title: Interaction of bovine serum albumin with chrysotile: spectroscopic and morphological studies.
abstract: The biodurability of chrysotile fibers, which is related to their cytotoxicity and mutagenic responses, is strongly affected by the surface chemical adsorption of biological molecules. Natural chrysotile is a heterogeneous material in both structure and composition. The availability of synthetic stoichiometric chrysotile of constant structure and uniform morphology has allowed us to investigate its interaction with bovine serum albumin (BSA). By using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM), we have obtained the first morphological evidence of albumin adsorption onto chrysotile nanocrystals. FTIR spectroscopy was used to quantify modifications of BSA secondary structure that were induced by the surface interaction. The protein transition to beta-turns allows a stronger interaction between the protein hydrophilic side-chains and the charged asbestos surface, which is consistent with hydrogen bonds involving the superficial OH groups. Synthetic stoichiometric chrysotile nanocrystals were shown to be an ideal reference standard with which to study the interaction of asbestos fibers with biological systems, in order to elucidate the chemical mechanisms of asbestos toxicity.
authors.affiliation: Environmental Chemistry Laboratory, University of Bologna via dell'Agricoltura 5, 48100 Ravenna (Italy).
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Falini
authors.forename: Elisabetta
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Foresti
authors.forename: Isidoro G
authors.initials: IG
authors.lastname: Lesci
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lunelli
authors.forename: Piera
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sabatino
authors.forename: Norberto
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Roveri
mesh_terms: D017632:Asbestos, Serpentine / Q000737:chemistry*; D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D053758:Nanoparticles; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine / Q000737:chemistry*; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; D013499:Surface Properties
chemical_list: D017632:Asbestos, Serpentine; D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine