Quanxuan Zhang

Biomembrane disruption by silica-core nanoparticles: effect of surface functional group measured using a tethered bilayer lipid membrane.

Engineered nanomaterials (ENM) have desirable properties that make them well suited for many commercial applications. However, a limited understanding of how ENMs properties influence their molecular interactions with biomembranes hampers efforts to design ENM that are both safe and effective. This paper describes the use of a tethered bilayer lipid membrane (tBLM) to characterize biomembrane disruption by functionalized silica-core nanoparticles. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was used to measure the time trajectory of tBLM resistance following nanoparticle exposure. Statistical analysis of parameters from an exponential resistance decay model was then used to quantify and analyze differences between the impedance profiles of nanoparticles that were unfunctionalized, amine-functionalized, or carboxyl-functionalized. All of the nanoparticles triggered a decrease in membrane resistance, indicating nanoparticle-induced disruption of the tBLM. Hierarchical clustering allowed the potency of nanoparticles for reducing tBLM resistance to be ranked in the order amine>carboxyl~bare silica. Dynamic light scattering analysis revealed that tBLM exposure triggered minor coalescence for bare and amine-functionalized silica nanoparticles but not for carboxyl-functionalized silica nanoparticles. These results indicate that the tBLM method can reproducibly characterize ENM-induced biomembrane disruption and can distinguish the BLM-disruption patterns of nanoparticles that are identical except for their surface functional groups. The method provides insight into mechanisms of molecular interaction involving biomembranes and is suitable for miniaturization and automation for high-throughput applications to help assess the health risk of nanomaterial exposure or identify ENM having a desired mode of interaction with biomembranes.

Induced T cell cytokine production is enhanced by engineered nanoparticles

Abstract Engineered nanoparticles are widely used in commercial products, and yet due to the paucity of safety information, there are concerns surrounding potential adverse health effects, especially from inhaled nanoparticles and their putative contribution to allergic airway disease. The objective of this study was to investigate whether size or surface chemistry of engineered nanoparticles can influence the immune enhancing properties of these agents on antigen-specific T cell responses. Ovalbumin (OVA)-derived peptides were presented to T cells by either spleen-derived endogenous antigen presenting cells or a mouse dendritic cell (DC) line, DC2.4. In all models, interferon (IFN)-γ and interleukin (IL)-2 production by CD8+ or CD4+ T cells in response to peptide OVA257–264 or OVA323–339, respectively, was measured by flow cytometry. To address the study objective, silica nanoparticles (SNPs) were modified with alkyne-terminated surfaces and appended with polyethylene glycol chains via “click” chemistry. These modified SNPs were resistant to agglomerate in in vitro culture media, suggesting that their modulation of T cell responses is the result of true nanoscale-mediated effects. Under conditions of suboptimal T-cell activation, modified SNPs (up to 10 µg/ml) enhanced the proportion of CD8+, but not CD4+, T cells producing IFN-γ and IL-2. Various functional groups (–COOH, –NH2 and –OH) on modified SNPs enhanced IFN-γ and IL-2 production to different levels, with –COOH SNPs being the most effective. Furthermore, 51 nm –COOH SNPs exhibited a greater enhancing effect on the CD8+ T cell response than other sized particles. Collectively, our results show that modified SNPs can enhance antigen-specific CD8+ T cell responses, suggesting that certain modified SNPs exhibit potential adjuvant-like properties.

Synthesis and click chemistry of a new class of biodegradable polylactide towards tunable thermo-responsive biomaterials

A new class of clickable and biodegradable polylactide was designed and prepared via bulk polymerization of 3,6-dipropargyloxymethyl-1,4-dioxane-2,5-dione (1) which was synthesized from easily accessible propargyloxylactic acid (5). A homopolymer of 1 and random copolymer of 1 with l-lactide were obtained as amorphous materials and exhibit low Tg of 8.5 and 34 °C, respectively, indicating their promising potentials for biomedical applications. The statistical nature of random copolymers was investigated by DSC analysis and 13C NMR spectroscopy, which implies the random distribution of terminal alkyne groups along the back bone of copolymers. The efficient click post-modification of this new class of polylactide with alkyl and mPEG azides affords novel hydrophilic biomaterials, which exhibit reversible thermo-responsive properties as evidenced by their tunable LCST ranging from 22 to 69 °C depending on the balance of the incorporated hydrophilic/hydrophobic side chains. These results indicate the generality of this new class of clickable polylactide in preparing novel smart biomaterials in a simple and efficient manner via click chemistry.

Synthesis of a library of propargylated and PEGylated α-hydroxy acids toward "clickable" polylactides via hydrolysis of cyanohydrin derivatives.

A new simple and practical protocol for scalable synthesis of a novel library of propargylated and PEGylated α-hydroxy acids toward the preparation of “clickable” polylactides was described. The overall synthesis starting from readily available propargyl alcohol, bromoacetaldehyde diethyl acetal, and OEGs or PEGs was developed as a convenient procedure with low cost and no need of column chromatographic purification. The terminal alkyne functionality survives from hydrolysis of the corresponding easily accessible cyanohydrin derivatives in methanolic sulfuric acid. Facile desymmetrization, monofunctionalization, and efficient chain-elongation coupling of OEGs further enable the incorporation of OEGs to α-hydroxy acids in a simple and efficient manner. At the end, synthesis of allyloxy lactic acid indicates that an alkene group is also compatible with the developed method.

An economical and safe procedure to synthesize 2-hydroxy-4-pentynoic acid: A precursor towards 'clickable' biodegradable polylactide

Summary 2-Hydroxy-4-pentynoic acid (1) is a key intermediate towards ‘clickable’ polylactide which allows for efficient introduction of a broad range of pendant functional groups onto polymers from a single monomer via convenient ‘click’ chemistry with organic azides. The incorporation of various pendant functional groups could effectively tailor the physicochemical properties of polylactide. The reported synthesis of 1 started from propargyl bromide and ethyl glyoxylate. However, both of starting materials are expensive and unstable; especially, propargyl bromide is shock-sensitive and subjected to thermal explosive decomposition, which makes the preparation of 1 impractical with high cost and high risk of explosion. Herein, we report a simple, economical and safe synthetic route to prepare 1 using cheap and commercially available diethyl 2-acetamidomalonate (4) and propargyl alcohol. The desired product 1 was obtained via alkylation of malonate 4 with propargyl tosylate followed by a one-pot four-step sequence of hydrolysis, decarboxylation, diazotization and hydroxylation of propargylic malonate 5 without work-up of any intermediate.