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Updated: Mar 23, 2026

Photopatterning Proteins and Cells in Aqueous Environment Using TiO2 Photocatalysis
Published on: October 26, 2015
The role of surface modification for TiO2 nanoparticles in cancer cells
Jin Xie1, Xiaobo Pan1, Mengyan Wang1
1Department of Optical Science and Engineering, Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Ultra-Precision Optical Manufacturing, Green Photoelectron Platform, Fudan University, 220 Handan Road, Shanghai 200433, PR China.
Abstract:
Titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 NPs) have a potential in the field of biological application. However, its poor dispersibility in water hampered its applications. In this study, 3-phosphonopropionic acid and 3-aminopropyl-triethoxysilane were respectively used for surface modification on TiO2 NPs with negative and positive surface charges (denoted as TiO2-COOH and TiO2-NH2). Zeta potentials of the prepared samples with high absolute value demonstrate the great improvement in their dispersibility. In terms of viability experiment, both TiO2-COOH and TiO2-NH2 showed low cytotoxicity. The cellular uptake efficiency and the uptake pathways of TiO2-COOH and TiO2-NH2 for cancer cells were studied. The exocytosis of TiO2-NH2 was also observed in the experiment.
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