Single-Particle Photothermal Circular Dichroism and Photothermal Magnetic Circular Dichroism Microscopy.

Recent advances in single-particle photothermal circular dichroism (PT CD) and photothermal magnetic circular dichroism (PT MCD) microscopy have shown strong promise for diverse applications in chirality and magnetism. Photothermal circular dichroism microscopy measures direct differential absorption of left- and right-circularly polarized light by a chiral nanoobject and thus can measure a pure circular dichroism signal, which is free from the contribution of circular birefringence and linear dichroism. Photothermal magnetic circular dichroism, which is based on the polar magneto-optical Kerr effect, can probe the magnetic properties of a single nanoparticle (of sizes down to 20 nm) optically. Single-particle measurements enable studies of the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of magnetism at the nanoscale. Both PT CD and PT MCD have already found applications in chiral plasmonics and magnetic nanomaterials. Most importantly, the advent of these microscopic techniques opens possibilities for many novel applications in biology and nanomaterial science.

Encapsulin Based Self-Assembling Iron-Containing Protein Nanoparticles for Stem Cells MRI Visualization.

Over the past decade, cell therapy has found many applications in the treatment of different diseases. Some of the cells already used in clinical practice include stem cells and CAR-T cells. Compared with traditional drugs, living cells are much more complicated systems that must be strictly controlled to avoid undesirable migration, differentiation, or proliferation. One of the approaches used to prevent such side effects involves monitoring cell distribution in the human body by any noninvasive technique, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Long-term tracking of stem cells with artificial magnetic labels, such as magnetic nanoparticles, is quite problematic because such labels can affect the metabolic process and cell viability. Additionally, the concentration of exogenous labels will decrease during cell division, leading to a corresponding decrease in signal intensity. In the current work, we present a new type of genetically encoded label based on encapsulin from Myxococcus xanthus bacteria, stably expressed in human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and coexpressed with ferroxidase as a cargo protein for nanoparticles' synthesis inside encapsulin shells. mZip14 protein was expressed for the enhancement of iron transport into the cell. Together, these three proteins led to the synthesis of iron-containing nanoparticles in mesenchymal stem cells-without affecting cell viability-and increased contrast properties of MSCs in MRI.

Magnetic nanorods for remote disruption of lipid membranes by non-heating low frequency magnetic field.

This work presents direct evidence of disordering of liposomal membranes by magnetic nanoparticles during their exposures to non-heating alternating Extremely Low Frequency Magnetic Field (ELF MF). Changes in the lipid membrane structure were demonstrated by the Attenuated total reflection Fourier Transform Infrared and fluorescence spectroscopy. Specifically, about 50% of hydrophobic chains became highly mobile under the action of ELF MF. Magnetic field-induced increase in the membrane fluidity was accompanied by an increase in membrane permeability and release of solutes entrapped in liposomes. The effect of ELF MF on the membrane fluidity was greater in case of 70 × 12 nm magnetite nanorods adsorbed on the liposomes surface compared to liposomes with ~7 nm spherical MNPs embedded within lipid membranes. A physical model of this process explaining experimental data is suggested. The obtained results open new horizons for the development of systems for triggered drug release without dangerous heating and overheating of tissues.

Up- and Down-Regulation of Enzyme Activity in Aggregates with Gold-Covered Magnetic Nanoparticles Triggered by Low-Frequency Magnetic Field.

The modern global trend toward sustainable processes that meet the requirements of "green chemistry" provides new opportunities for the broad application of highly active, selective, and specific enzymatic reactions. However, the effective application of enzymes in industrial processes requires the development of systems for the remote regulation of their activity triggered by external physical stimuli, one of which is a low-frequency magnetic field (LFMF). Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) transform the energy of an LFMF into mechanical forces and deformations applied to enzyme molecules on the surfaces of MNPs. Here, we demonstrate the up- and down-regulation of two biotechnologically important enzymes, yeast alcohol dehydrogenase (YADH) and soybean formate dehydrogenase (FDH), in aggregates with gold-covered magnetic nanoparticles (GCMNPs) triggered by an LFMF. Two types of aggregates, "dimeric" (with the enzyme attached to several GCMNPs simultaneously), with YADH or FDH, and "monomeric" (the enzyme attached to only one GCMNP), with FDH, were synthesized. Depending on the aggregate type ("dimeric" or "monomeric"), LFMF treatment led to a decrease (down-regulation) or an increase (up-regulation) in enzyme activity. For "dimeric" aggregates, we observed 67 ± 9% and 47 ± 7% decreases in enzyme activity under LFMF exposure for YADH and FDH, respectively. Moreover, in the case of YADH, varying the enzyme or the cross-linking agent concentration led to different magnitudes of the LFMF effect, which was more significant at lower enzyme and higher cross-linking agent concentrations. Different responses to LFMF exposure depending on cofactor presence were also demonstrated. This effect might result from a varying cofactor binding efficiency to enzymes. For the "monomeric" aggregates with FDH, the LFMF treatment caused a significant increase in enzyme activity; the magnitude of this effect depended on the cofactor type: we observed up to 40% enzyme up-regulation in the case of NADP+, while almost no effect was observed in the case of NAD+.

New Approach to Non-Invasive Tumor Model Monitoring via Self-Assemble Iron Containing Protein Nanocompartments.

According to the World Health Organization, breast cancer is the most common oncological disease worldwide. There are multiple animal models for different types of breast carcinoma, allowing the research of tumor growth, metastasis, and angiogenesis. When studying these processes, it is crucial to visualize cancer cells for a prolonged time via a non-invasive method, for example, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In this study, we establish a new genetically encoded material based on Quasibacillus thermotolerans (Q.thermotolerans, Qt) encapsulin, stably expressed in mouse 4T1 breast carcinoma cells. The label consists of a protein shell containing an enzyme called ferroxidase. When adding Fe2+, a ferroxidase oxidizes Fe2+ to Fe3+, followed by iron oxide nanoparticles formation. Additionally, genes encoding mZip14 metal transporter, enhancing the iron transport, were inserted into the cells via lentiviral transduction. The expression of transgenic sequences does not affect cell viability, and the presence of magnetic nanoparticles formed inside encapsulins results in an increase in T2 relaxivity.

Modulation of α-Chymotrypsin Conjugated to Magnetic Nanoparticles by the Non-Heating Low-Frequency Magnetic Field: Molecular Dynamics, Reaction Kinetics, and Spectroscopy Analysis.

Enzymes conjugated to magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) undergo changes in the catalytic activity of the non-heating low-frequency magnetic field (LFMF). We apply in silico simulations by molecular dynamics (MD) and in vitro spectroscopic analysis of the enzyme kinetics and secondary structure to study α-chymotrypsin (CT) conjugated to gold-coated iron oxide MNPs. The latter are functionalized by either carboxylic or amino group moieties to vary the points of enzyme attachment. The MD simulation suggests that application of the stretching force to the CT globule by its amino or carboxylic groups causes shrinkage of the substrate-binding site but little if any changes in the catalytic triad. Consistent with this, in CT conjugated to MNPs by either amino or carboxylic groups, LFMF alters the Michaelis-Menten constant but not the apparent catalytic constant k cat (= V max/[E]o). Irrespective of the point of conjugation to MNPs, the CT secondary structure was affected with nearly complete loss of α-helices and increase in the random structures in LFMF, as shown by attenuated total reflection Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy. Both the catalytic activity and the protein structure of MNP-CT conjugates restored 3 h after the field exposure. We believe that such remotely actuated systems can find applications in advanced manufacturing, nanomedicine, and other areas.

Genetically Encoded Self-Assembling Iron Oxide Nanoparticles as a Possible Platform for Cancer-Cell Tracking.

The study of growth and possible metastasis in animal models of tumors would benefit from reliable cell labels for noninvasive whole-organism imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging. Genetically encoded cell-tracking reporters have the advantage that they are contrast-selective for viable cells with intact protein expression machinery. Besides, these reporters do not suffer from dilution during cell division. Encapsulins, which are bacterial protein nanocompartments, can serve as genetically controlled labels for multimodal detection of cells. Such nanocompartments can host various guest molecules inside their lumen. These include, for example, fluorescent proteins or enzymes with ferroxidase activity leading to biomineralization of iron oxide inside the encapsulin nanoshell. The aim of this work was to implement heterologous expression of encapsulin systems from Quasibacillus thermotolerans using the fluorescent reporter protein mScarlet-I and ferroxidase IMEF in the human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line HepG2. The successful expression of self-assembled encapsulin nanocompartments with functional cargo proteins was confirmed by fluorescence microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. Also, coexpression of encapsulin nanoshells, ferroxidase cargo, and iron transporter led to an increase in T2-weighted contrast in magnetic resonance imaging of HepG2 cells. The results demonstrate that the encapsulin cargo system from Q. thermotolerans may be suitable for multimodal imaging of cancer cells and could contribute to further in vitro and in vivo studies.

Room temperature synthesized solid solution AuFe nanoparticles and their transformation into Au/Fe Janus nanocrystals.

Solid solution AuFe nanoparticles were synthesized for the first time under ambient conditions by an adapted method previously established for the Fe3O4-Au core-shell morphology. These AuFe particles preserved the fcc structure of Au incorporated with paramagnetic Fe atoms. The metastable AuFe can be segregated by transformation into Janus Au/Fe particles with bcc Fe and fcc Au upon annealing. The ferromagnetic Fe was epitaxially grown on low index fcc Au planes. This preparation route delivers new perspective materials for magnetoplasmonics and biomedical applications and suggests the reconsideration of existing protocols for magnetite-gold core-shell synthesis.

Encapsulins-Bacterial Protein Nanocompartments: Structure, Properties, and Application.

Recently, a new class of prokaryotic compartments, collectively called encapsulins or protein nanocompartments, has been discovered. The shell proteins of these structures self-organize to form icosahedral compartments with a diameter of 25-42 nm, while one or more cargo proteins with various functions can be encapsulated in the nanocompartment. Non-native cargo proteins can be loaded into nanocompartments and the surface of the shells can be further functionalized, which allows for developing targeted drug delivery systems or using encapsulins as contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging. Since the genes encoding encapsulins can be integrated into the cell genome, encapsulins are attractive for investigation in various scientific fields, including biomedicine and nanotechnology.

Multifunctional Fe3O4-Au Nanoparticles for the MRI Diagnosis and Potential Treatment of Liver Cancer.

Heterodimeric nanoparticles comprising materials with different functionalities are of great interest for fundamental research and biomedical/industrial applications. In this work, Fe3O4-Au nano-heterostructures were synthesized by a one-step thermal decomposition method. The hybrid nanoparticles comprise a highly crystalline 12 nm magnetite octahedron decorated with a single noble metal sphere of 6 nm diameter. Detailed analysis of the nanoparticles was performed by UV-visible spectroscopy, magnetometry, calorimetry and relaxometry studies. The cytotoxic effect of the nanoparticles in the human hepatic cell line Huh7 and PLC/PRF/5-Alexander was also assessed. These Fe3O4-Au bifunctional nanoparticles showed no significant cytotoxicity in these two cell lines. The nanoparticles showed a good theranostic potential for liver cancer treatment, since the r2 relaxivity (166.5 mM-1·s-1 and 99.5 mM-1·s-1 in water and HepG2 cells, respectively) is higher than the corresponding values for commercial T2 contrast agents and the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) value obtained (227 W/gFe) is enough to make them suitable as heat mediators for Magnetic Fluid Hyperthermia. The gold counterpart can further allow the conjugation with different biomolecules and the optical sensing.

Iron-Sequestering Nanocompartments as Multiplexed Electron Microscopy Gene Reporters.

Multicolored gene reporters for light microscopy are indispensable for biomedical research, but equivalent genetic tools for electron microscopy (EM) are still rare despite the increasing importance of nanometer resolution for reverse engineering of molecular machinery and reliable mapping of cellular circuits. We here introduce the fully genetic encapsulin/cargo system of Quasibacillus thermotolerans (Qt), which in combination with the recently characterized encapsulin system from Myxococcus xanthus (Mx) enables multiplexed gene reporter imaging via conventional transmission electron microscopy (TEM) in mammalian cells. Cryo-electron reconstructions revealed that the Qt encapsulin shell self-assembles to nanospheres with T = 4 icosahedral symmetry and a diameter of ∼43 nm harboring two putative pore regions at the 5-fold and 3-fold axes. We also found that upon heterologous expression in mammalian cells, the native cargo is autotargeted to the inner surface of the shell and exhibits ferroxidase activity leading to efficient intraluminal iron biomineralization, which enhances cellular TEM contrast. We furthermore demonstrate that the two differently sized encapsulins of Qt and Mx do not intermix and can be robustly differentiated by conventional TEM via a deep learning classifier to enable automated multiplexed EM gene reporter imaging.

Size-selected Fe3O4-Au hybrid nanoparticles for improved magnetism-based theranostics.

Size-selected Fe3O4-Au hybrid nanoparticles with diameters of 6-44 nm (Fe3O4) and 3-11 nm (Au) were prepared by high temperature, wet chemical synthesis. High-quality Fe3O4 nanocrystals with bulk-like magnetic behavior were obtained as confirmed by the presence of the Verwey transition. The 25 nm diameter Fe3O4-Au hybrid nanomaterial sample (in aqueous and agarose phantom systems) showed the best characteristics for application as contrast agents in magnetic resonance imaging and for local heating using magnetic particle hyperthermia. Due to the octahedral shape and the large saturation magnetization of the magnetite particles, we obtained an extraordinarily high r 2-relaxivity of 495 mM-1·s-1 along with a specific loss power of 617 W·gFe -1 and 327 W·gFe -1 for hyperthermia in aqueous and agarose systems, respectively. The functional in vitro hyperthermia test for the 4T1 mouse breast cancer cell line demonstrated 80% and 100% cell death for immediate exposure and after precultivation of the cells for 6 h with 25 nm Fe3O4-Au hybrid nanomaterials, respectively. This confirms that the improved magnetic properties of the bifunctional particles present a next step in magnetic-particle-based theranostics.

In Situ Observation of Chymotrypsin Catalytic Activity Change Actuated by Nonheating Low-Frequency Magnetic Field.

Magnetomechanical modulation of biochemical processes is a promising instrument for bioengineering and nanomedicine. This work demonstrates two approaches to control activity of an enzyme, α-chymotrypsin immobilized on the surface of gold-coated magnetite magnetic nanoparticles (GM-MNPs) using a nonheating low-frequency magnetic field (LF MF). The measurement of the enzyme reaction rate was carried out in situ during exposure to the magnetic field. The first approach involves α-chymotrypsin-GM-MNPs conjugates, in which the enzyme undergoes mechanical deformations with the reorientation of the MNPs under LF MF (16-410 Hz frequency, 88 mT flux density). Such mechanical deformations result in conformational changes in α-chymotrypsin structure, as confirmed by infrared spectroscopy and molecular modeling, and lead to a 63% decrease of enzyme initial activity. The second approach involves an α-chymotrypsin-GM-MNPs/trypsin inhibitor-GM-MNPs complex, in which the activity of the enzyme is partially inhibited. In this case the reorientation of MNPs in the field leads to disruption of the enzyme-inhibitor complex and an almost 2-fold increase of enzyme activity. The results further demonstrate the utility of magnetomechanical actuation at the nanoscale for the remote modulation of biochemical reactions.

Magnetite-Gold nanohybrids as ideal all-in-one platforms for theranostics.

High-quality, 25 nm octahedral-shaped Fe3O4 magnetite nanocrystals are epitaxially grown on 9 nm Au seed nanoparticles using a modified wet-chemical synthesis. These Fe3O4-Au Janus nanoparticles exhibit bulk-like magnetic properties. Due to their high magnetization and octahedral shape, the hybrids show superior in vitro and in vivo T2 relaxivity for magnetic resonance imaging as compared to other types of Fe3O4-Au hybrids and commercial contrast agents. The nanoparticles provide two functional surfaces for theranostic applications. For the first time, Fe3O4-Au hybrids are conjugated with two fluorescent dyes or the combination of drug and dye allowing the simultaneous tracking of the nanoparticle vehicle and the drug cargo in vitro and in vivo. The delivery to tumors and payload release are demonstrated in real time by intravital microscopy. Replacing the dyes by cell-specific molecules and drugs makes the Fe3O4-Au hybrids a unique all-in-one platform for theranostics.