Daily Clinical News – New 2D material paves the way for safer, more effective implantable medical devices – Surgical techniques

A new two-dimensional material paves the way for safer and more effective implantable medical devices

Authors: HospiMedica International staff authors
Posted on May 27, 2024

Borophene, first synthesized in 2015, is an atomically thin version of boron that is superior to graphene – the two-dimensional (2D) version of carbon – in terms of conductivity, thinness, lightness, strength and flexibility. Borophene is a fascinating material because it closely resembles carbon in its atomic mass and electronic structure, yet exhibits even more unusual properties. Currently, researchers are just beginning to discover its potential applications. One of the key features of borophene is its structural polymorphism, allowing its boron atoms to be arranged in different configurations, much like constructing different objects from the same set of Lego bricks. This versatility allows researchers to “tailor” the properties of borophene to specific needs. Now, in the first-ever study to understand the biological interactions of borophene, scientists have improved the material in the laboratory, making this atomically thin version of boron chirally.

Chirality in molecules is similar to the difference between left and right hands – similar, but not interchangeable, because the left glove does not fit the right hand as well as it fits the left. Scientists from Penn State (University Park, Pennsylvania, USA) found that various polymorphic borophene structures clearly interact with biological cells, and their cellular internalization pathways are uniquely determined by their structure. Scientists created borophene platelets, similar to blood cell fragments, through solution-state synthesis. The process involves combining powdered boron in a liquid with external factors such as heat or pressure until the desired structure is achieved.

Photo: Scientists have modified borophene to interact in unique ways with cells and other biological entities (photo courtesy of Dipanjan Pan/Penn State)

In their experiments, the researchers exposed boron powders to high-energy sound waves and then mixed the resulting platelets with various amino acids in the liquid to impart chirality. They observed that sulfur atoms in amino acids prefer to attach to borophene rather than to nitrogen atoms. It is worth noting that some amino acids, such as cysteine, will bind to specific sites on borophene, which is influenced by their chirality. When these chiralized borophene platelets were introduced into mammalian cells in a lab dish, the researchers noticed that the platelet handle changed their interactions with cell membranes and the way they entered the cells. This knowledge could result in applications such as improved medical imaging to more precisely track cellular interactions or improved drug delivery systems that more precisely target material-cell interactions. Ultimately, a deeper understanding and control of borophene’s interactions with cells may pave the way to the development of safer and more effective implantable medical devices.

“To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to understand the biological interactions of borophene and the first report on imparting chirality to borophene structures. The unique structure of borophene allows for effective magnetic and electronic control,” said Dipanjan Pan, who led the team, noting that the material could have additional applications in healthcare, sustainable energy and more. “This study was just the beginning. We have several projects underway to develop biosensors, drug delivery systems and imaging applications for borophene.”

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Penn State