Sodium alginate passivated CuInS2/ZnS QDs encapsulated in the mesoporous channels of amine modified SBA 15 with excellent photostability and biocompatibility

R Jose Varghese; Sundararajan Parani; V R Remya; Rodney Maluleke; Sabu Thomas; Oluwatobi S Oluwafemi

doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2020.07.240

Sodium alginate passivated CuInS₂/ZnS QDs encapsulated in the mesoporous channels of amine modified SBA 15 with excellent photostability and biocompatibility

Int J Biol Macromol. 2020 Oct 15:161:1470-1476. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2020.07.240. Epub 2020 Jul 31.

Authors

R Jose Varghese¹, Sundararajan Parani¹, V R Remya¹, Rodney Maluleke¹, Sabu Thomas², Oluwatobi S Oluwafemi³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemical Sciences (formerly Applied Chemistry), University of Johannesburg, P.O. Box 17011, Doornfontein 2028, Johannesburg, South Africa; Centre for Nanomaterials Science Research, University of Johannesburg, P.O. Box 17011, Doornfontein 2028, Johannesburg, South Africa.
² International and Inter University Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala, India.
³ Department of Chemical Sciences (formerly Applied Chemistry), University of Johannesburg, P.O. Box 17011, Doornfontein 2028, Johannesburg, South Africa; Centre for Nanomaterials Science Research, University of Johannesburg, P.O. Box 17011, Doornfontein 2028, Johannesburg, South Africa. Electronic address: oluwafemi.oluwatobi@gmail.com.

PMID: 32745549
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2020.07.240

Abstract

We herein report the synthesis of CuInS₂/ZnS (CIS/ZnS) quantum dots (QDs) via a greener method followed by sodium alginate (SA) passivation and encapsulation into mesoporous channels of amine modified silica (SBA15-NH₂) for improved photostability and biocompatibility. The as-synthesized CIS/ZnS QDs exhibited near infrared emission even after SA passivation and silica encapsulation. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Small angle X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed the mesoporous nature of the SBA-15 remained stable after loading with the SA-CIS/ZnS QDs. The effective encapsulation of SA-CIS/ZnS QDs inside the pores of SBA15-NH₂ matrix was confirmed by Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) pore volume analysis while the interaction between the QDs and SBA15-NH₂ was confirmed using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The photostability of the QDs was greatly enhanced after these modifications. The resultant SA-CIS/ZnS-SBA15-NH₂ (QDs-silica) composite possessed remarkable biocompatibility towards lung cancer (A549) and kidney (HEK 293) cell lines making it a versatile material for theranostic applications.

Keywords: Cell viability; Mesoporous silica; Photostability; Quantum dots; Sodium alginate.

MeSH terms

Alginates / chemistry*
Amines / chemistry*
Copper / chemistry*
Microscopy, Electron, Transmission
Quantum Dots*
Silicon Dioxide / chemistry*
Spectrometry, Fluorescence
Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
Sulfides / chemistry*
X-Ray Diffraction
Zinc Compounds / chemistry*

Substances

Alginates
Amines
SBA-15
Sulfides
Zinc Compounds
Silicon Dioxide
Copper
zinc sulfide