Issue 37, 2020

Adsorption of bovine serum albumin on gold nanoprisms: interaction and effect of NIR irradiation on protein corona

Abstract

Because of their photothermal properties, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have gained attention regarding their use in drug delivery and therapeutic applications. In this sense, it is interesting to consider their interactions with biologically available proteins, such as serum albumin, as well as the effects of irradiation and photothermal conversion on the protein structure that can lead to a loss of function or generate an immune response. Gold nanoprisms (AuNPrs) have gained interest due to their low toxicity, ease of synthesis, and excellent stability, promoting their use in bioapplications such as surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS), drug delivery, and photothermal therapy. The interaction between AuNPrs, with plasmon bands centred in the near-infrared region (NIR), and bovine serum albumin (BSA) has not been explored yet. UV-Vis spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering (DLS) and fluorescence spectroscopy were used to study the interaction between AuNPrs and BSA in addition to estimation of the adsorption rate and kinetic and thermodynamic parameters (K, ΔH°, ΔG°, ΔS°, and Ea) using adsorption isotherms and Langmuir and Freundlich models. The results suggest spontaneous cooperative binding in multilayer adsorption, achieved by the chemisorption of BSA on the AuNPr surface through the S–Au interaction, as confirmed by Raman spectroscopy. On the other hand, the photothermal conversion efficiency (PE) of the coated nanoparticles after NIR irradiation was assessed, resulting in a slight decrease in the PE of BSA coated on AuNPrs in comparison with that of noncapped nanoparticles. The effect of the irradiation on the protein conformation of capped nanoparticles was also assessed; circular dichroism showed BSA unfolding upon interaction with AuNPrs, with a decrease in the α-helix and β-sheet contents, as well as an increase in random coil conformations. Changes in the Raman spectrum suggest a modification of the disposition of the protein residues exposed to the gold surface after NIR irradiation; but at the secondary structure level, no relevant changes were observed. This provides possibilities for the use of NPs–BSA for bioapplications based on the photothermal effect promoted by laser irradiation, since the biological identity of the protein is preserved after NIR irradiation.

Graphical abstract: Adsorption of bovine serum albumin on gold nanoprisms: interaction and effect of NIR irradiation on protein corona

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
14 5月 2020
Accepted
03 8月 2020
First published
04 8月 2020

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2020,8, 8644-8657

Adsorption of bovine serum albumin on gold nanoprisms: interaction and effect of NIR irradiation on protein corona

K. Bolaños, F. Celis, C. Garrido, M. Campos, F. Guzmán, M. J. Kogan and E. Araya, J. Mater. Chem. B, 2020, 8, 8644 DOI: 10.1039/D0TB01246G

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements