Effects of quantum dots on the ROS amount of liver cancer stem cells

Abstract Liver cancer (LC) is a serious disease that threatens human lives. LC has a high recurrence rate and poor prognosis. LC stem cells (LCSCs) play critical roles in these processes. However, the mechanism remains unclear. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) can be used to determine cell apoptosis and proliferation. However, studies of the effects of exogenous nanomaterials on LCSC ROS changes are rarely reported. In this work, quantum dots (QDs) were prepared using a hydrothermal method, and QDs were further modified with polyethylene glycol (PEG) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) using a chemical approach. The effects of QDs, PEG-modified QDs (PEG@QDs) and BSA-modified QDs (BSA@QDs) on the amounts of ROS in liver cancer PLC/PRF/5 (PLC) cells and liver cancer stem cells (LCSCs) were principally investigated. The results showed that when the concentration of QDs, PEG@QDs, and BSA@QDs were 10 nM and 90 nM, the ROS amount in PLC cells increased by approximately 2- to 5-fold. However, when the concentrations of these nanomaterials were 10 nM and 90 nM, ROS levels in LCSCs were reduced by approximately 50%. This critical path potentially leads to drug resistance and recurrence of LC. This work provides an important indication for further study of LC drug resistance and recurrence.