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Iron oxide nanoparticles are synthesized via a nonaqueous sol gel procedure and coated with anionic short molecules or polymer. The use of magnetometry for monitoring the incorporation and biotransformations of magnetic nanoparticles inside human stem cells is demonstrated using a vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM).
Magnetic nanoparticles, made of iron oxide, present a peculiar interest for a wide range of biomedical applications for which they are often internalized in cells and then left within. One challenge is to assess their fate in the intracellular environment with reliable and precise methodologies. Herein, we introduce the use of the vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) to precisely quantify the integrity of magnetic nanoparticles within cells by measuring their magnetic moment. Stem cells are first labeled with two types of magnetic nanoparticles; the nanoparticles have the same core produced via a fast and efficient microwave-based nonaqueous sol gel synthesis and differ in their coating: the commonly used citric acid molecule is compared to polyacrylic acid. The formation of 3D cell-spheroids is then achieved via centrifugation and the magnetic moment of these spheroids is measured at different times with the VSM. The obtained moment is a direct fingerprint of the nanoparticles’ integrity, with decreasing values indicative of a nanoparticle degradation. For both nanoparticles, the magnetic moment decreases over culture time revealing their biodegradation. A protective effect of the polyacrylic acid coating is also shown, when compared to citric acid.
There is increased interest in the magnetic features of iron oxide nanoparticles for a wide range of biomedical applications. Their response to magnetic resonance makes them reliable contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), an advantage in regenerative medicine where cells labeled with magnetic nanoparticles can be tracked in vivo following implantation1. Using magnetic fields, cells can also be guided at a distance; this way, cellular spheroids2,3, rings4, or sheets5 can be engineered magnetically and also remotely stimulated6, an asset in the development of scaffold-free tissues. The range of possibilities for these nanoparticles also includes drug delivery systems7,8 and magnetic and photoinduced hyperthermal treatment to kill cancerous cells9,10,11. For all these applications, the nanoparticles are integrated in the biological environment either by intravenous injection or via direct internalization in cells and are then left within, which brings into question their intracellular fate.
In vivo analyses conveyed a general understanding of the nanoparticles’ fate in the organism: upon injection in the blood stream, they are first captured mostly by the macrophages of the liver (Kupffer cells), spleen and bone marrow, are progressively degraded, and join the iron pool of the organism12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19. Qualitative observations are only possible due to the circulation of the nanoparticles throughout the organism. Typically, transmission electronic microscopy (TEM) can be used to directly observe the nanoparticles and the presence of iron in the organs can be determined via dosage. More recently, their fate has been assessed directly on a pool of cells, meaning in close circuit with no iron escape, allowing a quantitative measurement of their biotransformations at the cell-level20,21,22. Such measurements are possible via the analysis of the magnetic properties of the nanoparticles that are tightly linked to their structural integrity. Vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM) is a technique where the sample is vibrated periodically so that the coil-measurement of the flux induced provides the magnetic moment of the sample at the applied magnetic field. Such synchronous detection allows for a rapid measurement, which is an asset for determining the magnetic moments of a large number of samples20,21,22,23. The macroscopic magnetic signature retrieved by VSM then gives a quantitative overview of the entire biological sample directly correlated to the nanoparticles' size and structure. In particular, it provides the magnetic moment at saturation (expressed in emu) of the samples, which is a direct quantification of the number of magnetic nanoparticles present in the sample, respectively to their specific magnetic properties.
It has been shown that the intracellular processing of magnetic nanoparticles is tightly linked to their structural features20. These features can be controlled via optimal synthesis protocols. Each protocol presents advantages and limitations. Iron oxide nanoparticles are commonly synthesized in aqueous solutions via coprecipitation of iron ions24. To overcome the limitations of nanoparticles size polydispersity, other synthesis methods such as polyol-mediated sol-gel methods have been developed25. Nonaqueous approaches by thermal decomposition leads to the production of very well-calibrated iron oxide nanoparticles26. However, the use of massive amounts of surfactants like oleylamine or oleic acid complicates their functionalization and water transfer for biomedical applications. For this reason, we synthesize such magnetic nanoparticles through a nonaqueous sol gel route leading to high crystallinity, purity and reproducibility27. This protocol produces well-controlled size nanoparticles that can be tuned through temperature variation28. Nevertheless, the microwave-assisted non-aqueous sol-gel route has an upper size limit of the obtained nanoparticles of around 12 nm. This procedure would not be adapted for applications using ferromagnetic particles at room temperature. In addition to the core synthesis, another main feature to be considered is the coating. Lying at the surface of the nanoparticle, the coating acts as an anchoring molecule, helping the targeted internalization of the nanoparticles, or it can protect the nanoparticle from degradation. Since benzyl alcohol acts as an oxygen source and a ligand at the same time, bare nanoparticles are produced without the need for additional surfactants or ligands. The nanoparticles are then easily surface functionalized after synthesis without a surfactant exchange process.
Herein, two types of nanoparticles are assessed that possess the same core and differ in the coating. The core is synthesized using a fast and highly efficient microwave based technique. The two coatings compared consist of citric acid, one of the most used as coating agent in biomedical applications29,30, and polyacrylic acid (PAA), a polymeric coating with a high number of chelating functions. VSM magnetometry measurements are then used first to quantify the nanoparticle uptake by the cells, and then as a direct assessment of the nanoparticle structural integrity upon internalization in stem cells. Results demonstrate that the incubation concentration impacts nanoparticle uptake and that the coating influences their degradation, with the large number of anchoring molecules of PAA protecting the core from degradation.
1. Synthesis of magnetic nanoparticles
2. Culture and magnetic labeling of stem cells
3. Formation of stem cell-spheroids
4. Quantification of magnetic nanoparticles in solution and in cellulo using a vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM)
5. Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) analysis
Using the microwave-assisted synthesis, magnetic nanoparticles with a monodisperse 8.8 ± 2.5 nm core size are produced and coated with either citrate or PAA (Figure 1A). Stem cells are then incubated with these nanoparticles dispersed in culture medium at a given concentration for 30 minutes, resulting in their endocytosis and confinement within the cellular endosomes (Figure 1B). The magnetic stem cells are then suspended in medium, centrifuged, and the ce...
Using a fast and efficient microwave-based synthesis, magnetic nanoparticles can easily be synthesized, with controlled size, and further coated with given molecules. A critical step is to stock the iron salt and the benzyl alcohol under vacuum to keep a small dispersion in size. The benzyl alcohol acts as both as solvent and ligand at the same time allowing to directly obtain calibrated bare iron oxide without the need of additional ligands. After nanoparticles transfer in water the bare magnetic nanoparticles can be ea...
The authors have nothing to disclose.
This work was supported by the European Union (ERC-2014-CoG project MaTissE #648779). The authors would like to acknowledge the CNanoMat physico-chemical characterizations platform of University Paris 13.
Name | Company | Catalog Number | Comments |
0.05% Trypsin-EDTA (1x) | Life Technologies | 25300-054 | |
Benzyl alcohol for synthesis | Sigma Aldrich | 8.22259 | |
Dexamethasone | Sigma | D4902 | Prepare a 1 mM stock solution diluted in Ethanol 100% and store at -20°C |
Dichloromethane ≥99% stabilised, GPR RECTAPUR | VWR Chemicals | 23367 | |
DMEM with Glutamax I | Life Technologies | 31966-021 | No sodium pyruvate, no HEPES |
Ethanol absolute | VWR | 20821.310 | |
Fetal Bovine Serum | Life Technologies | 10270-106 | |
Formalin solution 10% neutral buffered | Sigma | HT5012 | |
Hydrochloric acid, 1.0N Standardized Solution | Alfa Aesar | 35640 | |
Iron(III) acetylacetonate (> 99.9%) | Sigma Aldrich | 517003 | |
ITS Premix Universal Culture Supplement (20x) | Corning | 354352 | |
L-Ascorbic Acid 2-phosphate | Sigma | A8960 | Prepare a fresh concentrated solution (25 mM) diluted in distilled water |
L-Proline | Sigma | P5607 | Prepare a 175 mM stock solution diluted in distilled water and store at 4°C |
Mesenchymal Stem Cell (MSC) | Lonza | PT-2501 | |
Monowave glass vial | Anton Paar | 82723_us | |
Microwave reactor | Anton Paar | Monowave 300 | |
MSCGM BulletKit medium | Lonza | PT-3001 | For the complete medium, add the provided BulletKit (containing serum, glutamine and antibiotics) to the MSCGM medium |
PBS w/o CaCl2 w/o MgCl2 | Life Technologies | 14190-094 | |
Penicillin (10.000U/mL)/Streptomicin (10.000µg/mL) | Life Technologies | 15140-122 | |
Poly(acrylic acid, sodium salt) | Sigma Aldrich | 416010 | MW = 1200 g/mol |
RPMI medium 1640, no Glutamine | Life Technologies | 31870-025 | No sodium pyruvate, no HEPES |
Sodium hydroxide, 1.0N Standardized Solution | Alfa Aesar | 35629 | |
Sodium pyruvate solution 100mM | Sigma | S8636 | |
Sterile conical centrifuge tube | Falcon | 352097 | 15 mL tubes |
Trypsin-EDTA (0.05%), phenol red | Thermo Fisher Scientific | 25300054 | |
Tri-sodium citrate | VWR | 33615.268 | Prepare a 1 M stock solution diluted in distilled water and store at 4°C |
Tri-Sodium Citrate Dihydrate, Certified AR for Analysis | Sigma Aldrich | 10396430 | |
Ultra centrifugal filter | Amicon | AC S510024 |
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