Immunological Properties of T2C3Tx MXene

MXenes are a family of 2D materials with unique physicochemical properties such as high surface area, excellent electrical conductivity and mechanical strength. Recently, MXenes have gained attention in biomedical applications. Thus, MXenes possess high optical energy to heat transfer coefficient which makes them excellent sensitizers for photothermal therapy [1]. In addition, MXenes have strong selective ability to adsorb various molecules, e.g. urea, which provides opportunity to design wearable dialysis devices for patients with kidney insufficiency [2]. Ability to modulate immune responses by MXenes has been shown via selective absorption of cytokines and bacterial toxins [3]. This opens a possibility that MXenes can impact release of cytokines and chemokines, modulating inflammation and reaction of immune cells including T- and B- lymphocytes. MXenes have also been shown to modulate specific antiviral response [4]. Additionally, MXenes have been preliminarily shown to enhance the activation of dendritic cells, leading to the production of a higher number of antigen-presenting cells, which still requires verification. Considering these findings, MXenes could provide substantial promises as immunotherapeutic agents for treating diseases such as cancer and autoimmune disorders. However, more research is required to understand better their immunological properties and potential applications in clinical settings.

We postulate that MXenes can directly interact with immune cells. To investigate this option, we developed a system for cultivation of immune cells out of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) isolated from donor blood. After 2 weeks in cultivation, some of the PBMCs get attached and acquire a characteristic macrophage-like morphology. In addition, they express CD31, leucocyte common antigen (LCA) and epithelial membrane antigen (EMA). We concluded that the PBMCs differentiate into macrophage lineages.

We obtained the PBMC-derived macrophages on glass coverslips and investigate their interplay with T2C3Tx MXene. We previously showed that MXene could get associated with the cells in culture [1]. We also previously showed that MXenes interact with the CHO cells in-vitro. Currently we investigate whether the macrophages can recognize MXenes as foreign particles and phagocyte them. We hope that our experimental setup will answer the questions on possible activation of immune cells with MXenes and induction of expression of specific markers. In addition, we will use this system to investigate the fate of MXene after they get phagocytosed. We suggest that the cutting-edge techniques of single-cell mass cytometry by time-of-flight (CyTOF), imaging mass cytometry (IMC) and multiplexed ion-beam imaging by time-of-flight (MIBI-TOF) will be an ideal detection modality for simultaneous interrogation of multiple cellular parameters at the label-free single-cell level resolution [5].