Protein based nanoparticles are synthesized from an emulsion of oil and aqueous solution by providing energy from a sonicator and a surfactant is used sometimes for stability. Can the solutions containing nanoparticles be stored as such and used for further studies? Or should something else be done before proceeding further.
Thank you, So the nanoparticles should be stored in the dry form?
You can first centrifuge the emulsion (may be at10000 g for 5 min) to obtain a dense nano-particles pellet then dry and store it afterwards (may be freeze drying if your particles are sensitive to heat or even at room temperature).
Dear Subin Raj
It depends on in which type you are synthesize your nano particles that is solid or aqueous suspension. If it is aqueous one then you should check its stability by storing it at ambient temperature and then used further for characterization
Usually organic nanoparticles are not stable in suspension. It is always advisable to store them in dry state by lyophilization. After sonication, the synthesized nanoparticle should be centrifuged and washed with suitable solvent ( e.g. Milli Q water). The extra water or solvent can be removed by a rotatory evaporator . And finally keep in lyophilizer for proper drying without disturbing the nanostructures.
Sometimes we need to demulsify the reaction mixture by adding specific solvent so that surfactant don't interfere with the designed nanoparticles. And then by centrifuge, one can separate the nano particles.
It is impossible to store nanoparticles made on the basis of protein and surfactant for three reasons. Upon receipt of the nanoparticles of any substance, the change in the Gibbs energy of the reaction and its speed significantly increases. Therefore, it is possible hydrolysis of the protein on peptide bonds. Secondly, protein nanoparticles will be the object of damage from bacteria that can get from the surrounding strains and multiply. In the third case, nanoparticles from a protein are an emulsion and over time they will be enlarged due to their thermodynamic instability.
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