Graphene oxide as a nanocarrier for loading and delivery of medicinal drugs and as a biosensor for detection of serum albumin

DNA repair genes play a variety of roles in the development of fish embryos

Embryogenesis is one of the most important life stages because it determines an organism's healthy growth. However, embryos of externally fertilizing species, such as most fish, are directly exposed to the environment during development and may be threatened by DNA damaging factors (pollutants, UV, reactive oxygen species). To counteract the negative effects of DNA fragmentation, fish embryos evolved complex damage response pathways. DNA repair pathways have been extensively studied in some fish species, such as zebrafish (Danio rerio). Our literature review, on the other hand, revealed a paucity of knowledge about DNA damage response and repair in non-model aquaculture fish species. Further, several pieces of evidence underlie the additional role of DNA repair genes and proteins in organogenesis, spatiotemporal localization in different tissue, and its indispensability for normal embryo development. In this review, we will summarize features of different DNA repair pathways in course of fish embryo development. We describe how the expression of DNA repair genes and proteins is regulated during development, their organogenetic roles, and how the expression of DNA repair genes changes in response to genotoxic stress. This will aid in addressing the link between genotoxic stress and embryo phenotype. Furthermore, available data indicate that embryos can repair damaged DNA, but the effects of early-life stress may manifest later in life as behavioral changes, neoplasia, or neurodegeneration. Overall, we conclude that more research on DNA repair in fish embryos is needed.

Antiproliferative and Apoptotic Effects of Graphene Oxide @AlFu MOF Based Saponin Natural Product on OSCC Line

The increasing rate of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and the undesirable side effects of anticancer agents have enhanced the demand for the development of efficient, detectable, and targeted anticancer systems. Saponins are a diverse family of natural glycosides that have recently been evaluated as an effective compound for the targeted therapy of squamous cell carcinoma. Due to their porous nature and stable structure, metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) are a well-known substance form for various biological applications, such as drug delivery. In this study, we fabricated a novel hybrid, highly porous and low-toxic saponin-loaded nanostructure by modifying graphene oxide (GO)/reduced GO (rGO) with aluminum fumarate (AlFu) as MOF core–shell nanocomposite. The characterization of the nanostructures was investigated by FTIR, TEM, EDX, FESEM, and BET. MTT assay was used to investigate the anticancer activity of these compounds on OSCC and PDL normal dental cells. The effect of the nanocomposites on OSCC was then investigated by studying apoptosis and necrosis using flow cytometry. The GO/rGO was decorated with a saponin–AlFu mixture to further investigate cytotoxicity. The results of the MTT assay showed that PDL cells treated with AlFu–GO–saponin at a concentration of 250 μg/mL had a viability of 74.46 ± 16.02%, while OSCC cells treated with this sample at a similar concentration had a viability of only 38.35 ± 19.9%. The anticancer effect of this nanostructure on OSCC was clearly demonstrated. Moreover, the number of apoptotic cells in the AlFu–GO–saponin and AlFu–rGO–saponin groups was 10.98 ± 2.36%–26.90 ± 3.24% and 15.9 ± 4.08%–29.88 ± 0.41%, respectively, compared with 2.52 ± 0.78%–1.31 ± 0.62% in the untreated group. This significant increase in apoptotic effect observed with AlFu–rGO–saponin was also reflected in the significant anticancer effect of saponin-loaded nanostructures. Therefore, this study suggests that an effective saponin delivery system protocol for the precise design and fabrication of anticancer nanostructures for OSCC therapy should be performed prior to in vivo evaluations.

Chemometrics in investigation of small molecule-biomacromolecule interactions: A review

Chemometrics is chemical discipline in which mathematical and statistical methods are coupled with chemical data to extract useful information which cannot be extracted by the use of conventional methods. When experimental techniques are assisted by chemometric methods, very interesting studies will be performed which enable us to obtain valuable information about the system under our study. Chemico-biological interactions are very useful studies which are performed to obtain information about binding of small molecules with biological macromolecules. Recently, these studies have been assisted by chemometric methods to perform advanced studies which can help us to have a deep insight to them. Literature survey showed us that multivariate analysis of the chemico-biological interactions is becoming popular and nowadays, chemometricians are using multivariate chemometric methods for resolving chemico-biological interactions. This article focuses on the works published in the literature to provide a background for those who are interested to work in this field and finally, the results will be discussed and concluded.

Graphene oxide loaded with tumor-targeted peptide and anti-cancer drugs for cancer target therapy

In the present work, we constructed nanoscale graphene oxide (NGO) as a drug nanocarrier to improve the process of tumor-targeted drug releases, promote cellular uptake and accumulation of chemotherapy drugs in tumor tissues, and reduce the toxic effects of chemotherapy drugs on normal cells. Hence, great stability was obtained in the biological solution. Moreover, we designed an effective nanoparticle system for the doxorubicin (DOX) delivery targeting the oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) by mediating the HN-1 (TSPLNIHNGQKL) through hydrogen and π–π bonds. DOX@NGO-PEG-HN-1 showed significantly higher cellular uptakes and cytotoxicity in OSCC cells (CAL-27 and SCC-25), compared to free DOX. Moreover, HN-1 showed considerable tumor-targeting and competition inhibition phenomenon. As we expected, the nanocarrier showed pH-responsive drug release. In total, our study represented a good technique to construct OSCC-targeted delivery of nanoparticles and improve the anticancer medicines’ efficiency.

Fatty acid transfer between serum albumins and shungite carbon nanoparticles and its effect on protein aggregation and association

The bioactivity of the natural ultrafine carbon form shungite nanocarbon (ShC) is of particular interest both for biomedical applications of such nanomaterials and their negative impact on the aquatic environmental. Here we studied the interaction of serum albumin (SA) with ShC nanoparticles in aqueous dispersion with respect to its structural-dynamic, thermodynamic, and hydrodynamic effects. Electron spin resonance (EPR) with a 5-DOXYL-stearic acid spin probe (5DSA) demonstrates that ShC can affect fatty acid (FA) binding by SA, protein conformation in the stearic FA spin probe binding region, and protein aggregation due to the partial transfer of FA to the ShC nanoparticles. The ratio of SA fractions changes in the presence of ShC in favor of the fraction that is less saturated with FA as shown by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The stability of interaction with ShC is significantly higher for aggregates of SA molecules that carry physiological amounts of FA, compared to aggregates of the FA-free protein, as studied by dynamic light scattering (DLS) analysis. Generally, the mixed dispersion of SA and ShC nanoparticles is more homogeneous than the SA solution alone. This is manifested both in the size of the molecular associates and in the microenvironment of the protein-bound FA. The formation of the SA-ShC interface is likely to result in a greater uniformity of the FA binding sites and a decrease in protein fractions and "hot patches" on the protein surface responsible for the supramolecular heterogeneity of the protein in solution.

Carbon Nanomaterials in Optical Detection

Owing to their unique optical, electronic, mechanical, and chemical properties, flexible chemical modification, large surface coverage and ready cellular uptake, various carbon nanomaterials such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs), graphene and its derivatives, carbon dots (CDs), graphene quantum dots, fullerenes, carbon nanohorns (CNHs) and carbon nano-onions (CNOs), have been widely explored for use in optical detection. Most of them are based on fluorescence changes. In this chapter, we will focus on carbon nanomaterials-based optical detection applications, mainly including fluorescence sensing and bio-imaging. Moreover, perspectives on future exploration of carbon nanomaterials for optical detection are also given.

Graphene oxide nanosheets induce DNA damage and activate the base excision repair (BER) signaling pathway both in vitro and in vivo

Graphene oxide (GO) has widespread concerns in the fields of biological sciences and medical applications. Currently, studies have reported that excessive GO exposure can cause cellular DNA damage through reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. However, DNA damage mediated response of the base excision repair (BER) pathway due to GO exposure is not elucidated yet. Therefore, we exposed HEK293T cells and zebrafish embryos to different concentrations of GO for 24 h, and transcriptional profiles of BER pathway genes, DNA damage, and cell viability were analyzed both in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, the deformation of HEK293T cells before and after GO exposure was also investigated using atomic force microscopy (AFM) to identify the physical changes occurred in the cells' structure. CCK-8 and Comet assay revealed the significant decrease in cell viability and increase in DNA damage in HEK293T cells at higher GO doses (25 and 50 μg/mL). Among the investigated genetic markers in HEK293T cells, BER pathway genes (APEX1, OGG1, CREB1, UNG) were significantly up-regulated upon exposure to higher GO dose (50 μg/mL), however, low exposure concentration (5, 25 μg/mL) failed to induce significant genetic induction except for CREB1 at 25 μg/mL. Additionally, the viscosity of HEK293T cells decreased upon GO exposure. In zebrafish, the results of up-regulated gene expressions (apex1, ogg1, polb, creb1) were consistent with those in the HEK293T cells. Taken all together, the exposure to elevated GO concentration could cause DNA damage to HEK293T cells and zebrafish embryos; BER pathway could be proposed as the possible inner response mechanism.

The application of graphene oxidized combining with decellularized scaffold to repair of sciatic nerve injury in rats

This paper combined the decellularized scaffold of sciatic nerve of rats with graphene oxidized (GO), studied and facilitated the regeneration of sciatic nerve of rats, and provided the basis for the clinical application of nanomaterials. GO was prepared through improving Hammer’s Method. Fourier Infrared Spectrum was used to scan and detect the functional groups in GO of sample by using the pellet method, the microcosmic morphological appearance of GO was observed by using the scanning electron microscope. The GO/decellularized scaffold were prepared and operation bridging of injured sciatic nerve was conducted by using the oscillation mixing method. BL-420F Biofunctional Experiment System was used to detect nerve action potential and the maximum tension value of muscles, and the fiber structure of nerve was observed under H-7650 Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM). Scanning electron microscope observed that GO presented a folded and curly single-layer sheet structure. It was soluble in water through ultrasound, brownish, the Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer detected the absorption peaks of carbonyl, hydroxy and carboxy, proving that the surface of GO material had many functional groups containing oxygen. Decellularized scaffold combining with GO was applied to repair injury of sciatic nerve, the nerve action potential, maximum tension value of muscle, wet weight value of gastrocnemius, thickness of gastrocnemius, thickness of myelin sheath and diameter of axon of the decellularized scaffold combining with GO group were obviously higher than the decellularized scaffold group and the self-rotating group, approaching to the normal value. All the data were represented by means ± standard deviation (x¯±s) and processed by adopting SPSS 11.0 software. Comparisons among groups were analyzed by variance, and the comparison of two means was detected by student t. The detection level adopted α = 0.05, when P < 0.05, it could be considered that there were significant differences. GO could combine with the biomaterial-decellularized scaffold to repair the injury of sciatic nerve and facilitate the regeneration of injured nerve. This provided new thoughts and theoretical & experimental bases for nanomaterials to be applied to clinic treatment of repair of nerve injury.

Interaction between 8-methoxypsoralen and trypsin: Monitoring by spectroscopic, chemometrics and molecular docking approaches

8-Methoxypsoralen (8-MOP) is a naturally occurring furanocoumarin with various biological activities. However, there is little information on the binding mechanism of 8-MOP with trypsin. Here, the interaction between 8-MOP and trypsin in vitro was determined by multi-spectroscopic methods combined with the multivariate curve resolution-alternating least squares (MCR-ALS) chemometrics approach. An expanded UV-vis spectral data matrix was analysed by MCR-ALS, the concentration profiles and pure spectra for the three reaction species (trypsin, 8-MOP and 8-MOP-trypsin) were obtained to monitor the interaction between 8-MOP and trypsin. The fluorescence data suggested that a static type of quenching mechanism occurred in the binding of 8-MOP to trypsin. Hydrophobic interaction dominated the formation of the 8-MOP-trypsin complex on account of the positive enthalpy and entropy changes, and trypsin had one high affinity binding site for 8-MOP with a binding constant of 3.81×10⁴Lmol^-1 at 298K. Analysis of three dimensional fluorescence, UV-vis absorption and circular dichroism spectra indicated that the addition of 8-MOP induced the rearrangement of the polypeptides carbonyl hydrogen-bonding network and the conformational changes in trypsin. The molecular docking predicted that 8-MOP interacted with the catalytic residues His57, Asp102 and Ser195 in trypsin. The binding patterns and trypsin conformational changes may result in the inhibition of trypsin activity. This study has provided insights into the binding mechanism of 8-MOP with trypsin.

GO-PEG as a drug nanocarrier and its antiproliferative effect on human cervical cancer cell line

The graphene oxide nanosheets can act as a nanocarrier for the delivery of therapeutic agents. The PEGylated GO has high solubility, good stability, and more biocompatibility in physiological solutions. In this study, the anticancer effects of synthesized GO-PEG as a drug nanocarrier evaluated to estimate the synergistic cytotoxic effect of drugs loaded on this type of nanocarrier and to determine the actual effect of any drugs encapsulated on it. The cytotoxic effects of GO-PEG nanosheets were evaluated on HeLa cell line by MTT assay. The results exhibited cytotoxic property of PEGylated GO drug nanocarrier significantly is dose dependent and incubation time dependent.

Merocyanine 540 adsorbed on polyethylenimine-functionalized graphene oxide nanocomposites as a turn-on fluorescent sensor for bovine serum albumin

We suggest a simple, fast, sensitive and selective BSA sensor designed by assembling MC540 molecules on PEI–GO nanocomposites.

Binding characteristics of psoralen with trypsin: Insights from spectroscopic and molecular modeling studies

Psoralen (PSO) is a naturally occurring furanocoumarin with a variety of pharmacological activities, however very limited information on the interaction of PSO with trypsin is available. In this study, the binding characteristics between PSO and trypsin at physiological pH were investigated using a combination of fluorescence, UV-vis absorption, circular dichroism (CD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopic, chemometric and molecular modeling approaches. It was found that the fluorescence quenching of trypsin by PSO was a static quenching procedure, ascribing the formation of a PSO-trypsin complex. The binding of PSO to trypsin was driven mainly by hydrophobic forces as the positive enthalpy change and entropy change values. The molecular docking showed that PSO inserted into the active site pocket of trypsin to interact with the catalytic residues His57, Asp102 and Ser195 and may cause a decrease in trypsin activity. The results of CD and FT-IR spectra along with the temperature-induced denaturation studies indicated that the addition of PSO to trypsin led to the changes in the secondary structure of the enzyme. The concentration profiles and spectra of the three components (PSO, trypsin, and PSO-trypsin complex) obtained by multivariate curve resolution-alternating least squares analysis exhibited the kinetic processes of PSO-trypsin interaction. This study will be helpful to understand the mechanism of PSO that affects the conformation and activity of trypsin in biological processes.

Recent applications of carbon nanomaterials in fluorescence biosensing and bioimaging

A review of recent applications of carbon nanomaterials in fluorescence biosensing and bioimaging.

GO-COO-HP-β-CD nanosphere: a complex construction and its drug-loading properties

A novel nanosphere based on carboxylated GO (GO-COOH) and hydroxypropyl-beta-CD (HP-β-CD) was synthesized to construct a complex of GO-COO-HP-β-CD. The complex formation process was studied using spectral characterization and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). X-ray diffraction and energy dispersive spectroscopy patterns show that HP-β-CD molecules either cover or intercalate into GO-COOH interlayers in the complex. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy results indicate that GO-COOH and HP-β-CD are linked with covalent bonds formed via esterification. When employed as nanohybrid drug carriers for dexamethasone, the inclusion displays good dispersibility validated by dynamic light scattering (DLS). Cytotoxicity assays and hemolysis testing demonstrate that the nanospheres possess good biological compatibility. The loading capacity of dexamethasone is as high as 32.33%, with loading efficiency 64.66%.

Cytotoxicity of graphene oxide and graphene oxide loaded with doxorubicin on human multiple myeloma cells

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cytotoxicity of human multiple myeloma cells (RPMI-8226) treated with graphene oxide (GO), doxorubicin (DOX), and GO loaded with DOX (GO/DOX). Cell viability was determined using the Cell Counting Kit-8 assay and analyzing the cell cycle and cell apoptosis. Cells treated with GO, GO/DOX, and pure DOX for 24 hours showed a decrease in proliferation. GO/DOX significantly inhibited cell proliferation as compared with pure DOX (P<0.01). When the effects of GO were removed, there was no observed difference between GO/DOX and pure DOX (P>0.05). Flow cytometry analysis of untreated and GO-, DOX-, and GO/DOX-treated cells found no significant differences in the G0/G1 phase (P>0.05), while significant differences were observed in the total apoptotic rates (P<0.05). No significant differences existed in the total apoptotic rates of GO-treated and untreated cells (P>0.05). These findings suggest that GO caused low cytotoxicity and did not induce cell apoptosis or change the cell cycle in multiple myeloma cells. Moreover, GO did not affect the antitumor activity of DOX. In conclusion, GO would be suitable as an anticancer drug nanocarrier and used to treat hematological malignancies.