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Strong binding between nanoplastic and bacterial proteins facilitates protein corona formation and reduces nanoplastics toxicity
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Researchers demonstrated that bacteria-derived proteins adsorb strongly onto nanoplastic surfaces to form a 'protein corona,' altering nanoplastic morphology and reducing their toxicity to bacterial cells — with the degree of protection varying by surface chemistry, as amino-modified nanoplastics showed the greatest reduction in oxidative damage after corona formation.
The interaction and combination of nanoplastics with microorganisms, enzymes, plant proteins, and other substances have garnered considerable attention in current research. This study specifically examined the interaction and biological effects of NPs and proteins. The findings indicated that the presence of externally wrapped proteins alters the original morphology and surface roughness of nanoplastics, leading to the formation of unevenly distributed coronas on the surface. This confirms that nanoplastics can interact with proteins to form protein coronas. The study characterized the adsorption behavior of bacterial proteins on unmodified, amino-modified, and carboxyl-modified nanoplastics using Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models, showing that the adsorption process of the three nanoplastics on bacterial proteins was mainly controlled by chemisorption. Fluorescence spectroscopy revealed a higher binding affinity of unmodified nanoplastics. Nearly 40 % of the proteins in the protein corona of unmodified NPs are involved in metabolite production and electron transport processes. Nearly 50 % of the proteins in the protein corona of amino-modified NPs are involved in cellular metabolic processes, followed by enzymes that carry out redox reactions. The protein corona of carboxyl-modified NPs has the highest number of proteins involved in metabolic pathways, followed by proteins involved in energy-electron transfer. The formation of protein coronas on NPs with different surface modifications can reduce the toxicity of nanoplastics to bacteria to a certain extent compared to pure nanoplastics, especially amino-modified NPs, which show a significant increase in bacterial survival. The formation of protein coronas on NPs leads to varying degrees of decrease in bacterial ROS and MDA generation, with amino-modified NPs showing the most reduction; SOD and CAT exhibit varying degrees of increase and decrease. These findings not only advance our understanding of the biological impacts of NPs but also provide a basis for future in-depth investigations into the pathways of NP contamination in real environments.
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Nanoplastics and Protein Corona - Investigating the Corona Structure and their Biological Impacts
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This PhD thesis investigated how proteins from biological fluids coat the surface of nanoplastics, forming a 'protein corona' that changes how nanoplastics interact with cells and tissues. The protein corona is important because it alters the biological behavior of nanoplastics once they enter the body, potentially affecting how harmful they are.
Assessment on interactive prospectives of nanoplastics with plasma proteins and the toxicological impacts of virgin, coronated and environmentally released-nanoplastics
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Researchers found that nanoplastics quickly coat themselves in blood proteins, forming a multi-layered "corona" that changes the proteins' shape and makes them biologically harmful; these protein-coated nanoplastics caused more DNA and cell damage in human blood cells than bare nanoplastics. The study highlights the need to regulate nanoplastics in medical products and better understand how they accumulate in the body.
Unravelling protein corona formation on pristine and leached microplastics
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Researchers found that when microplastics encounter proteins in biological fluids, they get coated in a "protein corona" that depends heavily on the plastic's chemical additives, surface area, and how much it has been weathered in the environment. This coating changes how microplastics behave in the body, meaning toxicity studies need to account for these real-world surface changes.
Unravelling protein corona formation on pristine and leached microplastics
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When microplastics enter biological fluids or protein-rich environments, proteins coat their surface to form a 'protein corona' that changes how the particles behave in living systems. This study explored how the physical and chemical properties of pristine versus weathered microplastics influence corona formation, finding that surface changes caused by environmental aging significantly alter protein binding. Understanding this process matters because the protein coat — not the plastic itself — is often what cells and organisms first encounter.
Structure of soft and hard protein corona around polystyrene nanoplastics—Particle size and protein types
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Researchers characterized the protein corona that forms around polystyrene nanoplastics of different sizes, finding that particle size influences which proteins bind and how tightly, with implications for nanoplastic toxicity and biological uptake.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.