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Song Q, Li J, Li T, Li HW. Nanomaterials that Aid in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Alzheimer's Disease, Resolving Blood-Brain Barrier Crossing Ability. ADVANCED SCIENCE (WEINHEIM, BADEN-WURTTEMBERG, GERMANY) 2024:e2403473. [PMID: 39101248 DOI: 10.1002/advs.202403473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2024] [Revised: 07/04/2024] [Indexed: 08/06/2024]
Abstract
As a form of dementia, Alzheimer's disease (AD) suffers from no efficacious cure, yet AD treatment is still imperative, as it ameliorates the symptoms or prevents it from deteriorating or maintains the current status to the longest extent. The human brain is the most sensitive and complex organ in the body, which is protected by the blood-brain barrier (BBB). This yet induces the difficulty in curing AD as the drugs or nanomaterials that are much inhibited from reaching the lesion site. Thus, BBB crossing capability of drug delivery system remains a significant challenge in the development of neurological therapeutics. Fortunately, nano-enabled delivery systems possess promising potential to achieve multifunctional diagnostics/therapeutics against various targets of AD owing to their intriguing advantages of nanocarriers, including easy multifunctionalization on surfaces, high surface-to-volume ratio with large payloads, and potential ability to cross the BBB, making them capable of conquering the limitations of conventional drug candidates. This review, which focuses on the BBB crossing ability of the multifunctional nanomaterials in AD diagnosis and treatment, will provide an insightful vision that is conducive to the development of AD-related nanomaterials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qingting Song
- Department of Chemistry, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Junyou Li
- Department of Chemistry, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Ting Li
- Department of Chemistry, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Hung-Wing Li
- Department of Chemistry, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
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2
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Zha S, Liu H, Li H, Li H, Wong KL, All AH. Functionalized Nanomaterials Capable of Crossing the Blood-Brain Barrier. ACS NANO 2024; 18:1820-1845. [PMID: 38193927 PMCID: PMC10811692 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.3c10674] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 12/22/2023] [Indexed: 01/10/2024]
Abstract
The blood-brain barrier (BBB) is a specialized semipermeable structure that highly regulates exchanges between the central nervous system parenchyma and blood vessels. Thus, the BBB also prevents the passage of various forms of therapeutic agents, nanocarriers, and their cargos. Recently, many multidisciplinary studies focus on developing cargo-loaded nanoparticles (NPs) to overcome these challenges, which are emerging as safe and effective vehicles in neurotheranostics. In this Review, first we introduce the anatomical structure and physiological functions of the BBB. Second, we present the endogenous and exogenous transport mechanisms by which NPs cross the BBB. We report various forms of nanomaterials, carriers, and their cargos, with their detailed BBB uptake and permeability characteristics. Third, we describe the effect of regulating the size, shape, charge, and surface ligands of NPs that affect their BBB permeability, which can be exploited to enhance and promote neurotheranostics. We classify typical functionalized nanomaterials developed for BBB crossing. Fourth, we provide a comprehensive review of the recent progress in developing functional polymeric nanomaterials for applications in multimodal bioimaging, therapeutics, and drug delivery. Finally, we conclude by discussing existing challenges, directions, and future perspectives in employing functionalized nanomaterials for BBB crossing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuai Zha
- Hubei
University of Chinese Medicine, School of
Laboratory Medicine, 16
Huangjia Lake West Road, Wuhan 430065, China
- Hubei
Shizhen Laboratory, Wuhan 430061, China
| | - Haitao Liu
- Hong
Kong Baptist University, Department of Chemistry, Ho Sin Hang Campus, 224 Waterloo
Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Hengde Li
- Hong
Kong Baptist University, Department of Chemistry, Ho Sin Hang Campus, 224 Waterloo
Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Haolan Li
- Dalian
University of Technology School of Chemical
Engineering, Lingshui
Street, Ganjingzi District, Dalian 116024, China
| | - Ka-Leung Wong
- The
Hong Kong Polytechnic University Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, Building Y815, 11 Yuk Choi Road, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Angelo Homayoun All
- Hong
Kong Baptist University, Department of Chemistry, Ho Sin Hang Campus, 224 Waterloo
Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
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Wu DD, Salah YA, Ngowi EE, Zhang YX, Khattak S, Khan NH, Wang Y, Li T, Guo ZH, Wang YM, Ji XY. Nanotechnology prospects in brain therapeutics concerning gene-targeting and nose-to-brain administration. iScience 2023; 26:107321. [PMID: 37554468 PMCID: PMC10405259 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.107321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Neurological diseases are one of the most pressing issues in modern times worldwide. It thus possesses explicit attention from researchers and medical health providers to guard public health against such an expanding threat. Various treatment modalities have been developed in a remarkably short time but, unfortunately, have yet to lead to the wished-for efficacy or the sought-after clinical improvement. The main hurdle in delivering therapeutics to the brain has always been the blood-brain barrier which still represents an elusive area with lots of mysteries yet to be solved. Meanwhile, nanotechnology has emerged as an optimistic platform that is potentially holding the answer to many of our questions on how to deliver drugs and treat CNS disorders using novel technologies rather than the unsatisfying conventional old methods. Nanocarriers can be engineered in a way that is capable of delivering a certain therapeutic cargo to a specific target tissue. Adding to this mind-blowing nanotechnology, the revolutionizing gene-altering biologics can have the best of both worlds, and pave the way for the long-awaited cure to many diseases, among those diseases thus far are Alzheimer's disease (AD), brain tumors (glioma and glioblastoma), Down syndrome, stroke, and even cases with HIV. The review herein collects the studies that tested the mixture of both sciences, nanotechnology, and epigenetics, in the context of brain therapeutics using three main categories of gene-altering molecules (siRNA, miRNA, and CRISPR) with a special focus on the advancements regarding the new favorite, intranasal route of administration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dong-Dong Wu
- Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nuclear Protein Regulation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
- School of Stomatology, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
| | - Yasmine Ahmed Salah
- Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nuclear Protein Regulation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
- Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo 11517, Egypt
| | - Ebenezeri Erasto Ngowi
- Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nuclear Protein Regulation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
- Department of Biological Sciences, Dar es Salaam University College of Education, Dar es Salaam 2329, Tanzania
| | - Yan-Xia Zhang
- Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nuclear Protein Regulation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
| | - Saadullah Khattak
- Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nuclear Protein Regulation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
- School of Life Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
| | - Nazeer Hussain Khan
- Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nuclear Protein Regulation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
- School of Life Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
| | - Yan Wang
- Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nuclear Protein Regulation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
| | - Tao Li
- Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nuclear Protein Regulation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
| | - Zi-Hua Guo
- Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nuclear Protein Regulation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
- Department of Neurology, Kaifeng Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475000, China
| | - Yan-Mei Wang
- Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nuclear Protein Regulation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
- School of Nursing and Health, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
| | - Xin-Ying Ji
- Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nuclear Protein Regulation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
- Kaifeng Key Laboratory of Infection and Biological Safety, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, China
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Surface-modified lipid nanocarriers for crossing the blood-brain barrier (BBB): a current overview of active targeting in brain diseases. Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces 2022; 221:112999. [DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfb.2022.112999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2022] [Revised: 10/26/2022] [Accepted: 10/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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5
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Pereira ELR, Feio DCA, Tavares JPL, Morikawa NM, Deus DF, Vital CG, Tavares ER, Maranhão RC. Uptake of lipid core nanoparticles by fragments of tissues collected during cerebral tumor excision surgeries: hypotheses for use in drug targeting therapy. J Neurooncol 2022; 158:413-421. [PMID: 35612697 DOI: 10.1007/s11060-022-04028-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2022] [Accepted: 05/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Malignant cerebral tumors have poor prognosis and the blood-brain barrier is a major hindrance for most drugs to reach those tumors. Lipid nanoparticles (LDE) that bind to lipoprotein receptors may carry anticancer drugs and penetrate the cells through those receptors that are overexpressed in gliomas. The aim was to investigate the in vivo uptake of LDE by human cerebral tumors. METHODS Twelve consecutive patients (4 with glioblastomas, 1 meduloblastoma, 1 primary lymphoma, 2 with non-cerebral metastases and 4 with benign tumors) scheduled for tumor excision surgery were injected intravenously, 12 h before surgery, with LDE labeled 14C-cholesterol oleate. Fragments of tumors and of normal head tissues (muscle, periosteum, dura mater) discarded by the surgeon were submitted to lipid extraction and radioactive counting. RESULTS Tumor LDE uptake (range: 10-283 d.p.m./g of tissue) was not lower than that of normal tissues (range: 20-263 d.p.m./g). Malignant tumor uptake was threefold greater than benign tumor uptake (140 ± 93 vs 46 ± 18 d.p.m./g, p < 0.05). Results show that LDE can concentrate in brain malignant tumors and may be used to carry drugs directed against those tumors. CONCLUSION As LDE was previously shown to markedly decrease drug toxicity this new therapeutic strategy should be tested in future trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edmundo Luís Rodrigues Pereira
- Servico de Cirurgia, Nucleo de Pesquisas em Neurooncologia, Hospital Universitario Joao de Barros Barreto, Universidade Federal do Para, Belem, Para, Brazil
| | | | - João Pojucan Lobo Tavares
- Servico de Cirurgia, Nucleo de Pesquisas em Neurooncologia, Hospital Universitario Joao de Barros Barreto, Universidade Federal do Para, Belem, Para, Brazil
| | - Natalia Megumi Morikawa
- Servico de Cirurgia, Nucleo de Pesquisas em Neurooncologia, Hospital Universitario Joao de Barros Barreto, Universidade Federal do Para, Belem, Para, Brazil
| | - Debora Fernandes Deus
- Instituto do Coracao (InCor), Hospital das Clinicas HCFMUSP, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Sao Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Carolina Graziani Vital
- Instituto do Coracao (InCor), Hospital das Clinicas HCFMUSP, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Sao Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Elaine Rufo Tavares
- Instituto do Coracao (InCor), Hospital das Clinicas HCFMUSP, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Sao Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Raul Cavalcante Maranhão
- Instituto do Coracao (InCor), Hospital das Clinicas HCFMUSP, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Sao Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil. .,Faculdade de Ciencias Farmaceuticas, Universidade de Sao Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil. .,Instituto Nacional de Ciencias e Tecnologia em Fluidos Complexos (INCT-FCx), São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil. .,Laboratório de Metabolismo e Lípides, Instituto do Coração (InCor) do Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo (HCFMUSP), Av. Dr. Enéas de Carvalho Aguiar, 44, bloco 2, 1º subsolo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
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6
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Kouhi A, Pachipulusu V, Kapenstein T, Hu P, Epstein AL, Khawli LA. Brain Disposition of Antibody-Based Therapeutics: Dogma, Approaches and Perspectives. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22126442. [PMID: 34208575 PMCID: PMC8235515 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22126442] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2021] [Revised: 06/10/2021] [Accepted: 06/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Due to their high specificity, monoclonal antibodies have been widely investigated for their application in drug delivery to the central nervous system (CNS) for the treatment of neurological diseases such as stroke, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s disease. Research in the past few decades has revealed that one of the biggest challenges in the development of antibodies for drug delivery to the CNS is the presence of blood–brain barrier (BBB), which acts to restrict drug delivery and contributes to the limited uptake (0.1–0.2% of injected dose) of circulating antibodies into the brain. This article reviews the various methods currently used for antibody delivery to the CNS at the preclinical stage of development and the underlying mechanisms of BBB penetration. It also describes efforts to improve or modulate the physicochemical and biochemical properties of antibodies (e.g., charge, Fc receptor binding affinity, and target affinity), to adapt their pharmacokinetics (PK), and to influence their distribution and disposition into the brain. Finally, a distinction is made between approaches that seek to modify BBB permeability and those that use a physiological approach or antibody engineering to increase uptake in the CNS. Although there are currently inherent difficulties in developing safe and efficacious antibodies that will cross the BBB, the future prospects of brain-targeted delivery of antibody-based agents are believed to be excellent.
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7
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Jia J, Wang Z, Yue T, Su G, Teng C, Yan B. Crossing Biological Barriers by Engineered Nanoparticles. Chem Res Toxicol 2020; 33:1055-1060. [PMID: 32223181 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrestox.9b00483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) may cause toxicity if they cross various biological barriers and are accumulated in vital organs. Which factors affect barrier crossing efficiency of ENPs are crucial to understand. Here, we present strong data showing that various nanoparticles crossed biological barriers to enter vital animal organs and cause toxicity. We also point out that physicochemical properties of ENPs, modifications of ENPs in biofluid, and physiological and pathological conditions of the body all affect barrier crossing efficiency. We also summarized our limited understanding of the related mechanisms. On the basis of this summary, major research gaps and direction of further efforts are then discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianbo Jia
- Key Laboratory for Water Quality and Conservation of the Pearl River Delta, Ministry of Education, Institute of Environmental Research at Greater Bay, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Zengjin Wang
- School of Public Health, Shandong University, Jinan 250100, China
| | - Tongtao Yue
- Center for Bioengineering and Biotechnology, State Key Laboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, College of Chemical Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao 266580, China
| | - Gaoxing Su
- School of Pharmacy, Nantong University, Nantong 226001, China
| | - Chuanfeng Teng
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Shandong University, Jinan 250100, China
| | - Bing Yan
- Key Laboratory for Water Quality and Conservation of the Pearl River Delta, Ministry of Education, Institute of Environmental Research at Greater Bay, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou 510006, China.,School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Jinan 250100, China
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8
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Dwivedi N, Shah J, Mishra V, Tambuwala M, Kesharwani P. Nanoneuromedicine for management of neurodegenerative disorder. J Drug Deliv Sci Technol 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jddst.2018.12.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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9
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Saeedi M, Eslamifar M, Khezri K, Dizaj SM. Applications of nanotechnology in drug delivery to the central nervous system. Biomed Pharmacother 2019; 111:666-675. [PMID: 30611991 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2018.12.133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 163] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2018] [Revised: 12/21/2018] [Accepted: 12/30/2018] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
In recent years, the researchers and drug designers have given growing attention to new nanotechnology strategies to improve drug delivery to the central nervous system (CNS). Nanotechnology has a great potential to affect the treatment of neurological disorders, mainly Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, brain tumors, and stroke. With regard to neurodegeneration, several studies showed that nanomaterials have been successfully used for the treatments of CNS disorders. In this regard, nanocarriers have facilitated the targeted delivery of chemotherapeutics resulting in the efficient inhibition of disease progression in malignant brain tumors. Therefore, the most efficacious application of nanomaterials is the use of these substances in the treatment of CNS disease that enhances the overall effect of drug and highlights the importance of nano-therapeutics. This study was conducted to review the evidence on the applications of nanotechnology in designing drug delivery systems with the ability to cross through the blood-brain barrier (BBB) in order to transfer the therapeutic agents to the CNS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Majid Saeedi
- Department of Pharmaceutics, Faculty of Pharmacy, Mazandaran University of Medical Science, Sari, Iran
| | - Masoumeh Eslamifar
- Department of Environmental Health Engineering, Faculty of Health, Mazandaran University of Medical Science, Sari, Iran.
| | - Khadijeh Khezri
- Student Research Committee, Department of Pharmaceutics, Faculty of Pharmacy, Mazandaran University of Medical Science, Sari, Iran..
| | - Solmaz Maleki Dizaj
- Dental and Periodontal Research Center and Student Research Committee, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
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10
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Meng H, Leong W, Leong KW, Chen C, Zhao Y. Walking the line: The fate of nanomaterials at biological barriers. Biomaterials 2018; 174:41-53. [PMID: 29778981 PMCID: PMC5984195 DOI: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2018.04.056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 101] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/25/2017] [Revised: 04/15/2018] [Accepted: 04/30/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Biological systems have developed an efficient multi-tiered defense system to block foreign substances such as engineered nanomaterials (NMs) from causing damage. In a pathological scenario, the disease itself may also pose additional barriers due to the imbalance between abnormal cells and their surrounding microenvironment, and NMs could behave similarly or differently to classic foreign substances, depending on their unique characteristics. Thus, understanding the mechanisms that govern the fate of NMs against these biological barriers, including the strategies that can be used to shift their fate between access and blockage, become key information for NMs design. In this manuscript, we first describe the biological barriers that NMs may encounter, and further discuss how these biological barrier interactions could shift the fate of NMs between toxicity and therapeutic potential. A list of effects that may influence NMs access at nano/bio interface are presented and discussed, followed by personal insights on the important nano/bio topics that require additional research for a better understanding of NM/biological barrier interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huan Meng
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanosciences and Technology of China, Beijing 100190, China; Department of Medicine, Division of NanoMedicine, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Wei Leong
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Columbia University, New York, NY 10025, USA
| | - Kam W Leong
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Columbia University, New York, NY 10025, USA
| | - Chunying Chen
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanosciences and Technology of China, Beijing 100190, China; Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yuliang Zhao
- CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanosciences and Technology of China, Beijing 100190, China; Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
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11
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Bramini M, Alberini G, Colombo E, Chiacchiaretta M, DiFrancesco ML, Maya-Vetencourt JF, Maragliano L, Benfenati F, Cesca F. Interfacing Graphene-Based Materials With Neural Cells. Front Syst Neurosci 2018; 12:12. [PMID: 29695956 PMCID: PMC5904258 DOI: 10.3389/fnsys.2018.00012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2018] [Accepted: 03/26/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The scientific community has witnessed an exponential increase in the applications of graphene and graphene-based materials in a wide range of fields, from engineering to electronics to biotechnologies and biomedical applications. For what concerns neuroscience, the interest raised by these materials is two-fold. On one side, nanosheets made of graphene or graphene derivatives (graphene oxide, or its reduced form) can be used as carriers for drug delivery. Here, an important aspect is to evaluate their toxicity, which strongly depends on flake composition, chemical functionalization and dimensions. On the other side, graphene can be exploited as a substrate for tissue engineering. In this case, conductivity is probably the most relevant amongst the various properties of the different graphene materials, as it may allow to instruct and interrogate neural networks, as well as to drive neural growth and differentiation, which holds a great potential in regenerative medicine. In this review, we try to give a comprehensive view of the accomplishments and new challenges of the field, as well as which in our view are the most exciting directions to take in the immediate future. These include the need to engineer multifunctional nanoparticles (NPs) able to cross the blood-brain-barrier to reach neural cells, and to achieve on-demand delivery of specific drugs. We describe the state-of-the-art in the use of graphene materials to engineer three-dimensional scaffolds to drive neuronal growth and regeneration in vivo, and the possibility of using graphene as a component of hybrid composites/multi-layer organic electronics devices. Last but not least, we address the need of an accurate theoretical modeling of the interface between graphene and biological material, by modeling the interaction of graphene with proteins and cell membranes at the nanoscale, and describing the physical mechanism(s) of charge transfer by which the various graphene materials can influence the excitability and physiology of neural cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mattia Bramini
- Center for Synaptic Neuroscience and Technology, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy.,Graphene Labs, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
| | - Giulio Alberini
- Center for Synaptic Neuroscience and Technology, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy.,Department of Experimental Medicine, Università degli Studi di Genova, Genova, Italy
| | - Elisabetta Colombo
- Center for Synaptic Neuroscience and Technology, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy.,Graphene Labs, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
| | - Martina Chiacchiaretta
- Center for Synaptic Neuroscience and Technology, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy.,Department of Experimental Medicine, Università degli Studi di Genova, Genova, Italy
| | - Mattia L DiFrancesco
- Center for Synaptic Neuroscience and Technology, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy.,Graphene Labs, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
| | - José F Maya-Vetencourt
- Center for Synaptic Neuroscience and Technology, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
| | - Luca Maragliano
- Center for Synaptic Neuroscience and Technology, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
| | - Fabio Benfenati
- Center for Synaptic Neuroscience and Technology, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy.,Graphene Labs, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy.,Department of Experimental Medicine, Università degli Studi di Genova, Genova, Italy
| | - Fabrizia Cesca
- Center for Synaptic Neuroscience and Technology, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy.,Graphene Labs, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
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12
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Thomas SS, Coleman M, Carroll E, Polo E, Meder F, Dawson KA. Locating Reactive Groups on Nanomaterials with Gold Nanoclusters: Toward a Surface Reactive Site Map. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2017; 33:5086-5097. [PMID: 28463506 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b00952] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Nanoparticles (NPs) are often functionalized with reactive groups such as amines and thiols for the subsequent conjugation of further molecules, e.g., stabilizing polymers, drugs, and proteins for targeting cells or specific diseases. In addition to the quantitative estimation of the reactive conjugation sites, their molecular positioning and nanoscale arrangement on single nanoparticles become more and more important for the tailored engineering and design of functional nanomaterials. Here, we use maleimide or sulfo-succinimidyl ester-modified 1.4 nm gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) to specifically label reactive thiol and amine groups with sub-2-nm precision on metal oxide and polymeric nanostructures. We confirm the binding of AuNCs by measuring and modeling sedimentation properties using analytical centrifugation, imaging their surface distribution and surface distances by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and comparing the results to ensemble measurements of numbers of reactive surface groups obtained by common photometric assays. We map thiol and amine groups introduced on silica NPs (SiNPs), titania stars (Ti), silica inverse opals (SiOps), and polystyrene NPs (PS NPs). We show that the method is suitable for mapping local, clustered inhomogeneities of the reactive sites on single SiNPs introduced by masking certain areas during surface functionalization. Mapping precise positions of reactive surface groups is essential to the design and tailored ligation of multifunctional nanomaterials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steffi S Thomas
- Centre for BioNano Interactions, School of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, University College Dublin , Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
| | - Matthew Coleman
- Centre for BioNano Interactions, School of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, University College Dublin , Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
| | - Emma Carroll
- Centre for BioNano Interactions, School of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, University College Dublin , Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
| | - Ester Polo
- Centre for BioNano Interactions, School of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, University College Dublin , Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
| | - Fabian Meder
- Centre for BioNano Interactions, School of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, University College Dublin , Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
| | - Kenneth A Dawson
- Centre for BioNano Interactions, School of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, University College Dublin , Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland
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13
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Nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems for Alzheimer's disease management: Technical, industrial, and clinical challenges. J Control Release 2016; 245:95-107. [PMID: 27889394 DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2016.11.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 115] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2016] [Revised: 11/14/2016] [Accepted: 11/21/2016] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease with high prevalence in the rapidly growing elderly population in the developing world. The currently FDA approved drugs for the management of symptomatology of AD are marketed mainly as conventional oral medications. Due to their gastrointestinal side effects and lack of brain targeting, these drugs and dosage regiments hinder patient compliance and lead to treatment discontinuation. Nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems (NTDDS) administered by different routes can be considered as promising tools to improve patient compliance and achieve better therapeutic outcomes. Despite extensive research, literature screening revealed that clinical activities involving NTDDS application in research for AD are lagging compared to NTDDS for other diseases such as cancers. The industrial perspectives, processability, and cost/benefit ratio of using NTDDS for AD treatment are usually overlooked. Moreover, active and passive immunization against AD are by far the mostly studied alternative AD therapies because conventional oral drug therapy is not yielding satisfactorily results. NTDDS of approved drugs appear promising to transform this research from 'paper to clinic' and raise hope for AD sufferers and their caretakers. This review summarizes the recent studies conducted on NTDDS for AD treatment, with a primary focus on the industrial perspectives and processability. Additionally, it highlights the ongoing clinical trials for AD management.
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