DEXTRAN COATED CERIUM OXIDE NANOPARTICLES FOR INHIBITING BONE CANCER CELL FUNCTIONS

Cerium oxide nanoparticles have shown great potential as antioxidant and radioprotective agents for applications in cancer therapy. The surface chemistry of nanoparticles has a significant effect on their performance in biological applications. Recently, various nanosized polymer-coated cerium oxide preparations have been developed to improve their aqueous solubility and to allow for surface functionalization of nanoparticles. In this study, 0.1 M and 0.01 M dextran coated, sub 5 nm ceria nanoparticles were synthesized. The cytotoxicity of 0.1 M and 0.01 M dextran coated ceria nanoparticles towards the proliferation of osteosarcoma cells were compared for the first time here. Drastic changes were observed when treating osteosarcoma treated with 0.1 M dextran coated ceria nanoparticles in the 250 mu g/mL to 1000 mu g/mL concentration range. In contrast, minimal toxicity to bone cancer cells was observed for the 0.01 M dextran coating. These results indicate that surface dextran functionalization has a large impact on the cytotoxicity of cerium oxide nanoparticles.