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Nanopipette confined hydrogel-catalyst networks for spatiotemporal monitoring of nanoplastics-induced oxidative stress in single cells
Summary
Scientists built a tiny, ultra-sensitive sensor that can detect the harmful chemical byproducts (a type of "oxidative stress") produced inside individual human cells when they're exposed to nanoplastics, tiny plastic particles from environmental pollution. Using this tool, they found that different types of human cells react differently to nanoplastic exposure, suggesting some tissues may be more vulnerable to plastic-related damage than others. This kind of precise, cell-by-cell measurement could help researchers better understand exactly how nanoplastics harm our bodies, an important step as concerns grow about plastic contam
Accurate and reliable monitoring of nanoplastics-induced oxidative stress at the single-cell level is essential for revealing the relevant biotoxicity and environmental health risks. Herein, a novel nanopipette sensor coupling Prussian blue-ferroferric oxide (PB-FeO) nanozyme with highly hydrophilic hydrogel (Gel/PB-FeO) was fabricated for the spatiotemporal monitoring of hydrogen peroxide (HO) fluctuations in single cells. The Gel/PB-FeO networks confined inside nanopipette provided the nanochannels, which were featured of good catalytic activity, high ion transport efficiency, and excellent antifouling capacity. The Gel/PB-FeO catalyzed the decomposition of HO to generate hydroxyl radicals, which mediated the oxidation of 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)diammonium salt (ABTS) substrate into the ABTS. The directional migration of positively charged ABTS within the hydrogel nanochannels caused a significant enhancement of ion current rectification, realizing highly sensitive response toward HO with a detection limit of 0.2 μM. Moreover, the proposed nanosensor enabled the spatiotemporal monitoring of polystyrene nanoplastics-induced HO fluctuations in single 293T cells and A549 cells, indicating different oxidative responses of the two cell lines at the single-cell level. The developed nanopipette sensor offers a reliable platform for in-depth investigation on the biotoxicity mechanisms of nanoplastics.