In recent years, nanomaterials have been recognized as a promising method by which to deliver pharmaceutical therapeutics and to enhance medical diagnostic imaging. While thorough investigation is performed to design and develop new medical treatments, little work is done to assess the impact of pharmaceuticals once released via wastewater into the environment.  Previous studies have shown that chemical contaminants, including pharmaceuticals and nanomaterials, affect aquatic organisms of varying classes. To date, no group has assessed the possibility of synergistic or inhibitory effects of nanoparticle-drug conjugates on aquatic organisms. A polyacrylamide prepolymer with activated ester groups was synthesized and then functionalized with fluoxetine and 3-methyl(thiol)propylamine (MTP) by linking the secondary and primary amines of fluoxetine and MTP, respectively, to the polymer to form amide bonds. The polymer synthesis and subsequent modification was monitored with <sup>1</sup>H-NMR. Modified polymer was subsequently adsorbed to the surface of gold nanoparticles via the thioether moiety on the MTP, with successful binding confirmed by UV-Vis spectroscopy, Dynamic Light Scattering, and Zeta Potential measurements. Ongoing work is being performed to explore the concentration dependent toxicity of particles with no fluoxetine and the effect of fluoxetine loading per particle as a method to explore the potential synergistic toxicity or inhibitory effects on aquatic organisms.

Effect of fluoxetine-conjugated gold nanoparticles on aquatic organisms

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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