European Commission | Protein-corona formation on aluminum doped zinc oxide and gallium nitride nanoparticles

ABSTRACT - We report on a systematic comparative study of the protein-corona formation on Aluminum doped Zinc Oxide and Gallium Nitride nanoparticles. Bovine serum albumin was chosen as a protein model. Dynamic light scattering, transmission electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy techniques are used to demonstrate the formation of Protein – Corona as well as the stability of the colloidal suspension given by BSA, which also works as a surfactant. The protein adsorption on the NPs surface is studied by Bradford Assay. The Circular Dichroism analysis suggests a drastic structural change in the secondary structure of the BSA. The ZnO nanoparticles adsorb a protein corona, which does not protect them against dissolution, and in consequence, the material proved to be highly toxic for Human keratinocyte cell line (HaCaT). In contrast, the GaN nanoparticles do not adsorb a protein corona and prove to be less toxic for HaCaT cells, showing much lower concentration of ions leakage in the culture media as compared to ZnO nanoparticles.

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