Mammalian cells are extremely vulnerable to external assaults compared with plant and microbial cells because of the weakness of cell membranes compared with cell walls. Construction of ultrathin and robust artificial shells on mammalian cells with biocompatible materials is a promising strategy for protecting single cells against harsh environmental conditions. Herein, layer-by-layer assembly combined with a transglutaminase-catalyzed cross-linking reaction was employed to prepare cross-linked and biocompatible gelatin nanoshells on individual human cervical carcinoma cell line (HeLa) cells and mouse insulinoma cell line 6 (MIN6) cells. The encapsulated HeLa and MIN6 cells showed high viability and a prolonged encapsulation period. Moreover, the nanoshells can protect encapsulated cells from cytotoxic enzymes (such as trypsin) and polycation (polyethylenimine) attacks and help cells resist high physical stress. We also investigated how nanoshells would affect the cell viability, proliferation, and cell cycle distribution of encapsulated and released cells. The approach presented here may provide a new and versatile method for nanoencapsulation of individual mammalian cells, which would help cells endure various environmental stresses and thereby expand the application field of isolated mammalian cells.

Accurate monitoring of methylglyoxal (MGO) at cell and living level was crucial to reveal its role in the pathogenesis of diabetes since MGO was closely related to diabetes. Herein, a ratiometric fluorescence strategy was constructed based on the capture probe 2,3‐diaminonaphthalene (DAN) for the specific detection of MGO. Compared to the fluorescent probes with a single emission wavelength, the ratiometric mode by monitoring two emissions can effectively avoid the interference from the biological background, and provided additional self‐calibration ability, which can realize accurate detection of MGO. The proposed method showed a good linear relationship in the range of 0–75 μ m for MGO detection, and the limit of detection was 0.33 μ m . DAN responded to MGO with good specificity and was successfully applied for detecting the ex vivo MGO level in plasma of KK−Ay mice as a type II diabetes model. Besides, the prepared DAN test strip can be visualized for rapid semi‐quantitative analysis of MGO using the naked eye. Furthermore, human skin fibroblasts and HeLa cells were utilized for exogenous MGO imaging, and ex vivo MGO imaging was performed on tissues of KK−Ay mice. All results indicated that the DAN‐based ratiometric fluorescence probe can be used as a potential method to detect the level of MGO, thus enabling indications for the occurrence of diabetes and its complications.

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