Lipid adsorbed on the surface of nanomaterials enhances protein corona formation

The high level of nanomaterials used in industrial and consumer products drives the need to better understand how these materials interact with biological systems. We probe the interaction of four commonly used nanomaterials; titanium dioxide, silicon dioxide, and silver nanoparticles and multi-walled carbon nanotubes, with a representative lung lining fluid lipid, L-α-phosphatidylcholine, and serum proteins. We find that the presence of the lipid increases the adsorption of fetal bovine serum on the surface of the nanomaterials. Individual serum proteins, bovine serum albumin and transferrin, show a nanomaterial-dependent response. We used murine macrophages to characterize the cellular response to lipid-protein-nanoparticle complexes and found a nanomaterial-dependent response, measured by cytokine release. In the case of titanium dioxide nanoparticles, l-α-phosphatidylcholine on the nanomaterial surface provides a protective effect against inflammation. While much recent work probes the protein corona that forms on nanomaterials used in biological applications, this work examines the lipid and protein coronas with relevance to inhalation exposures.