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- 2012 (2) (entfernen)
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- Englisch (2)
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- Nanotechnology (1)
- Nanotoxicity (1)
- Peptide coating (1)
- SAXS (1)
- Silver nanoparticles (1)
- Small-angle X-ray scatering (1)
Silver nanoparticles (SNPs) are among the
most commercialized nanoparticles worldwide. Often SNP
are used because of their antibacterial properties. Besides
that they possess unique optic and catalytic features,
making them highly interesting for the creation of novel
and advanced functional materials. Despite its widespread
use only little data exist in terms of possible adverse effects
of SNP on human health. Conventional synthesis routes
usually yield products of varying quality and property. It
thus may become puzzling to compare biological data from
different studies due to the great variety in sizes, coatings
or shapes of the particles applied. Here, we applied a novel
synthesis approach to obtain SNP of well-defined colloidal
and structural properties. Being stabilized by a covalently
linked small peptide, these particles are nicely homogenous,
with narrow size distribution, and form monodisperse
suspensions in aqueous solutions. We applied these peptide-
coated SNP in two different sizes of 20 or 40 nm
(Ag20Pep and Ag40Pep) and analyzed responses of THP-
1-derived human macrophages while being exposed against
these particles. Gold nanoparticles of similar size and
coating (Au20Pep) were used for comparison. The cytotoxicity
of particles was assessed by WST-1 and LDH
assays, and the uptake into the cells was confirmed via
transmission electron microscopy. In summary, our data
demonstrate that this novel type of SNP is well suited to
serve as model system for nanoparticles to be tested in
toxicological studies in vitro.
The self-assembly of double-hydrophilic poly(ethylene oxide)–poly(2-methyl-2-oxazoline) diblock copolymers in water has been studied. Isothermal titration calorimetry, small-angle X-ray scattering, and analytical ultracentrifugation suggest that only single polymer chains are present in solution. In contrast, light scattering and transmission electron microscopy detect aggregates with radii of ca. 100 nm. Pulsed field gradient NMR spectroscopy confirms the presence of aggregates, although only 2% of the polymer chains undergo aggregation. Water uptake experiments indicate differences in the hydrophilicity of the two blocks, which is believed to be the origin of the unexpected aggregation behavior (in accordance with an earlier study by Ke et al. [Macromolecules2009, 42, 5339–5344]). The data therefore suggest that even in double-hydrophilic block copolymers, differences in hydrophilicity are sufficient to drive polymer aggregation, a phenomenon that has largely been overlooked or ignored so far.