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Tailor-Made Protein Corona Formation on Polystyrene Microparticles and its Effect on Epithelial Cell Uptake
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Researchers investigated how protein corona formation on polystyrene microparticles affects epithelial cell uptake, finding that the initial protein precoating critically influenced final corona composition and particle-cell interactions while leaving cell viability unaffected.
Microplastic particles are pollutants in the environment with a potential impact on ecology and human health. As soon as microplastic particles get in contact with complex (biological) environments, they will be covered by an eco- and/or protein corona. In this contribution, protein corona formation was conducted under defined laboratory conditions on polystyrene (PS) microparticles to investigate the influence on surface properties, protein corona evolution, particle-cell interactions, and uptake in two murine epithelial cells. To direct protein corona formation, PS particles were preincubated with five model proteins, namely, bovine serum albumin (BSA), myoglobin, β-lactoglobulin, lysozyme, and fibrinogen. Subsequently, the single-protein-coated particles were incubated in a cell culture medium containing a cocktail of serum proteins to analyze changes in the protein corona profile as well as in the binding kinetics of the model proteins. Therein, we could show that the precoating step has a critical impact on the final composition of the protein corona. Yet, since proteins building the primary corona were still detectable after additional incubations in a protein-containing medium, backtracking of the particle's history is possible. Interestingly, whereas the precoating history significantly disturbs particle-cell interactions (PCIs), the cellular response (i.e., metabolic activity, MTT assay) stays unaffected. Of note, lysozyme precoating revealed one of the highest rates in PCI for both epithelial cell lines. Taken together, we could show that particle history has a significant impact on protein corona formation and subsequently on the interaction of particles with murine intestinal epithelial-like cells. However, as this study was limited to one cell type, further work is needed to assess if these observations can be generalized to other cell types.
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Researchers investigated how polystyrene nanoplastics interact with mammalian cells, finding that particle size and the protein corona that forms around particles in biological fluids strongly influence cellular uptake and toxicity. Smaller nanoplastics penetrated cell membranes more readily and caused greater disruption, suggesting that the tiniest plastic particles may pose the greatest biological risk.
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.
Impact of Protein Corona Formation and Polystyrene Nanoparticle Functionalisation on the Interaction with Dynamic Biomimetic Membranes Comprising of Integrin
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Researchers studied how polystyrene nanoparticles interact with blood proteins and cell membranes to understand potential health effects of nanoplastic exposure. They found that when blood proteins coat the nanoparticles, forming a so-called protein corona, it actually reduces the particles' ability to damage cell membranes. The study suggests that the body's natural protein coating of nanoplastics may offer some protection against membrane disruption, though the long-term implications remain unclear.
Fate of polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics in zebrafish liver cells: Influence of protein corona on transport, oxidative stress, and glycolipid metabolism
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Scientists studied how proteins in biological fluids coat nanoplastic particles (forming a "protein corona") and how this coating changes the way cells take up and process the plastics. The protein coating actually increased how many nanoplastics entered liver cells and made them harder to clear out, suggesting that once nanoplastics enter the bloodstream, the body's own proteins may make the contamination harder to eliminate.
Cellular internalization pathways of environmentally exposed microplastic particles: Phagocytosis or Macropinocytosis?
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Researchers investigated how eco-corona formation on environmentally exposed microplastic particles affects their cellular internalization pathways, examining whether particles coated with biomolecules from freshwater or saltwater are taken up by cells via phagocytosis or macropinocytosis, with findings showing that protein ligands in the eco-corona influence cell membrane receptor interactions and thus uptake mechanisms.
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