Characterization, bio-uptake and toxicity of polymer-coated silver nanoparticles and their interaction with human peripheral blood mononuclear cells

Abstract

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are widely used in medical applications due to their antibacterial and antiviral properties. Despite the extensive study of AgNPs, their toxicity and their effect on human health is poorly understood, as a result of issues such as poor control of NP properties and lack of proper characterization. The aim of this study was to investigate the combined characterization, bio-uptake, and toxicity of well-characterized polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-coated AgNPs in exposure media during exposure time using primary human cells (peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs)). AgNPs were synthesized in-house and characterized using a multimethod approach. Results indicated the transformation of NPs in RPMI medium with a change in size and polydispersity over 24 h of exposure due to dissolution and reprecipitation. No aggregation of NPs was observed in the RPMI medium over the exposure time (24 h). A dose-dependent relationship between PBMC uptake and Ag concentration was detected for both AgNP and AgNO3 treatment. There was approximately a two-fold increase in cellular Ag uptake in the AgNO3 vs the NP treatment. Cytotoxicity, using LDH and MTS assays and based on exposure concentrations was not significantly different when comparing NPs and Ag ions. Based on differential uptake, AgNPs were more toxic after normalizing toxicity to the amount of cellular Ag uptake. Our data highlights the importance of correct synthesis, characterization, and study of transformations to obtain a better understanding of NP uptake and toxicity. Statistical analysis indicated that there might be an individual variability in response to NPs, although more research is required.

Changes in Number and Antibacterial Activity of Silver Nanoparticles on the Surface of Suture Materials during Cyclic Freezing

“…It is important to note that when using the developed technique of 10-fold cyclic freezing/thawing for individual specific fibers, for example, sericin-containing ones, it is possible to achieve the predominant formation of AgNPs with a diameter of less than 6 nm (up to 96.7%), which undoubtedly increases the possibility of regulating the size of nanoparticles on medical devices, expanding the possibilities of their application in practice [ 58 , 60 , 61 ], including increasing the antibacterial activity [ 62 ] due to their better stability and high biocompatibility with sericin.…”

Progress in the application of nanoparticles for the treatment of fungal infections: A review

“…albicans ), destruction of the mitochondrial respiratory chain and increase in ROS production destroy DNA structure. Another study evaluated the uptake and cytotoxicity of Ag NPs in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) using polyvinylpyrrolidone-coated Ag NPs and AgNO 3 controls and observed that compared with controls, Ag NPs were more toxic to PBMCs when normalised to the amount of cell-associated Ag (Pourhoseini et al 2021 ). Although higher concentrations of Ag NPs are advised for therapeutic applications, it contradicts the obtained toxicity data (Rajan et al 2022 ).…”

Enhanced Gold Nanoparticle-Tumor Cell Recognition by Albumin Multilayer Coating

“…Recently, cytotoxicity studies of different AgNPs [47] and SiO 2 NPs [48] on lymphocytes and monocytes from human blood (PBMC) have been reported as model biocompatibility assays. For this reason, the interaction of bioHNPs with PBMC was assessed by means of flow cytometry as a complementary in vitro study of the biocompatibility of these NPs.…”