Name: Mridula Dwivedi
Diploma / M.Sc degree: IIT Bombay, India
(July 2010)

PhD Project: Biophysical interaction of nanoparticles and compatible solutes with lipid monolayer and bilayer model system

Abstract of Research Project

Given the increasing use of nanoparticles in recent times, it is worth considering the effects of the same on biological systems. The pulmonary surfactant, which is present at the air-alveolar lining layer in the mammalian lung, could be influenced the most due to inhalation of nanoparticles. Pulmonary surfactant can be represented as a complex lipid-protein film which is known to exist as a monolayer and bilayer, depending on the pressure. Due to the presence of phospholipids and surfactant proteins, it manifests the property of greatly reducing the surface tension at the alveolar surface and thus preventing the collapse of the lungs. The interaction of nanoparticles with pulmonary surfactant can hence affect their normal functioning. A considerable amount of work in our lab has shown the effect of hydrophobic nanoparticles on different aspects of the established lung surfactant model system. And our aim is to further investigate the interaction of surfactant components with the hydrophilic nanoparticles having different surface properties and sizes using biophysical techniques such as Langmuir film balance, video enhanced epi-fluorescence microscopy, atomic force microscopy, Time of Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry, Isothermal titration calorimetry, etc. We also intend to study the effects of the abovementioned on the structural and functional organization of both artificial and natural lung surfactant system.

Compatible solutes or osmolytes are molecules which stabilizes the native state of the three dimensionally organized macromolecules like proteins and lipids. Ectoines are such solutes which have been shown to stabilize and fluidize the lipid monolayer system in our group. And we aim to study its effects on a lipid bilayer model system like Giant Unilamellar Vesicles (GUVs).



Publications

M. V. Dwivedi, R. K. Harishchandra, O. Koshkina, M. Maskos, H.-J. Galla
Size Influences the Effect of Hydrophobic Nanoparticles on Lung Surfactant Model Systems
Biophys. J. 106 (1) (2014), 289-298.


Mridula Dwivedi
eMail: Mridula Dwivedi