Work

Use of nanosphere self-assembly to pattern nanoporous membranes for the study of extracellular vesicles

Year: 2020

Type: article

Abstract: Nanoscale biocomponents naturally released by cells, such as extracellular vesicles (EVs), have recently gained interest due to their therapeutic and diagnostic potential. Membrane based isolation and co-culture systems have been utilized in an effort to study EVs and their effects. Nevertheless, improved platforms for the study of small EVs are still needed. Suitable membranes, for isolation and co-culture systems, require pore sizes to reach into the nanoscale. These pore sizes cannot be achieved through traditional lithographic techniques and conventional thick nanoporous membranes commonly exhibit low permeability. Here we utilized nanospheres, similar in size and shape to the targeted small EVs, as patterning features for the fabrication of freestanding SiN membranes (120 nm thick) released in minutes through a sacrificial ZnO layer. We evaluated the feasibility of separating subpopulation of EVs based on size using these membranes. The membrane used here showed an effective size cut-off of 300 nm with the majority of the EVs ≤200 nm. This work provides a convenient platform with great potential for studying subpopulations of EVs.

Source: Nanoscale Advances

DOI: 10.1039/d0na00142b

Authors: Marcela Mireles, Cody W. Soule, Mehdi Dehghani, Thomas R. Gaborski

Institutions: Rochester Institute of Technology, University of Rochester

Language: English

Topic: Extracellular vesicles in disease

Subfield: Molecular Biology

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,962

Funders: National Institutes of Health, National Institute of General Medical Sciences