Cellular Internalization of Beta-Carotene Loaded Polyelectrolyte Multilayer Capsules by Raman Mapping.

Raman mapping is becoming a very useful tool in investigating cells and cellular components, as well as bioactive molecules intracellularly. In this study, we have encapsulated beta-carotene using a layer-by-layer technique, as a way to enhance its stability and bioavailability. Further, we have used Raman mapping to characterize the as-obtained capsules and monitor their uptake by the human retinal epithelial D407 cells.

Anisotropic Gold Nanoparticle-Cell Interactions Mediated by Collagen.

Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are the groundwork of a large variety of applications in the biomedical field. Further development and a better understanding of this versatile platform will lead to an expansion of potential applications. In this study, we propose a facile synthesis of AuNPs using hydrogen peroxide as a reducing agent and collagen as a stabilizing agent.

Comparison of the Uptake and Toxicity of Collagen- and Synthetic Polymer-Coated Gold Nanoparticles.

We studied the physico-chemical properties (size, shape, zeta-potential), cellular internalization and toxicity of gold nanoparticles (NPs) stabilized with the most abundant mammalian protein, collagen. The properties of these gold NPs were compared to the same sized gold NPs coated with synthetic poly(isobutylene-alt-maleic anhydride) (PMA). Intracellular uptake and cytotoxicity were assessed in two cell lines (cervical carcinoma and lung adenocarcinoma cells) by employing inductively-coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) analysis and a cell viability assay based on 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT), respectively.