The biomolecular corona is retained during nanoparticle uptake and protects the cells from the damage induced by cationic nanoparticles until degraded in the lysosomes

• Published in: Nanomedicine Vol. 9; no. 8; pp. 1159 - 1168
• Main Authors: Wang, Fengjuan, MSc, Yu, Lu, PhD, Monopoli, Marco P., PhD, Sandin, Peter, PhD, Mahon, Eugene, PhD, Salvati, Anna, PhD, Dawson, Kenneth A., PhD
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.11.2013
• Subjects: Adsorption; Amino modified polystyrene; Blood Proteins - isolation & purification; Blood Proteins - metabolism; Cations - adverse effects; Cations - chemistry; Cations - metabolism; Cell Death - drug effects; Cell Line, Tumor; Corona; Humans; Internal Medicine; Lysosomal membrane permeabilization; Lysosomes - metabolism; Nanoparticles - adverse effects; Nanoparticles - chemistry; Nanoparticles - metabolism; Peptide Hydrolases - metabolism; Permeability; Proteolysis; Surface Properties; amino modified polystyrene from Bangs Lab fluorescently labelled with Alexa 488 dye; complete DMEM; Lysosomal membrane permeabilization; Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase; sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis; cDMEM; amino modified polystyrene from Sigma; untreated control; DMEM; lysosomal associated membrane protein-1; nanoparticles; LAMP-1; Dulbecco’s Modified Eagle’s Medium; propidium iodide; Corona; PS-NH 2-S; PBS; quaternary amino modified polystyrene; Ctrl; amino modified polystyrene from Bangs Lab; Amino modified polystyrene; NPs; SDS-PAGE; PS-NH 2-F; PS-N(CH 3) 3; phosphate buffered saline; PS-NH 2-B; serum free DMEM; PI; GAPDH; sfDMEM; PS-N(CH3)3; PS-NH2-S; PS-NH2-B; PS-NH2-F; PS-N(CH)(+); PS-NH-B; PS-NH-F; PS-NH-S
• ISSN: 1549-9634; 1549-9642
• DOI: 10.1016/j.nano.2013.04.010

Abstract Nanoparticles have unique capacities of interacting with the cellular machinery and entering cells. To be able to exploit this potential, it is essential to understand what controls the interactions at the interface between nanoparticles and cells: it is now established that nanoparticles in biological media are covered by proteins and other biomolecules forming a “corona” on the nanoparticle surface, which confers a new identity to the nanoparticles. By labelling the proteins of the serum, using positively-charged polystyrene, we now show that this adsorbed layer is strong enough to be retained on the nanoparticles as they enter cells and is trafficked to the lysosomes on the nanoparticles. There, the corona is degraded and this is followed by lysosomal damage, leading to cytosolic release of lysosomal content, and ultimately apoptosis. Thus the corona protects the cells from the damage induced by the bare nanoparticle surface until enzymatically cleared in the lysosomes. From the Clinical Editor This study investigates the effects of protein corona that normally forms on the surface of nanoparticles during in vivo use, describing the steps of intracellular processing of such particles, to enhance our understanding of how these particles interact with the cellular machinery.