Two-dimensional boron nitride nanostructures (2D-BNNs) have been increasingly investigated for their applications in several scientific and technological areas. This considerable interest is due to their unique physicochemical properties, which include high hydrophobicity, heat and electrical insulation, resistance to oxidation, antioxidation capacity, thermal conductivity, high chemical stability, mechanical strength, and hydrogen storage capacity. They are also used as fillers, antibacterial agents, protective coating agents, lubricants, boron neutron capture therapy agents, nanocarriers for drug delivery, and for the receptor phase in chemosensors. The investigations for their use in medicine and biomedicine are very promising, including cancer therapy and wound healing. In this review, 2D-BNNs synthesis and their surface modification strategies, biocompatibility, and bioapplication studies are discussed. Finally, a perspective for the future use of these novel nanomaterials in the biomedical field is provided.
The molecular stress caused by a drug administered to treat a disorder on healthy cells appears as a side effect. In this study, we aim to understand the potential of hexagonal boron nitrides (hBNs) as a therapeutic agent to relieve the cellular stress exerted by drugs. First, the cytotoxicity of hBNs and their possible degradation product, boric acid (BA), on the embryonic mouse hippocampal cell line mHippo E-14 was assessed in a wide concentration range (4.4-440 μg ml −1 ) of boron including hBNs and BA for 24 and 72 h exposure. Then, cell cycle, reactive oxygen species generation, cell death mechanism and apoptotic body formation in nuclei with hBN and BA exposure were evaluated at increased concentrations and incubation times. Finally, the cells, exposed to doxorubicin (DOX), an anti-cancer chemotherapy drug, to exert oxidative stress, were treated with hBNs and BA. The results indicate that hBNs decrease the oxidative stress at the concentrations that are nontoxic to cells. The study suggests that hBNs can open new venues for their investigation to reduce or eliminate the adverse effects of toxic drugs used in the treatment of several fatal diseases including neurological disorders and cancer with their slow degradation feature.
In this study, hexagonal boron nitrides (hBNs) and their degradation product, boric acid (BA), are comparatively evaluated to investigate their biocompatibility and oxidative stress relieving effects on embryonic mouse hippocampal cell line (mHippoE-14). First, cell viability is assessed for a wide concentration range of 4.40-440 μg/mL of boron (B) containing hBNs and BA for 24 and 72 h exposures. Then, cell cycle, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, and cell death mechanisms are investigated at a concentration range of 4.4-44 μg/mL with increased incubation times. Finally, the influence of hBNs and BA on apoptotic body formation is monitored to analyze their nuclei integrity with confocal microscopy. Both hBNs and BA are found to be not cytotoxic at lower than 22 µg/mL B containing concentrations, and hBNs are much less cytotoxic compared to BA. At low concentration of hBNs, no detectable change in cell cycle, ROS production and DNA damage are observed. The study was further extended by exposing the cells to doxorubicin (DOX) to cause stress on cells before treating with hBNs and BA to investigate their positive effect on cellular metabolism. It is found that both hBNs and BA helps to increase the cell viability after the exposure to DOX. The results are envisioning the exploitation of hBNs as biocompatible agents for their possible biomedical applications including mitigating oxidative stress caused by various drugs used for neurological diseases and brain cancers. Since hBNs slowly degrade in biological media, they can be used as a controlled B releasing agent as compared to ionic BA in addition to their nanocarrier feature.
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