Graphene Quantum Dots’ Surface Chemistry Modulates the Sensitivity of Glioblastoma Cells to Chemotherapeutics

Perini, Giordano; Palmieri, Valentina; Ciasca, Gabriele; D’Ascenzo, Marcello; Gervasoni, Jacopo; Primiano, Aniello; Rinaldi, Monica; Fioretti, Daniela; Prampolini, Chiara; Tiberio, Federica; Lattanzi, Wanda; Parolini, Ornella; De Spirito, Marco; Papi, Massimiliano

doi:10.3390/ijms21176301

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Graphene Quantum Dots’ Surface Chemistry Modulates the Sensitivity of Glioblastoma Cells to Chemotherapeutics

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Dipartimento di Neuroscienze, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy

Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, 00168 Rome, Italy

Institute for Complex Systems, National Research Council (ISC-CNR), Via dei Taurini 19, 00185 Rome, Italy

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Dipartimento di Scienze Biotecnologiche di Base, Cliniche Intensivologiche e Perioperatorie, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy

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Institute of Translational Pharmacology (ITF), Department of Biomedical Sciences, National Research Council (CNR), 00168 Rome, Italy

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Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e Sanità Pubblica, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy

Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2020, 21(17), 6301; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms21176301

Received: 9 August 2020 / Revised: 26 August 2020 / Accepted: 27 August 2020 / Published: 31 August 2020

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Graphene-Based Materials: Biological and Biomedical Applications)

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Abstract

Recent evidence has shown that graphene quantum dots (GQDs) are capable of crossing the blood–brain barrier, the barrier that reduces cancer therapy efficacy. Here, we tested three alternative GQDs’ surface chemistries on two neural lineages (glioblastoma cells and mouse cortical neurons). We showed that surface chemistry modulates GQDs’ biocompatibility. When used in combination with the chemotherapeutic drug doxorubicin, GDQs exerted a synergistic effect on tumor cells, but not on neurons. This appears to be mediated by the modification of membrane permeability induced by the surface of GQDs. Our findings highlight that GQDs can be adopted as a suitable delivery and therapeutic strategy for the treatment of glioblastoma, by both directly destabilizing the cell membrane and indirectly increasing the efficacy of chemotherapeutic drugs. View Full-Text

Keywords: nanomedicine; graphene quantum dots; glioblastoma; cancer treatment; synergistic therapy

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MDPI and ACS Style

Perini, G.; Palmieri, V.; Ciasca, G.; D’Ascenzo, M.; Gervasoni, J.; Primiano, A.; Rinaldi, M.; Fioretti, D.; Prampolini, C.; Tiberio, F.; Lattanzi, W.; Parolini, O.; De Spirito, M.; Papi, M. Graphene Quantum Dots’ Surface Chemistry Modulates the Sensitivity of Glioblastoma Cells to Chemotherapeutics. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2020, 21, 6301. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms21176301

AMA Style

Perini G, Palmieri V, Ciasca G, D’Ascenzo M, Gervasoni J, Primiano A, Rinaldi M, Fioretti D, Prampolini C, Tiberio F, Lattanzi W, Parolini O, De Spirito M, Papi M. Graphene Quantum Dots’ Surface Chemistry Modulates the Sensitivity of Glioblastoma Cells to Chemotherapeutics. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2020; 21(17):6301. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms21176301

Chicago/Turabian Style

Perini, Giordano, Valentina Palmieri, Gabriele Ciasca, Marcello D’Ascenzo, Jacopo Gervasoni, Aniello Primiano, Monica Rinaldi, Daniela Fioretti, Chiara Prampolini, Federica Tiberio, Wanda Lattanzi, Ornella Parolini, Marco De Spirito, and Massimiliano Papi. 2020. "Graphene Quantum Dots’ Surface Chemistry Modulates the Sensitivity of Glioblastoma Cells to Chemotherapeutics" International Journal of Molecular Sciences 21, no. 17: 6301. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms21176301

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