Integration of Separation-Based Analytical Platforms in the Development of Nanomaterials as Bioactive Products

This research focused on the development of a suitable analytical platform able to achieve a multi-parametric assessment of nanoparticle (NPs) suspensions, and its integration in the development of bioactive nanoproducts in a safety-by-design approach. The area of application covered silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs), as they are highly promising in healthcare settings.The analytical platform designed was exploited in the various steps of nanoparticles synthesis and application, to provide reliable information and correlate nanoparticles properties and effects. The separation technique used for this task was hollow-fiber flow field-flow fractionation coupled with UV, multi-angle light scattering, and atomic absorption detectors. Different Ag NPs were tested to correlate the particles antiseptic activity and toxicity to their physicochemical properties. The NP preparations were characterized in terms of size, shape, charge and free Ag+ amount. Safety aspects were addressed by studying toxicity, inflammatory response and cellular recovery upon exposure of skin models to Ag NPs. To extend this approach to close-to-market applications, a method was developed in order to screen the potential of antiseptic NPs applied as surface coating agents. This approach proved to be effective and able to distinguish amongst candidates, providing a useful tool for the fast screening of nano-sized coating agents; the analytical platform devised demonstrated its potential during every step of Ag NPs design.