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In vitro cytotoxicity of surface modified bismuth nanoparticles

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Abstract

This paper describes in vitro cytotoxicity of bismuth nanoparticles revealed by three complementary assays (MTT, G6PD, and calcein AM/EthD-1). The results show that bismuth nanoparticles are more toxic than most previously reported bismuth compounds. Concentration dependent cytotoxicities have been observed for bismuth nanoparticles and surface modified bismuth nanoparticles. The bismuth nanoparticles are non-toxic at concentration of 0.5 nM. Nanoparticles at high concentration (50 nM) kill 45, 52, 41, 34 % HeLa cells for bare nanoparticles, amine terminated bismuth nanoparticles, silica coated bismuth nanoparticles, and polyethylene glycol (PEG) modified bismuth nanoparticles, respectively; which indicates cytotoxicity in terms of cell viability is in the descending order of amine terminated bismuth nanoparticles, bare bismuth nanoparticles, silica coated bismuth nanoparticles, and PEG modified bismuth nanoparticles. HeLa cells are more susceptible to toxicity from bismuth nanoparticles than MG-63 cells. The simultaneous use of three toxicity assays provides information on how nanoparticles interact with cells. Silica coated bismuth nanoparticles can damage cellular membrane yet keep mitochondria less influenced; while amine terminated bismuth nanoparticles can affect the metabolic functions of cells. The findings have important implications for caution of nanoparticle exposure and evaluating toxicity of bismuth nanoparticles.

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Abbreviations

Bi:

Bare bismuth nanoparticles

Bi–PEG:

Polyethylene glycol modified bismuth nanoparticles

Bi@SiO2 :

Silica encapsulated bismuth nanoparticles

Bi@SiO2–NH2 :

Amine modified silica encapsulated bismuth nanoparticles

Calcein AM:

Calcein acetoxymethyl ester

CdSe/ZnS–COOH:

Carboxylic acid modified CdSe/ZnS nanoparticles

EthD-1:

Ethidium homodimer-1

Fe3O4–COOH:

Carboxylic acid modified iron oxide nanoparticles

Fe3O4–NH2 :

Amine modified iron oxide nanoparticles

G6PD:

Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase

MAA:

Mercaptoacetic acid

MTT:

3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide

PEG:

Polyethylene glycol

XRF:

X-ray fluorescence

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Acknowledgments

This project has been supported by a research grant (0828466), a CAREER award from National Science Foundation, a Concept Award (W81XWH-10-1-0961) from Lung Cancer Research Program of Department of Defense, a grant from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (30900348), and a fund for the transformation of scientific and technological achievements of the Third Military Medical University (2010XZH08).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. NanoScience Technology Center, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, 32826, USA

    Yang Luo, Chaoming Wang, Yong Qiao, Mainul Hossain, Liyuan Ma & Ming Su

  2. Department of Laboratory Medicine, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, 400038, China

    Yang Luo

  3. Department of Mechanical, Materials and Aerospace Engineering, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, 32826, USA

    Chaoming Wang & Ming Su

  4. School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, 32826, USA

    Mainul Hossain

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  1. Yang Luo
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Correspondence to Ming Su.

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Luo, Y., Wang, C., Qiao, Y. et al. In vitro cytotoxicity of surface modified bismuth nanoparticles. J Mater Sci: Mater Med 23, 2563–2573 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10856-012-4716-1

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