Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: There are many reports in the literature on how a formed protein corona around colloidal nanoparticles affects their uptake by cells. There are however still details to be investigated, such as the role of a preformed protein corona versus the protein corona formed in serum-supplemented culture media, which is the topic of this work. Carbon nanodots (CDs) were preincubated with human serum albumin (HSA), and their cellular uptake was studied with flow cytometry and confocal laser scanning microscopy, in comparison to bare CDs. Measurements were carried out under serum-free and serum-containing conditions, leading to a 2 × 2 sample set: CDs with proteins (HSA preincubation + serum, serum, and HSA preincubation), and CDs without proteins. Serum-supplemented conditions lead to reduced uptake of CDs, whereas preincubation with HSA enhanced their internalization.
Source: ACS Omega
Language: English
Subfield: Materials Chemistry
Field: Materials Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,935
Funders: Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, China Scholarship Council, Universität Hamburg, European Regional Development Fund, Agencia Estatal de Investigación, Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche e Farmaceutiche, Università degli Studi di Ferrara, H2020 European Research Council
OpenAlex ID: W4416970268