Tailoring the component of protein corona via simple chemistry

TLDR

Control over the protein corona of nanomaterials improves their functional performance. The study aims to develop a simple method to tailor the protein corona of graphene/gold nanomaterials, enriching dysopsonins to enhance delivery efficacy. The authors comprehensively assessed how surface properties of graphene/gold influence protein corona formation. In vitro and computational analyses revealed that hydroxyl group availability on graphene/gold inversely affects HSA/IgE binding, that ApoE binding is less dependent on hydroxyls, and that pre‑adsorbing ApoE enhances circulation and reduces cytotoxicity, confirming that a dysopsonin‑enriched corona improves delivery.

Abstract

Abstract Control over the protein corona of nanomaterials allows them to function better. Here, by taking graphene/gold as examples, we comprehensively assessed the association of surface properties with the protein corona. As revealed by in vitro measurements and computations, the interaction between graphene/gold and HSA/IgE was inversely correlated with the hydroxyl group availability, whereas the interaction between that and ApoE was comparatively less relevant. Molecular simulations revealed that the number and the distribution of surface hydroxyl groups could regulate the manner in which nanomaterials interact with proteins. Moreover, we validated that ApoE pre-adsorption before injection enhances the blood circulation of nanomaterials relative to their pristine and IgE-coated counterparts. This benefit can be attributed to the invulnerability of the complementary system provided by ApoE, whose encasement does not increase cytotoxicity. Overall, this study offers a robust yet simple way to create protein corona enriched in dysopsonins to realize better delivery efficacy.