Stabilization of Graphene Oxide Dispersion in Plasma-like Isotonic Solution Containing Aggregating Concentrations of Bivalent Cations

Abstract

Graphene oxide’s (GO) intravascular applications and biocompatibility are not fully explored yet, although it has been proposed as an anticancer drug transporter, antibacterial factor or component of wearable devices. Bivalent cations and the number of particles’ atom layers, as well as their structural oxygen content and pH of the dispersion, all affect the GO size, shape, dispersibility and biological effects. Bovine serum albumin (BSA), an important blood plasma protein, is expected to improve GO dispersion stability in physiological concentrations of the precipitating calcium and magnesium cations to enable effective and safe tissue perfusion. Methods: Four types of GO commercially available aqueous dispersions (with different particle structures) were diluted, sonicated and studied in the presence of BSA and physiological cation concentrations. Nanoparticle populations sizes, electrical conductivity, zeta potential (Zetasizer NanoZS), structure (TEM and CryoTEM), functional groups content (micro titration) and dispersion pH were analyzed in consecutive preparation stages. Results: BSA effectively prevented the aggregation of GO in precipitating concentrations of physiological bivalent cations. The final polydispersity indexes were reduced from 0.66–0.91 to 0.36–0.43. The GO-containing isotonic dispersions were stable with the following Z-ave results: GO1 421.1 nm, GO2 382.6 nm, GO3 440.2 nm and GO4 490.1 nm. The GO behavior was structure-dependent. Conclusion: BSA effectively stabilized four types of GO dispersions in an isotonic dispersion containing aggregating bivalent physiological cations.

Keywords

• graphene oxide
• aqueous dispersion
• stability of dispersion
• nanoparticle size
• ion-induced aggregation
• bovine serum albumin