Cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs), first discovered in 1949 and later developed in Canada, have gained tremendous attention in the past decade due to their unique physicochemical properties, relative abundance, renewability and low cost. Their nanosize dimensions, large surface area, biocompatibility, biodegradability and low ecotoxicological risk have rendered them as attractive nanomaterials in the biomedical field. Before integrating CNCs in the biological system, the assessment of the toxicity of the nanomaterials needs to be fully explored. While some recent studies have shown that CNCs are non-cytotoxic to several cell lines, however, very limited data is currently available in literature regarding the potential toxicity of surface modified CNCs. Herein, the objective of this study is to evaluate the in vitro cytotoxicity of several modified CNCs that could be useful for potential biomedical applications. Modified CNCs with both anionic (grafted with an amino linker or beta-cyclodextrin) and cationic (grafted with a cationic methacrylate polymer) surfaces were prepared by chemical methods and cytotoxicity was evaluated utilizing a 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay in two different cell lines, J774A1 (mouse monocyte cells) and MCF-7 (human breast adenocarcinoma cells). The results indicated that none of the modified CNCs tested showed decreases in cell viability on both cell lines, suggesting that they are not cytotoxic on the tested conditions. Future work will investigate the potential immunogenicity of these modified CNCs.

<i>In vitro</i> cytotoxicity assessment of anionic and cationic modified cellulose nanocrystals

252nd National Meeting (2016)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.

In vitro cytotoxicity assessment of anionic and cationic modified cellulose nanocrystals