Physical Properties of Biomolecules at the Nanomaterial Interface

Abstract

The unique size and material dependent properties of nanoparticles have made them highly attractive for biological and medical applications. However, combining nanoparticles with biomolecules and biological environments has faced many challenges. These interface issues often involve protein denaturation, steric hindrance, and orientational issues for the biomolecule, which can impair function and decrease overall performance of the nanoparticle-biomolecule conjugate. Historically, our understanding of the physical and chemical properties of nanoparticle-biomolecule conjugates as appropriate tools and experimental techniques had to be determined. We discuss here selected examples investigating the fundamental physical properties of the interface between nanoparticles and DNA and proteins and protein coronas and how they have provided insight into the properties of the biomolecule when it is interfaced to a nanoparticle.

Formation of a Monolayer Protein Corona around Polystyrene Nanoparticles and Implications for Nanoparticle Agglomeration

“…As a consequence, the NP interacts with its biological environment via this adsorption layer rather than its original surface . As NP‐based biomedical compounds are often designed to expose functional groups for specific interaction with biological targets, protein adsorption introduces an additional layer of complexity to their development . In recent years, however, researchers have devised strategies to control and exploit the protein corona to enable specific capabilities in biomedical applications …”

“…Owing to the enormous complexity of the processes involved in protein corona formation, its detailed exploration poses formidable challenges. Key properties of the protein corona have been revealed in recent years, but even fundamental issues are presently still controversially debated . NP–protein interactions can vary considerably in strength, depending on the properties of the protein and NP surfaces.…”

Cytotoxicity induced by new spiral mesoporous silica nanorods via specific surface area and ROS accumulation in HeLa cells

“…Nanomaterial has unique physio-chemical properties because of its small size and unusual structures. [30][31][32] Despite their potential ability to move to cells, the toxicity of this new type of nanomaterial is still rarely reported. In vitro responses of HeLa cells were applied to study the biological safety of MSNRs.…”

Global diffusion limitations during the initial phase of the formation of a protein corona around nanoparticles

“…Injection of nanoparticles (NPs) into biofluids, e.g., to blood, is accompanied by attachment of proteins. This phenomenon known as the protein-corona (PC) formation is rich with fundamental questions to explore and of high current interest from the perspective of various applications, and the past ten years have witnessed explosive growth of the research conducted in this area (reviewed in [1][2][3]). Due to the diversity of proteins, their attachment is competitive.…”

“…In addition, the attachment of proteins can be accompanied by their denaturation. Both these features of protein adsorption have long been well known in the conventional colloid and interface science [4,5], and their importance in the context of the PC formation around NPs is often acknowledged in experimental studies [1,2], mean-field kinetic models [6][7][8][9][10], and molecular dynamics simulations ( [11][12][13] and references therein). Despite the apparent abundance of experimental and theoretical studies of the PC formation around NPs, the understanding of the mechanistic details of this process is still incomplete.…”