Hydroxylated-graphene quantum dots induce DNA damage and disrupt microtubule structure in human esophageal epithelial cells

Ming Li, Meng Meng Gu, Xin Tian, Bei Bei Xiao, Siyuan Lu, Wei Zhu, Lan Yu, Zeng Fu Shang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

27 Scopus citations

Abstract

Graphene quantum dots (GQDs) have attracted significant interests due to their unique chemical and physical properties. In this study, we investigated the potential effects of hydroxyl-modified GQDs (OH-GQDs) on the human esophageal epithelial cell line HET-1A. Our data revealed significant cytotoxicity of OH-GQDs which decreased the viability of HET-1A in a dose and time-dependent manner. The moderate concentration (25 or 50 mg/ml) of OH-GQDs significantly blocked HET-1A cells in G 0 /G 1 cell cycle phase. An increased percentage of γH2AX-positive and genomically unstable cells were also detected in cells treated with different doses of OH-GQDs (25, 50, and 100 mg/ml). Microarray data revealed that OH-GQDs treatment down-regulated genes related to DNA damage repair, cell cycle regulation and cytoskeleton signal pathways indicating a novel role of OH-GQDs. Consistent with the microarray data, OH-GQDs disrupted microtubule structure and inhibited microtubule regrowth around centrosomes in HET-1A cells. In conclusion, our findings provide important evidence for considering the application of OH-GQDs in biomedical fields.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)339-352
Number of pages14
JournalToxicological Sciences
Volume164
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 1 2018
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Cell cycle regulation
  • DNA damage
  • Esophageal epithelial cells
  • Microtubule structure
  • OH-GQDs

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Toxicology

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