title: Organ Distribution and Bone Tropism of Cellulose Nanocrystals in Living Mice.
abstract: Their physicochemical properties and relatively low cost make cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) a potential candidate for future large-scale production in many fields including nanomedicine. Prior to a sustained and responsible development as theranostic agents, robust and reliable data concerning their safety, biocompatibility, and tissue distribution should be provided. In the present study, CNCs were extracted from Whatman filters functionalized with a fluorescent dye, and their interaction with living organisms has been thoroughly assessed. Our experimental evidence demonstrated that CNCs (1) are well tolerated by healthy mice after systemic injection; (2) are rapidly excreted, thus avoiding bioaccumulation in filter organs such as the kidneys and liver; (3) transiently migrate in bones; and (4) are able to penetrate in the cytoplasm of cancer cells without inducing material-related detrimental effects in terms of cell survival. Our results strongly suggest that the peculiar tropism to the bones is due to the chemical interaction between the Ca(2+) of the bone matrix and the active surface of negatively-charged CNCs. This feature, together with the ability to penetrate cancer cells, makes CNCs a potential nanodevice for theranostics in bone tumors.
authors.affiliation: IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", 20156 Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Colombo
authors.affiliation: Department of Earth and Environmental Science, University of Milano-Bicocca , Piazza della Scienza 1, 20126 Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Luca
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zoia
authors.affiliation: IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", 20156 Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Martina B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Violatto
authors.affiliation: IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", 20156 Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Previdi
authors.affiliation: IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", 20156 Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Talamini
authors.affiliation: IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", 20156 Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Leopoldo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sitia
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology and Biosciences, University of Milano-Bicocca , Piazza della Scienza 2, 20126 Milano, Italy.
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Nicotra
authors.affiliation: Department of Earth and Environmental Science, University of Milano-Bicocca , Piazza della Scienza 1, 20126 Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Orlandi
authors.affiliation: IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", 20156 Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Salmona
authors.affiliation: Mouse and Animal Pathology Laboratory, Fondazione Filarete , Viale Ortles 22/4, 20139 Milano, Italy.
authors.forename: Camilla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Recordati
authors.affiliation: IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", 20156 Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bigini
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology and Biosciences, University of Milano-Bicocca , Piazza della Scienza 2, 20126 Milano, Italy.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: La Ferla
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D002482:Cellulose / Q000737:chemistry / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000494:pharmacology; D004337:Drug Carriers / Q000737:chemistry / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000494:pharmacology; D005260:Female; D006367:HeLa Cells; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D004337:Drug Carriers; D002482:Cellulose