An environmental ecocorona influences the formation and evolution of the biological corona on the surface of single-walled carbon nanotubes

Fazel Abdolahpur Monikh; Latifeh Chupani; Isabel Karkossa; Zdenko Gardian; Daniel Arenas-Lago; Martin von Bergen; Kristin Schubert; Veronika Piackova; Eliska Zuskova; Wim Jiskoot; Martina G Vijver; Willie J G M Peijnenburg

doi:10.1016/j.impact.2021.100315

An environmental ecocorona influences the formation and evolution of the biological corona on the surface of single-walled carbon nanotubes

NanoImpact. 2021 Apr:22:100315. doi: 10.1016/j.impact.2021.100315. Epub 2021 Apr 3.

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML), Leiden University, P.O. Box 9518, 2300, RA, Leiden, Netherlands; Department of Environmental & Biological Sciences, University of Eastern Finland, P.O. Box 111, FI-80101 Joensuu, Finland. Electronic address: f.a.monikh@cml.leidenuniv.nl.
² University of South Bohemia in Ceske Budejovice, Faculty of Fisheries and Protection of Waters, South Bohemian Research Center of Aquaculture and Biodiversity of Hydrocenoses, Zátiší 728/II, 389 25 Vodňany, Czech Republic.
³ Department of Molecular Systems Biology, UFZ, Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research, Permoserstraße 15, 04318 Leipzig, Germany.
⁴ Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, University of South Bohemia, Faculty of Science, Branišovská 31, 370 05 České Budějovice, Czech Republic.
⁵ Department of Plant Biology and soil Science, University of Vigo, As Lagoas, Ourense, Spain.
⁶ Department of Molecular Systems Biology, UFZ, Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research, Permoserstraße 15, 04318 Leipzig, Germany; Institute of Biochemistry, Leipzig University, Permoserstraße 15, 04318 Leipzig, Germany.
⁷ Division of BioTherapeutics, Leiden University, Einsteinweg 55, 2333, CC, Leiden, the Netherlands.
⁸ Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML), Leiden University, P.O. Box 9518, 2300, RA, Leiden, Netherlands.
⁹ Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML), Leiden University, P.O. Box 9518, 2300, RA, Leiden, Netherlands; National Institute of Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Center for Safety of Substances and Products, Bilthoven, the Netherlands.

PMID: 35559972
DOI: 10.1016/j.impact.2021.100315

Abstract

Nanomaterials (NMs) taken up from the environment carry a complex ecocorona consisting of dissolved organic matter. An ecocorona is assumed to influence the interactions between NMs and endogenous biomolecules and consequently affects the formation of a biological corona (biocorona) and the biological fate of the NMs. This study shows that biomolecules in fish plasma attach immediately (within <5 min) to the surface of SWCNTs and the evolution of the biocorona is a size dependent phenomenon. Quantitative proteomics data revealed that the nanotube size also influences the plasma protein composition on the surface of SWCNTs. The presence of a pre-attached ecocorona on the surface of SWCNTs eliminated the influence of nanotube size on the formation and evolution of the biocorona. Over time, endogenous biomolecules from the plasma partially replaced the pre-attached ecocorona as measured using a fluorescently labelled ecocorona. The presence of an ecocorona offers a unique surface composition to each nanotube. This suggests that understanding the biological fate of NMs taken up from the environment by organisms to support the environmental risk assessment of NMs is a challenging task because each NM may have a unique surface composition in the body of an organism.

Keywords: Carbon nanotubes; Dissolved organic matter; Fish plasma; Protein corona; Proteomics.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
Blood Proteins / metabolism
Nanostructures*
Nanotubes, Carbon* / toxicity
Proteomics

Substances

Blood Proteins
Nanotubes, Carbon