Engineering yttrium oxide antioxidant nanoagents

Yttrium oxide nanocrystals with different sizes and shapes, are synthesized via thermal decomposition and digestive ripening-assisted methodologies. From the thermal decomposition methodology, nanotriangles and nanohearts, with lateral sizes around 25 nm and 35 nm, respectively, are produced. From the digestive ripening methodology, self-assembled nanodiscs with diameters up to 22 nm and thicknesses down to their unit cell, were synthesized. After rendering these nanocrystals water soluble, their ability to scavenge harmful hydroxyl radicals, is tested by applying a Fenton assay. Several factors affected the scavenging properties of these nanocrystals, including their concentration, morphology, and dopants. The antioxidant properties were enhanced for concentrations up to 1 mg mL-1. Higher concentrations induced oxidant properties. Nanotriangles were able to scavenge more hydroxyl radicals compared to the other two shapes due to their higher surface area. Adding dopants into the nanotriangles, such as Er3+ and Yb3+, enhanced further the scavenging properties. The scavenging properties of yttrium oxide nanocrystals were comparable to state of the art cerium oxide particles, which opened the avenue to explore further the capabilities of these nanocrystals as ex-vivo scavengers. In this vein, an ex-vivo experiment was designed as a proof of concept to prove the hydroxyl radical scavenging properties of yttrium oxide nanoparticles in biological media.