One-Step Synthesis of Carbon Nanoparticles Capable of Long-Term Tracking Lipid Droplet for Real-Time Monitoring of Lipid Catabolism and Pharmacodynamic Evaluation of Lipid-Lowering Drugs

Lipid droplets (LDs) are intracellular lipid-rich organelles, which not only serve as neutral lipid reservoirs but also involve in many physiological processes and are associated with a variety of metabolic diseases and cancers. Long-term tracking of the state and behavior of LDs is of great signifi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Analytical chemistry (Washington) 2021-03, Vol.93 (12), p.5284-5290
Main Authors: Liu, Meng-Xian, Ding, Na, Chen, Shuai, Yu, Yong-Liang, Wang, Jian-Hua
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Analytical chemistry
Atorvastatin
Autophagy
Biocompatibility
Carbon
Catabolism
Cell viability
Chemistry
Cytotoxicity
Droplets
Drug development
Hepatocytes
Intracellular
Irradiation
Lipid metabolism
Lipids
Metabolic disorders
Nanoparticles
Organelles
Phagocytosis
Pharmacodynamics
Photobleaching
Retention
Room temperature
Toxicity
Tracking
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Summary:Lipid droplets (LDs) are intracellular lipid-rich organelles, which not only serve as neutral lipid reservoirs but also involve in many physiological processes and are associated with a variety of metabolic diseases and cancers. Long-term tracking of the state and behavior of LDs is of great significance but challenging. The difficulty is largely due to the lack of low cytotoxicity, high photobleaching resistance, and long intracellular retention probes that are capable of long-term tracking LDs. Herein, we report the discovery of two amphiphilic LD-targeting carbon nanoparticles (CNPs, i.e., CPDs and CDs) prepared by one-step room-temperature and hydrothermal methods. Their high lipid–water partition coefficient (log P > 2.13) and strong positive solvatochromism property ensure the quality of LD imaging. Especially, CDs exhibit favorable biocompatibility (2 mg mL–1, cell viability >90%), excellent photostability (after continuous laser irradiation on a confocal microscope for 2 h, relative FL intensity >85%), and superior intracellular retention ability, thereby enabling long-term tracking of LDs in hepatocytes for up to six passages. Based on the excellent long-term tracking ability, CDs are successfully applied to observe autophagy in a typical catabolic process and to evaluate the effect of a commonly used lipid-lowering drug atorvastatin on hepatocyte lipid uptake.
ISSN:0003-2700
1520-6882
DOI:10.1021/acs.analchem.1c00337