title: Hydrodynamic chromatography coupled to single-particle ICP-MS for the simultaneous characterization of AgNPs and determination of dissolved Ag in plasma and blood of burn patients.
abstract: Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are increasingly used in medical devices as innovative antibacterial agents, but no data are currently available on their chemical transformations and fate in vivo in the human body, particularly on their potential to reach the circulatory system. To study the processes involving AgNPs in human plasma and blood, we developed an analytical method based on hydrodynamic chromatography (HDC) coupled to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) in single-particle detection mode. An innovative algorithm was implemented to deconvolute the signals of dissolved Ag and AgNPs and to extrapolate a multiparametric characterization of the particles in the same chromatogram. From a single injection, the method provides the concentration of dissolved Ag and the distribution of AgNPs in terms of hydrodynamic diameter, mass-derived diameter, number and mass concentration. This analytical approach is robust and suitable to study quantitatively the dynamics and kinetics of AgNPs in complex biological fluids, including processes such as agglomeration, dissolution and formation of protein coronas. The method was applied to study the transformations of AgNP standards and an AgNP-coated dressing in human plasma, supported by micro X-ray fluorescence (μXRF) and micro X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy (μXANES) speciation analysis and imaging, and to investigate, for the first time, the possible presence of AgNPs in the blood of three burn patients treated with the same dressing. Together with our previous studies, the results strongly support the hypothesis that the systemic mobilization of the metal after topical administration of AgNPs is driven by their dissolution in situ. Graphical Abstract Simplified scheme of the combined analytical approach adopted for studying the chemical dynamics of AgNPs in human plasma/blood.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences, Informatics and Statistics (DAIS), Ca' Foscari University of Venice, Via Torino 155, 30172, Venezia Mestre, Italy. marco.roman@unive.it.|Institute for the Dynamics of Environmental Processes (IDPA-CNR), Via Torino 155, 30172, Venezia Mestre, Italy. marco.roman@unive.it.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Roman
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences, Informatics and Statistics (DAIS), Ca' Foscari University of Venice, Via Torino 155, 30172, Venezia Mestre, Italy.
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rigo
authors.affiliation: European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF), 71 Avenue des Martyrs, 38000, Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: Hiram
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Castillo-Michel
authors.affiliation: Burns Center, Division of Plastic Surgery, University Hospital of Padua, Via Giustiniani 2, 35128, Padua, Italy.
authors.forename: Ivan
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Munivrana
authors.affiliation: Burns Center, Division of Plastic Surgery, University Hospital of Padua, Via Giustiniani 2, 35128, Padua, Italy.
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Vindigni
authors.affiliation: European Center for the Sustainable Impact of Nanotechnology (ECSIN), Viale Porta Adige 45, 45100, Rovigo, Italy.
authors.forename: Ivan
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Mičetić
authors.affiliation: European Center for the Sustainable Impact of Nanotechnology (ECSIN), Viale Porta Adige 45, 45100, Rovigo, Italy.
authors.forename: Federico
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Benetti
authors.affiliation: European Center for the Sustainable Impact of Nanotechnology (ECSIN), Viale Porta Adige 45, 45100, Rovigo, Italy.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Manodori
authors.affiliation: Institute for the Dynamics of Environmental Processes (IDPA-CNR), Via Torino 155, 30172, Venezia Mestre, Italy.
authors.forename: Warren R L
authors.initials: WR
authors.lastname: Cairns
mesh_terms: D001774:Blood Chemical Analysis / Q000379:methods*; D002056:Burns / Q000097:blood*; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods*; D045424:Complex Mixtures / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D057446:Hydrodynamics; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles / Q000032:analysis*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012834:Silver / Q000097:blood*; D013054:Spectrophotometry, Atomic / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D045424:Complex Mixtures; D012834:Silver
keywords: Burns; Hydrodynamic chromatography; Silver nanoparticles; Single-particle ICP-MS; Synchrotron radiation; Wound dressings