Influence of the chirality of carbon nanodots on their interaction with proteins and cells
Huijie Yan, Michele Cacioppo, Saad Megahed, Francesca Arcudi, Luka Đorđević∞, Dingcheng Zhu, Florian Schulz, Maurizio Prato, Wolfgang J. Parak, Neus Feliu
Abstract
Carbon nanodots with opposite chirality possess the same major physicochemical properties such as optical features, hydrodynamic diameter, and colloidal stability. Here, a detailed analysis about the comparison of the concentration of both carbon nanodots is carried out, putting a threshold to when differences in biological behavior may be related to chirality and may exclude effects based merely on differences in exposure concentrations due to uncertainties in concentration determination. The present study approaches this comparative analysis evaluating two basic biological phenomena, the protein adsorption and cell internalization. We find how a meticulous concentration error estimation enables the evaluation of the differences in biological effects related to chirality.