Date of Award
2018
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science in Chemical Engineering (MSChE)
Department
Chemical Engineering
First Advisor
Geoffrey D. Bothun
Abstract
In recent years, nanotechnology has attracted significant interest in cancer therapeutics for its touted ability to offer innovative solutions to existing problems associated with chemotherapeutic agents. Specifically, single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) have garnered recent attention in the fields of bioimaging and biosensing. SWCNTs possess an intrinsic and unique near-infrared (nIR) photostable fluorescence and biocompatibility. Several past studies have revealed how SWCNTs interact with biological systems in vitro and in vivo. In this study, the specific effect of flow and shear stress on the interactions between SWCNTs and live cells in vitro are more closely investigated. The nature of binding and endocytosis of SWCNTs with adenocarcinomic human alveolar epithelial (A549) cells was explored with intensity-based measurements acquired through the use of nIR fluorescence hyperspectral microscopy. Furthermore, the effect of Fetal Bovine Serum (FBS) in addition to nanoparticles’ protein corona under shear stress conditions was examined.
The investigations in this novel study predict, that SWCNTs will internalize more likely into endothelia cells, which are exposed to high shear stress. Despite this, the results concerning the shear stress independently of the SWCNT concentration showed, that the shear stress has only a marginal influence on their adsorption and desorption, compared to the impact that proteins binding to the surface of SWCNTs create.
Recommended Citation
Staud, Rolf, "CARBON NANOTUBE INTERACTIONS WITH HUMAN CELLS UNDER SHEAR USING MICROFLUIDICS" (2018). Open Access Master's Theses. Paper 1323.
https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/theses/1323
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