and Technology, Hellas, Vassilika Vouton, 711 10 Heraklion, Greece.
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