Ultrasensitive Visual Tracking of Toxic Cyanide Ions in Biological Samples Using Biocompatible Metal-Organic
Islam M El-Sewify1, Mohamed A Shenashen2, Rasha F El-Agamy3
1Research Center for Macromolecules and Biomaterials, National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), 1-2-1 Sengen, Tsukubashi, Ibaraki-ken 305-0047, Japan; Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Ain Shams University, 11566 Cairo, Abbassia, Egypt.
Journal of Hazardous Materials
|December 23, 2023
Summary
Researchers developed biocompatible branching molecular architectures (BMAs) for ultrasensitive detection of toxic cyanide ions in HeLa cells. These nanorod BMAs enable rapid, real-time monitoring of cyanide levels, crucial for assessing cellular health risks.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
- Biomedical Engineering
Background:
- Cyanide ion accumulation in cells poses significant health risks.
- Sensitive and rapid detection methods for intracellular cyanide are needed.
- Existing methods may lack the sensitivity or speed for real-time cellular monitoring.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and evaluate biocompatible branching molecular architectures (BMAs) for detecting cyanide ions in HeLa cells.
- To demonstrate the capability of BMAs for ultrasensitive and continuous tracking of cyanide levels.
- To assess the compatibility of BMAs for in-vitro cellular sensing applications.
Main Methods:
- Engineering of nanorod BMAs using organic-inorganic Al-frameworks with dendritic branches.
- Utilizing batch-contact methods to evaluate the hollow-nest architecture's potential for cyanide inhibition/evaluation.
- Employing in-vitro fluorescence tracking and sensing of cyanide ions within HeLa cells.
Main Results:
- Nanorod BMAs demonstrated significant potential for monitoring and tracking cyanide ions down to 88 parts per trillion.
- Detection and tracking of cyanide ions in biological trials were achieved within seconds.
- BMAs showed sufficient biocompatibility during HeLa cell exposure.
Conclusions:
- Biocompatible branching molecular architectures offer a promising tool for ultrasensitive, real-time detection of intracellular cyanide.
- The developed nanorod BMAs are effective for monitoring toxicant levels in biological systems.
- This technology has potential applications in reducing health hazards associated with toxicant exposure in cells.
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