Biomedical application of graphitic carbon nitrides: tissue deposition in vivo, induction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and cell viability in tumor cells

Abstract

The urgency for new materials in oncology is immediate. In this study we have developed the g-C3N4, a graphitic-like structure formed by periodically linked tris-s-triazine units. The g-C3N4 has been synthesized by a simple and fast thermal process. XRD has shown the formation of the crystalline sheet with a compacted structure. The graphite-like structure and the functional groups have been shown by Raman and FTIR spectroscopy. TEM image and AFM revealed the porous composed of five or six C–N layers stacked. DRS and Photoluminescence analyses confirmed the structure with band gap of 2.87 eV and emission band at 448 nm in different wavelengths excitation conditions. The biological results showed inhibitory effect on cancer cell lines and non-toxic effect in normal cell lines. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work demonstrating the cytotoxic effects of 2D g-C3N4 in a cancer cell line, without any external or synergistic influence. The biodistribution/tissue accumulation showed that g-C3N4 present a tendency to accumulation on the lung in the first 2 h, but after 24 h the profile of the biodistribution change and it is found mainly in the liver. Thus, 2D-g-C3N4 showed great potential for the treatment of several cancer types.

Improving the Bioactivity of Hydroxyapatite Through Strontium Substitution and Forming a Composite with Graphitic Carbon Nitride

“…The IR bands noticed at 1650 cm -1 and at 3572 cm -1 can be related to the H-O-H bending vibration of H 2 O and -OH stretching vibrations of adsorbed H 2 O molecules on the surface, respectively (13). For GCN, the out-of-plane bending vibration, which is characteristic of triazine or heptazine units appears at 809 cm -1 while the IR band at 879 cm -1 is attributed to the bending vibration of N-containing heterocycles (14). The stretching vibrations of C-NH-C are observed at 1247 cm -1 , 1323 cm -1 while the stretching vibrations of C═ N and C═C in the s-triazine ring are noticed at 1647 cm -1 and 1556 cm -1 , respectively.…”

Radiolabeled nanomaterials for biomedical applications: radiopharmacy in the era of nanotechnology

“…Controversially, Wigner et al (2021) evaluating the influence of polymeric nanoparticles (PLA/ MMT/TRA, PLA/EDTMP, PLGA/MDP, and Pluronic F127 Ms) on the cell, homeostasis demonstrated that all nanosystems were able to produce a toxic effect, which included: genotoxicity effect by internucleosomal DNA fragmentation and formation of ROS. In the same way, Freire et al (2021), studying the biomedical application of graphitic carbon nitrides nanoparticles, found that although graphitic carbon nitrides may induce cell apoptosis, the mechanism was not by the formation of ROS formation.…”

“…Many in vitro and in vivo studies have shown that exposure to nanoparticles could induce the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). ROS generation is directly related to alteration in mitochondrial metabolism, which represents one of the main markers confirming apoptosis induction since ROS causes oxidative stress, inflammation, and subsequent damage to proteins, cell membranes, and DNA (Huang et al 2017;Freire et al 2021;Wigner et al 2021).…”

Molecular Imaging for Lung Cancer: Exploring Small Molecules, Peptides, and Beyond in Radiolabeled Diagnostics

“…Nanoscale drug delivery systems offer advantages due to their biocompatibility, non-toxicity, and nonimmunogenicity [ 10 , 11 , 12 ]. These systems can be targeted to the tumor site, increasing bioavailability and allowing the transportation of multiple drugs or molecules to the tumor [ 13 ].…”