title: Monodisperse phase transfer and surface bioengineering of metal nanoparticles via a silk fibroin protein corona.
abstract: Uniform hydrophobic nanoparticles synthesized in nonpolar solvents possess excellent physio-chemical properties, showing great potential in biomedical applications. However, the presence of hydrophobic ligands on their surfaces limits their use under physiological conditions. Inspired by protein coronas present at the nano-bio interface, here we report a facile and universal method for phase transfer and surface bioengineering of hydrophobic nanoparticles using β-sheet-rich silk fibroin, a FDA-approved natural protein. Due to its amphiphilicity and high mechanical stiffness, the β-sheet-rich silk fibroin not only readily drags nanoparticles from an organic phase into aqueous media but also endows them with excellent monodispersity and long-term stability. The silk fibroin-coated nanoparticles can retain the magnetic and optical properties of the original nanoparticles, acting effectively as probes for biomedical imaging and biosensing. Furthermore, hydrophobic drugs can be easily adsorbed onto the protein coating via hydrophobic interaction, allowing the construction of promising theranostic nanoagents. Given these unique features, the strategy developed here possesses great promise in facilitating biomedical applications of hydrophobic nanomaterials.
authors.affiliation: The Key Lab of Analysis and Detection Technology for Food Safety of the MOE, State Key Laboratory of Photocatalysis on Energy and Environment, College of Chemistry, Fuzhou 350108, P. R. China. hhyang@fio.org.cn.
authors.forename: Xiao-Wei
authors.initials: XW
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: The Key Lab of Analysis and Detection Technology for Food Safety of the MOE, State Key Laboratory of Photocatalysis on Energy and Environment, College of Chemistry, Fuzhou 350108, P. R. China. hhyang@fio.org.cn.
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liang
authors.affiliation: The Key Lab of Analysis and Detection Technology for Food Safety of the MOE, State Key Laboratory of Photocatalysis on Energy and Environment, College of Chemistry, Fuzhou 350108, P. R. China. hhyang@fio.org.cn.
authors.forename: Zhi
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: College of Biological Science and Engineering, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou 350108, P. R. China. shumengbai@fzu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: The Key Lab of Analysis and Detection Technology for Food Safety of the MOE, State Key Laboratory of Photocatalysis on Energy and Environment, College of Chemistry, Fuzhou 350108, P. R. China. hhyang@fio.org.cn.
authors.forename: Xian
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: College of Biological Science and Engineering, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou 350108, P. R. China. shumengbai@fzu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Shu-Meng
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Bai
authors.affiliation: The Key Lab of Analysis and Detection Technology for Food Safety of the MOE, State Key Laboratory of Photocatalysis on Energy and Environment, College of Chemistry, Fuzhou 350108, P. R. China. hhyang@fio.org.cn.
authors.forename: Huang-Hao
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5894-0909
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D057005:Bioengineering; D012831:Bombyx; D005290:Ferric Compounds; D005349:Fibroins / Q000737:chemistry*; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles; D000072757:Protein Conformation, beta-Strand; D000066970:Protein Corona / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D005290:Ferric Compounds; D000066970:Protein Corona; C000499:ferric oxide; D005349:Fibroins