Pengo Paolo, Şologan Maria, Pasquato Lucia, Guida Filomena, Pacor Sabrina, Tossi Alessandro, Stellacci Francesco, Marson Domenico, Boccardo Silvia, Pricl Sabrina, Posocco Paola
Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, INSTM Trieste Research Unit, University of Trieste, 34127, Trieste, Italy.
Department of Architecture and Engineering (DEA), University of Trieste, 34127, Trieste, Italy.
Eur Biophys J. 2017 Dec;46(8):749-771. doi: 10.1007/s00249-017-1250-6. Epub 2017 Sep 1.
Molecular self-assembly is a topic attracting intense scientific interest. Various strategies have been developed for construction of molecular aggregates with rationally designed properties, geometries, and dimensions that promise to provide solutions to both theoretical and practical problems in areas such as drug delivery, medical diagnostics, and biosensors, to name but a few. In this respect, gold nanoparticles covered with self-assembled monolayers presenting nanoscale surface patterns-typically patched, striped or Janus-like domains-represent an emerging field. These systems are particularly intriguing for use in bio-nanotechnology applications, as presence of such monolayers with three-dimensional (3D) morphology provides nanoparticles with surface-dependent properties that, in turn, affect their biological behavior. Comprehensive understanding of the physicochemical interactions occurring at the interface between these versatile nanomaterials and biological systems is therefore crucial to fully exploit their potential. This review aims to explore the current state of development of such patterned, self-assembled monolayer-protected gold nanoparticles, through step-by-step analysis of their conceptual design, synthetic procedures, predicted and determined surface characteristics, interactions with and performance in biological environments, and experimental and computational methods currently employed for their investigation.
分子自组装是一个引起科学界强烈兴趣的话题。人们已经开发出各种策略来构建具有合理设计的性质、几何形状和尺寸的分子聚集体，有望为药物递送、医学诊断和生物传感器等领域的理论和实际问题提供解决方案，仅举几例。在这方面，覆盖有呈现纳米级表面图案（通常是补丁状、条纹状或类雅努斯域）的自组装单分子层的金纳米颗粒代表了一个新兴领域。这些系统在生物纳米技术应用中特别引人关注，因为这种具有三维（3D）形态的单分子层的存在赋予了纳米颗粒表面依赖性性质，进而影响它们的生物学行为。因此，全面了解这些多功能纳米材料与生物系统之间界面处发生的物理化学相互作用对于充分发挥它们的潜力至关重要。本综述旨在通过逐步分析其概念设计、合成程序、预测和确定的表面特性、在生物环境中的相互作用和性能，以及目前用于其研究的实验和计算方法，来探索这种图案化的、自组装单分子层保护的金纳米颗粒的当前发展状况。
