Banana fruit (Musa sp.) DNA-magnetite nanoparticles - Synthesis, characterization, and biocompatibility assays on normal and cancerous cells

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Rowan

Magnet-mediated gene therapy explores superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (magnetite, Fe3O4 NPs) as nonviral genetic vectors. Despite availability for targeted transfection in some systems, broader applications remain limited, partly due to ethical constraints in human DNA use. This work evaluates DNA-coated Fe3O4 NPs (DNA-Fe3O4 NPs) as transfection vectors using banana (Musa sp.) DNA as a low-cost, bioethically uncomplicated source. After coprecipitation synthesis, ζ-potential and spectroscopic/structural analyses confirm stable, superparamagnetic, successfully DNA-coated nanoparticles. TEM shows ~15 nm size, with stable morphology over 30 days. Confocal microscopy demonstrates internalization into cytoplasm and nucleus in HFF and A549 lung cancer cells. Cytotoxicity is not observed across tested concentration ranges, supporting DNA-Fe3O4 NPs as promising gene-therapy candidates for both healthy and cancerous cells.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages23

Reading Time58 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Introduction

Gene therapy overview and vector selection

Viral versus non-viral vectors

Magnetofection and nanoparticle-mediated DNA delivery

PLOS ONE OPEN ACCESS Citation: Arregui-Almeida D, Coronel M, Analuisa K, Bastidas-Caldes C, Guerrero S, Torres M, et al.(2024) Banana fruit (Musa sp.) DNA-magnetite nanoparticles: Synthesis, characterization, and biocompatibility assays on normal and cancerous cells. PLoS ONE 19(10): e0311927 . [https://doi.org/](https://doi.org/)[ ](https://doi.org/)[10.1371/journal.pone](10.1371/journal.pone).0311927 Editor: Amir Elzwawy, National Research Centre, EGYPT Received: April 2, 2024 Accepted: September 26, 2024 Published: October 14, 2024 Copyright: © 2024 Arregui-Almeida et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Data Availability Statement: All data is fully available in the manuscript. Funding: This study was funded by the Pontificia Universidad Cat´olica del Ecuador, under the project QINV0449-IINV529020200. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Competing interests: NO authors have competing interests RESEARCH ARTICLE Banana fruit (Musa sp.) DNA-magnetite nanoparticles: Synthesis, characterization, and biocompatibility assays on normal and cancerous cells David Arregui-Almeida1, Mart´ın Coronel1, Karina Analuisa1, Carlos BastidasCaldes2, Santiago Guerrero3, Marbel Torres4, Andrea Aluisa4, Alexis Debut4, Werner Br¨amer-Escamilla5, Fernanda Pilaquinga1 * 1 Escuela de Ciencias Qu´ımicas, Pontificia Universidad Cat´olica del Ecuador, Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador, 2 One Health Research Group, Universidad de lasAm´ericas, Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador, 3 Laboratorio de Ciencia de Datos Biom´edicos, Universidad Internacional del Ecuador, Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador, 4 Centrode Nanociencia y Nanotecnolog´ıa CENCINAT, Universidad de las Fuerzas Armadas, ESPE, Sangolqu´ı, Pichincha, Ecuador, 5 Escuela de Ciencias F´ısicas y Nanotecnologı´a, Universidad Yachay Tech, Urcuqu´ı, Imbabura, Ecuador * [mfpilaquingaf@puce.edu.ec](mfpilaquingaf@puce.edu.ec) Abstract Magnet-mediated gene therapy has gained considerable interest from researchers as a novel alternative for treating genetic disorders, particularly through the use of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (NPs)—such as magnetite NPs (Fe3O4NPs)—as nonviral genetic vectors. Despite their commercial availability for specific genetic transfection, such as in microglia cell lines, many potential uses remain unexplored. Still, ethical concerns surrounding the use of human DNA often impede genetic research. Hence, this study examined DNA-coated Fe3O4NPs (DNA-Fe3O4NPs) as potential transfection vectors for human foreskin fibroblasts (HFFs) and A549 (lung cancer) cell lines, using banana (Musa sp.) as a low-cost, and bioethically unproblematic DNA source. Following coprecipitation synthesis, DNA-Fe3O4NP characterization revealed a ζ-potential of 40.65 ± 4.10 mV, indicating good colloidal stability in aqueous media, as well as a superparamagnetic regime, evidenced by the absence of hysteresis in their magnetization curves. Successful DNA coating on the NPs was confirmed through infrared spectra and surface analysis results, while magnetite content was verified via characteristic X-ray diffraction peaks. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) determined the average size of the DNA-Fe3O4NPs to be 14.69 ± 5.22 nm. TEM micrographs also showed no morphological changes in the DNA-Fe3O4NPs over a 30-day period. Confocal microscopy of HFF and A549 lung cancer cell lines incubated with fluoresceinamine-labeled DNA-Fe3O4NPs demonstrated their internalization into both the cytoplasm and nucleus. Neither uncoated Fe3O4NPs nor DNA-Fe3O4NPs showed cytotoxicity to A549 lung cancer cells at 1–50 μg/mL and 25–100 μg/mL, respectively, after 24 h. HFFs also maintained viability at 1–10 μg/mL for both

FAQs

What are DNA-magnetite nanoparticles and how are they proposed for gene therapy in this study?

The study investigates DNA-coated magnetite (Fe3O4) superparamagnetic nanoparticles as nonviral DNA transfection vectors for gene therapy. Magnet-mediated delivery (magnetofection) is used to guide DNA-coated magnetic NPs toward cellular targets.

Why does the research use banana (Musa sp.) as a DNA source?

Banana is used as a low-cost and bioethically unproblematic DNA source to address barriers that often impede genetic research involving human DNA.

What methods and results support nanoparticle characterization and biocompatibility?

Coprecipitation synthesis is followed by measurements including ζ-potential for colloidal stability and confirmation of DNA coating via infrared and surface analyses, with magnetite content verified by X-ray diffraction peaks. TEM provides average size (~14.69 ± 5.22 nm) and stability over 30 days, while confocal microscopy shows uptake into cytoplasm and nucleus. Cytotoxicity is not observed in A549 cells (and HFF viability is maintained) across the tested concentrations.

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Rowan