Size‐Dependent Cellular Uptake of DNA Functionalized Gold Nanoparticles

Abstract

The extensive use of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) in nanomedicine, especially for intracellular imaging, photothermal therapy, and drug delivery, has necessitated the study of how functionalized AuNPs engage with living biological interfaces like the mammalian cell. Nanoparticle size, shape, surface charge, and surface functionality can affect the accumulation of functionalized AuNPs in cells. Confocal microscopy, flow cytometry, and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry demonstrate that CaSki cells, a human cervical cancer cell line, internalize AuNPs functionalized with hairpin, single stranded, and double stranded DNA differently. Surface charge and DNA conformation are shown to have no effect on the cell-nanoparticle interaction. CaSki cells accumulate small DNA-AuNPs in greater quantities than large DNA-AuNPs, demonstrating that size is the major contributor to cellular uptake properties. These data suggest that DNA-AuNPs can be easily tailored through modulation of size to design functional AuNPs with optimal cellular uptake properties and enhanced performance in nanomedicine applications.

Four-wave-mixing microscopy reveals non-colocalisation between gold nanoparticles and fluorophore conjugates inside cells

“…1 as a maximum amplitude projection over a 5 μm z-stack is background-free (throughout the z-stack) and clearly indicates the location of well-separated individual AuNPs in the cell. Note that the observed AuNP density in the ∼100 AuNPs per cell is consistent with the rate of uptake reported by Wong et al 17 taking into account the AuNP size, concentration (7 × 10 10 AuNP per mL) and AuNP uptake time (10 min) used here.…”

“…a protein ligand, nucleotide, peptide, antibody) is attached onto the AuNP surface, and its uptake and intracellular fate is followed in situ in real time by fluorescence microscopy. These conjugates hold great potential in increasing our understanding of the cellular entry mechanisms of nanoparticles, how they are affected by the nanoparticle size, 17 and what intracellular events occur subsequent to cell entry. These are key fundamental questions that need to be addressed if nanoparticles are to be developed as effective drug delivery systems.…”

The Effect of shape on Cellular Uptake of Gold Nanoparticles in the forms of Stars, Rods, and Triangles

“…For our research, we used RAW264.7 cells, which are mouse leukaemic monocyte macrophage 24 . Different from commonly used cancerous cells such as HeLa cells and breast cancer cells 11, 12, 23, 28–31 , RAW264.7 might be another cell model for the study of cellular uptake of GNPs. Arnida et al .…”

DNA Nanostructures Coordinate Gene Silencing in Mature Plants

“…DNA nanostructures have been extensively studied in animal systems for cell internalization, intracellular delivery, and for downstream diagnostic and therapeutic applications owing to their unique sequence-structure programmability and inherent biocompatibility (23-25, 51, 52). Prior work has focused on studying DNA nanostructure internalization in mammalian cells, and has revealed that nanostructure size, shape, charge, and stiffness or compactness can influence the cellular internalization and uptake pathway (34,51,53,54). Analogous work in plant systems is lacking, where a few studies have reported the biolistic or passive uptake, translocation, or localization of engineered nanoparticles (carbon nanotubes, SiO 2 , quantum dots, TiO 2 NPs) to plants (13,14,28,32,33,55), while DNA nanostructure use in plants remains unexplored.…”