Abstract

Multi-walled Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNTs) are inert structures with high aspect ratios that are widely used as vehicles for targeted drug delivery in cancer and many other diseases. They are largely non-toxic in nature however, when cells are exposed to these nanotubes for prolonged durations or at high concentrations, they show certain adverse effects. These include cytotoxicity, inflammation, generation of oxidative stress, and genotoxicity among others. To combat such adverse effects, various moieties can be attached to the surface of these nanotubes. Curcumin is a known anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and cytoprotective compound derived from a medicinal plant called Curcuma longa. In this study, we have synthesized and characterized Curcumin coated-lysine functionalized MWCNTs and further evaluated the cytoprotective, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and antiapoptotic effect of Curcumin coating on the surface of MWCNTs. The results show a significant decrease in the level of inflammatory molecules like IL-6, IL-8, IL-1β, TNFα and NFκB in cells exposed to Curcumin-coated MWCNTs as compared to the uncoated ones at both transcript and protein levels. Further, compared to the uncoated samples, there is a reduction in ROS production and upregulation of antioxidant enzyme-Catalase in the cells treated with Curcumin-coated MWCNTs. Curcumin coating also helped in recovery of mitochondrial membrane potential in the cells exposed to MWCNTs. Lastly, cells exposed to Curcumin-coated MWCNTs showed reduced cell death as compared to the ones exposed to uncoated MWCNTs. Our findings suggest that coating of Curcumin on the surface of MWCNTs reduces its ability to cause inflammation, oxidative stress, and cell death.

Graphical Abstract

(a) Synthesis of Curcumin-coated-Lysine-functionalized MWCNTs. (b) Flow of research depicting experimental groups and studies performed along with the underlying techniques used.

中文翻译：

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姜黄素涂层：减轻碳纳米管固有毒性的新型解决方案

摘要

多壁碳纳米管 (MWCNT) 是具有高长径比的惰性结构，广泛用作癌症和许多其他疾病靶向药物输送的载体。它们本质上基本上是无毒的，但是，当细胞长时间或高浓度暴露于这些纳米管时，它们会表现出某些不利影响。这些包括细胞毒性、炎症、氧化应激的产生和遗传毒性等。为了对抗这种不利影响，可以将各种部分附着到这些纳米管的表面。姜黄素是一种已知的抗炎、抗氧化和细胞保护化合物，源自一种名为姜黄的药用植物。在本研究中，我们合成并表征了姜黄素涂层赖氨酸功能化的多壁碳纳米管，并进一步评估了姜黄素涂层在多壁碳纳米管表面的细胞保护、抗炎、抗氧化和抗凋亡作用。结果显示，与未包被的多壁碳纳米管相比，暴露于姜黄素包被的多壁碳纳米管的细胞中炎症分子（如 IL-6、IL-8、IL-1β、TNFα 和 NFκB）的水平在转录物和蛋白质水平上均显着降低。此外，与未包被的样品相比，用姜黄素包被的多壁碳纳米管处理的细胞中，ROS 产生减少，抗氧化酶过氧化氢酶上调。姜黄素涂层还有助于恢复暴露于多壁碳纳米管的细胞中的线粒体膜电位。最后，与暴露于未涂覆的多壁碳纳米管的细胞相比，暴露于姜黄素涂覆的多壁碳纳米管的细胞显示出细胞死亡减少。我们的研究结果表明，多壁碳纳米管表面的姜黄素涂层降低了其引起炎症、氧化应激和细胞死亡的能力。

图形概要

(a) 姜黄素涂层赖氨酸功能化多壁碳纳米管的合成。 (b) 描述实验组和所使用的基础技术进行的研究的研究流程。