Transmission electron microscopy

Biology

Materials science

Microscopy

Cryo-electron microscopy

Electron tomography

Computer science

Electron microscope

Biological specimen

Resolution (logic)

Tomography

Physics

Nanotechnology

Optics

Characterization (materials science)

Artificial intelligence

Scanning transmission electron microscopy

Nanoscopic scale

Cryo-electron tomography

Biophysics

Biomolecule

Nature Communications

The biological identity of nanoparticles (NPs) is established by their interactions with a wide range of biomolecules around their surfaces after exposure to biological media. Understanding the true nature of the biomolecular corona (BC) in its native state is, therefore, essential for its safe and efficient application in clinical settings. The fundamental challenge is to visualize the biomolecules within the corona and their relationship/association to the surface of the NPs. Using a synergistic application of cryo-electron microscopy, cryo-electron tomography, and three-dimensional reconstruction, we revealed the unique morphological details of the biomolecules and their distribution/association with the surface of polystyrene NPs at a nanoscale resolution. The analysis of the BC at a single NP level and its variability among NPs in the same sample, and the discovery of the presence of nonspecific biomolecules in plasma residues, enable more precise characterization of NPs, improving predictions of their safety and efficacies.

Nanoscale characterization of the biomolecular corona by cryo-electron microscopy, cryo-electron tomography, and image simulation