Issue 40, 2021

Functional coatings enable navigation of light-propelled micromotors in blood for effective biodetoxification

Abstract

Herein we report the coating of visible light-driven polycaprolactone (PCL) based micromotors with an anti-biofouling poly lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) layer for effective navigation and detoxification in blood samples. The micromotors encapsulate CdSe@ZnS quantum dots as photoresponsive materials and a Fe3O4 nanoparticle patch to promote electron transfer and reaction with glucose present in the media for diffusiophoretic propulsion in diluted blood. The coating of the micromotor with the PLGA layer prevents red blood cell adhesion and protein adsorption due to the creation of a highly efficient hydration layer. This results in an enhanced speed and efficient operation for enhanced toxin removal as compared with the bare PCL micromotors. Hemolysis and MTT assays along with no platelets aggregation revealed the high biocompatibility of the micromotors with living cells. Effective adsorptive removal of two relevant toxins, sepsis associated Escherichia coli O111:B4 toxin and snake venom α-bungarotoxin from blood is achieved with the PLGA micromotors. The new developments illustrated here represent one step forward in the use of light-driven micromotors for biomedical applications.

Graphical abstract: Functional coatings enable navigation of light-propelled micromotors in blood for effective biodetoxification

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
26 Jul 2021
Accepted
05 Oct 2021
First published
05 Oct 2021

Nanoscale, 2021,13, 17106-17115

Functional coatings enable navigation of light-propelled micromotors in blood for effective biodetoxification

M. Pacheco, B. Jurado-Sánchez and A. Escarpa, Nanoscale, 2021, 13, 17106 DOI: 10.1039/D1NR04842B

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