Are PEI-coated SWCNTs conjugated with hepatitis A virus? A chemical study with SEM, Z -potential, EDXD and RT-PCR

Abstract

The conjugation between nanotubes, coated with different doses of polyethylene imine (PEI) and hepatitis A virus (HAV) was investigated by scanning electron microscopy, Z-potential, thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis, transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive x-ray diffraction (EDXD) and reverse transcript polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). For the first time, to our knowledge, evidence is obtained that conjugation between the nanotubes and the HAV occurs and that it has an (at least a partial) electrostatic character. Since all components of the conjugated systems, nanotubes, coating material and virus are characterized by different peak shapes in the selected q range, it was possible to infer that conjugation occurred. RT-PCR measurements confirmed that the conjugation of the coated nanotubes and HAV occurred and the result was stable. This opens up the prospect of probing the coated nanotubes as intra-cellular carriers in transfection processes of the virus. Further biological applications will concern a possible vaccine especially for non-replicative viruses.

Biomedical Applications of Carbon Nanomaterials: Fullerenes, Quantum Dots, Nanotubes, Nanofibers, and Graphene

“…CNTs offer advantages to the design of a vaccine delivery system with different approaches against viral, bacterial and protozoal disease as antigens as well as CpG adjuvants [202][203][204]. Early attempts to use CNT scaffolds as vaccine delivery vehicles include the covalent attachment of viral envelope peptides of foot-and-mouth disease to CNTs [205].…”

Carbon nanotubes as vaccine scaffolds

“…These acidic groups can further undergo amidation or esterification reactions with thionyl chloride or carbodiimide reagents, respectively to append other groups of biological value. This approach has been used to covalently attach many copies of the polyelectrolyte polyethylene imine 94 or proteins obtained from tumor lysates 95 . Another versatile route is the addition of primary amine groups employing the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of reactive azomethine ylides with the carbon-carbon double bonds of the CNT sidewall surface.…”

“…Viral, bacterial and protozoal antigens as well as CpG adjuvants have been appended 94,99,101 . One of the early attempts to apply CNT as a scaffold for vaccine development involved the covalent attachment of foot-and-mouth disease viral envelope peptides to CNT 97,98 .…”