Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, CNRS, NIMBE, F-91191 Gif Sur Yvette, France.
Institut des Molécules et Matériaux du Mans (IMMM), UMR 6283 CNRS, Le Mans Université, Avenue Olivier Messiaen, 72085 Le Mans Cedex, France.
Langmuir. 2023 Mar 28;39(12):4291-4303. doi: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.2c03237. Epub 2023 Mar 17.
Microparticles of polyethylene and polypropylene are largely found in aquatic environments because they are the most produced and persistent plastic materials. Once in biological media, they are covered by a layer of molecules, the so-called corona, mostly composed of proteins. A yeast protein extract from was used as a protein system to observe interactions in complex biological media. Proteins, acting as surfactants and providing hydrophilic surfaces, allow the dispersion of highly hydrophobic particles in water and stabilize them. After 24 h, the microplastic quantity was up to 1 × 10 particles per liter, whereas without protein, no particles remained in solution. Label-free imaging of the protein corona by synchrotron radiation deep UV fluorescence microscopy (SR-DUV) was performed. images of the protein corona were obtained, and the adsorbed protein quantity, the coverage rate, and the corona heterogeneity were determined. The stability kinetics of the microplastic suspensions were measured by light transmission using a Turbiscan analyzer. Together, the microscopic and kinetics results demonstrate that the protein corona can very efficiently stabilize microplastics in solution provided that the protein corona quality is sufficient. Microplastic stability depends on different parameters such as the particle's intrinsic properties (size, density, hydrophobicity) and the protein corona formation that changes the particle wettability, electrostatic charge, and steric hindrance. By controlling these parameters with proteins, it becomes possible to keep microplastics in and out of solution, paving the way for applications in the field of microplastic pollution control and remediation.
聚乙烯和聚丙烯的微粒主要存在于水生环境中，因为它们是产量最大、最持久的塑料材料。一旦进入生物介质，它们就会被一层分子覆盖，即所谓的“冠层”，主要由蛋白质组成。来自 的酵母蛋白提取物被用作蛋白质体系，以观察复杂生物介质中的相互作用。蛋白质作为表面活性剂，提供亲水表面，允许高度疏水的颗粒在水中分散并稳定它们。24 小时后，微塑料的数量达到了每升 1×10 个颗粒，而没有蛋白质，溶液中就没有颗粒残留。利用同步辐射深紫外荧光显微镜（SR-DUV）对蛋白质冠层进行无标记成像。获得了蛋白质冠层的 图像，并确定了吸附蛋白质的数量、覆盖率和冠层异质性。通过使用 Turbiscan 分析仪测量光传输来测量微塑料悬浮液的稳定性动力学。微观和动力学结果表明，只要蛋白质冠层质量足够，蛋白质冠层可以非常有效地稳定溶液中的微塑料。微塑料的稳定性取决于不同的参数，如颗粒的固有性质（大小、密度、疏水性）和蛋白质冠层的形成，这会改变颗粒的润湿性、静电电荷和空间位阻。通过用蛋白质控制这些参数，可以实现将微塑料保持在溶液中和从溶液中去除，为微塑料污染控制和修复领域的应用铺平道路。
