Journal Article

Detection of Endotoxin Contamination of Graphene Based Materials Using the TNF-α Expression Test and Guidelines for Endotoxin-Free Graphene Oxide Production

Mukherjee, Sourav P., Fadeel, Bengt, Lozano, Neus, Vázquez, Ester, Kucki, Melanie, Kostarelos, Kostas, Del Rio-Castillo, Antonio E., Newman, Leon, Wick, Peter

2016

Overview

Nanomaterials may be contaminated with bacterial endotoxin during production and handling, which may confound toxicological testing of these materials, not least when assessing for immunotoxicity. In the present study, we evaluated the conventional Limulus amebocyte lysate (LAL) assay for endotoxin detection in graphene based material (GBM) samples, including graphene oxide (GO) and few-layered graphene (FLG). Our results showed that some GO samples interfered with various formats of the LAL assay. To overcome this problem, we developed a TNF-α expression test (TET) using primary human monocyte-derived macrophages incubated in the presence or absence of the endotoxin inhibitor, polymyxin B sulfate, and found that this assay, performed with non-cytotoxic doses of the GBM samples, enabled unequivocal detection of endotoxin with a sensitivity that is comparable to the LAL assay. FLG also triggered TNF-α production in the presence of the LPS inhibitor, pointing to an intrinsic pro-inflammatory effect. Finally, we present guidelines for the preparation of endotoxin-free GO, validated by using the TET.

• Publisher: Public Library of Science,Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subject: Alternatives / Animals / Assaying / Biological Assay - methods / Biology and Life Sciences / Biomedical materials / Cells, Cultured / Contamination / Cytokines / Cytotoxicity / Endotoxins / Endotoxins - analysis / Endotoxins - antagonists & inhibitors / Endotoxins - metabolism / Engineering and Technology / Environmental health / Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Graphene / Graphite - chemistry / Guidelines / Guidelines as Topic / Humans / Immunotoxicity / Inflammation / Inhibitors / Laboratories / Limulus / Limulus Test / Lipopolysaccharides / Macrophages / Macrophages - cytology / Macrophages - drug effects / Macrophages - metabolism / Materials handling / Materials science / Medicine and Health Sciences / Methods / Monocytes / Nanomaterials / Nanotechnology / Organic chemistry / Oxides - chemistry / Physical Sciences / Polymyxin B / Polymyxin B - chemistry / Polymyxin B - metabolism / Research and Analysis Methods / Rodents / Sulfate / Sulfates / Toxicology / Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha - analysis / Tumor necrosis factor-TNF / Tumor necrosis factor-α