Exploiting the relevance of the protein corona on the cellular uptake of polymeric micelles and polymersomes

• Grant number: 18/21272-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Master's degree
• Start date: February 01, 2019
• End date: July 31, 2019
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Chemistry - Physical-Chemistry
• Principal Investigator: Fernando Carlos Giacomelli
• Grantee: Fernando Augusto de Oliveira
• Supervisor: Giuseppe Battaglia
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Naturais e Humanas (CCNH). Universidade Federal do ABC (UFABC). Ministério da Educação (Brasil). Santo André , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University College London (UCL), England
• Associated to the scholarship: 17/19079-7 - Probing the nanobiointerface: dynamic, structure and binding ratio of plasma proteins adsorbed onto polymeric micelles and polymersomes, BP.MS

Abstract

The project aims to understand the relevance of the protein-corona on the cellular uptake of polymeric micelles and polymersomes. Block copolymer micelles and polymersomes will be produced form novel synthesized Cy7-conjugated PHPMA35-b-PDPA35 block copolymers. The presence of the fluorescent dye DBCO-Cyanine 7 (Cy7) chemically conjugated to the polymer chains will enable the evaluation of cellular uptake by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and flow cytometry. The self-assemblies will be manufactured by thin-film hydration (polymersomes) or nanoprecipitation (micelles) with further characterization via dynamic (DLS) and electrophoretic (ELS) light scattering, besides transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The Cy7-conjugated PHPMA35-b-PDPA65 assemblies will be exposed to human serum environment in order to enable plasma protein adsorption with further separation and semi-quantification by SDS-PAGE. In the step further, the cellular uptake behavior of protein-free and protein-bound assemblies will be monitored by CLSM and flow cytometry. Overall, we wish to understand the influence of the morphology in the development of protein layers onto the surface of micelles and polymersomes and its relevance to the cellular uptake of supramolecular self-assemblies having a PHPMA stabilizing shell. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

DE OLIVEIRA, FERNANDO A.; ALBUQUERQUE, LINDOMAR J. C.; RISKE, KARIN A.; JAGER, ELIEZER; GIACOMELLI, FERNANDO C.. Outstanding protein-repellent feature of soft nanoparticles based on poly(N-(2-hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide) outer shells. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, v. 574, p. 260-271, AUG 15 2020. (17/19079-7, 18/21272-2, 17/00459-4)