The Conditions Matter: The Toxicity of Titanium Trisulfide Nanoribbons to Bacteria E. coli Changes Dramatically Depending on the Chemical Environment and the Storage Time.

In this work, we present an analysis of the antibacterial activity of TiS3 nanostructures in water and 0.9% NaCl solution suspensions. TiS3 nanoribbons 1-10 µm long, 100-300 nm wide, and less than 100 nm thick were produced by the direct reaction of pure titanium powder with elemental sulphur in a quartz tube sealed under vacuum. For the toxicity test of a bioluminescent strain of E. coli we used concentrations from 1 to 0.0001 g L-1 and also studied fresh suspensions and suspensions left for 24 h. The strongest toxic effect was observed in freshly prepared water solutions where the luminescence of bacteria decreased by more than 75%. When saline solution was substituted for water or when the solutions were stored for 24 h it resulted in a considerable decrease in the TiS3 antibacterial effect. The toxicity of TiS3 in water exceeded the toxicity of the reference TiO2 nanoparticles, though when saline solution was used instead of water the opposite results were observed. In addition, we did not find a relationship between the antibacterial activity of water suspensions of nanoribbons and the stability of their colloidal systems, which indicates an insignificant contribution to the toxicity of aggregation processes. In 0.9% NaCl solution suspensions, toxicity increased in proportion to the increase in the zeta potential. We suppose that the noted specificity of toxicity is associated with the emission of hydrogen sulphide molecules from the surface of nanoribbons, which, depending on the concentration, can either decrease or increase oxidative stress, which is considered the key mechanism of nanomaterial cytotoxicity. However, the exact underlying mechanisms need further investigation. Thus, we have shown an important role of the dispersion medium and the period of storage in the antibacterial activity of TiS3 nanoribbons. Our results could be used in nanotoxicological studies of other two-dimensional nanomaterials, and for the development of novel antibacterial substances and other biomedical applications of this two-dimensional material.

Graphene Oxide Nanosurface Reduces Apoptotic Death of HCT116 Colon Carcinoma Cells Induced by Zirconium Trisulfide Nanoribbons.

Due to their chemical, mechanical, and optical properties, 2D ultrathin nanomaterials have significant potential in biomedicine. However, the cytotoxicity of such materials, including their mutual increase or decrease, is still not well understood. We studied the effects that graphene oxide (GO) nanolayers (with dimensions 0.1-3 µm and average individual flake thickness less than 1 nm) and ZrS3 nanoribbons (length more than 10 µm, width 0.4-3 µm, and thickness 50-120 nm) have on the viability, cell cycle, and cell death of HCT116 colon carcinoma cells. We found that ZrS3 exhibited strong cytotoxicity by causing apoptotic cell death, which was in contrast to GO. When adding GO to ZrS3, ZrS3 was significantly less toxic, which may be because GO inhibits the effects of cytotoxic hydrogen sulfide produced by ZrS3. Thus, using zirconium trisulfide nanoribbons as an example, we have demonstrated the ability of graphene oxide to reduce the cytotoxicity of another nanomaterial, which may be of practical importance in biomedicine, including the development of biocompatible nanocoatings for scaffolds, theranostic nanostructures, and others.