Page 56 - Annual Report_21-22

Figure: (a-d) Representative CLSM images of live/dead staining of S. sanguinis in response to pAgNCs
treatment and relevant controls (e) quantitative analysis of bacteria viability (%). (f – i) CLSM images of live/
dead staining of F. nucleatum, (j) quantitative analysis of bacteria viability (%).

Development of anti-inflammatory nanoclusters and nanogels

The common symptoms at the joints such as pain, stiffness
and inflammation generally refer to different types of
arthritis. The two most common types of arthritis are
osteoarthritis (OA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). OA is
the result of degeneration of joint cartilage, while RA is
a disease in which the immune system attacks the joints,
and results in inflammation (Scheme 2). Both diseases are
now a global concern as they are associated with multiple
poor outcomes including higher medical costs. In India,
almost 15% of people are affected by arthritis, which is
higher than many well-known diseases such as diabetes,
AIDS and cancer. It has been projected that by 2025, India
is expected to be at top rank in chronic diseases, unless we Scheme: Schematic of (a) healthy joint, joint with (b) OA
find a solution. and (c) RA.
To address these challenges, we are trying to bring back
the earlier used gold therapy in the form of renal clearable
gold nanoclusters (Au NCs). We are particularly developing
high-quality AuNCs functionalized with a thiol ligand for
controlling the inflammation triggered by RA and OA.
So far, we have developed a unique Au NCs (Figure 3),
which shows high biocompatibility, and anti-inflammatory
properties both as individual entities as well as composites
(Figure 4). We plan to incorporate them in nanogel and
use them further for the treatment of arthritis.

Figure: Pro-inflammatory (A) TNF-α, (B) IL-6, (C) IL-1β, (D)
IP-10, (E) IL-12p40 (F) IL-23, and anti-inflammatory (G)
IL-10, (H) IL-1RA and (I) arginase cytokines expression of
macrophages treated by zeolite (Z), zeolite-amine (ZA) and
Au NCs decorated zeolite-amine (ZANC).

Figure: TEM image of the glutathione protected Au NCs.
54 ANNUAL REPORT 2021-22