IN VITRO INVESTIGATION OF THE POTENTIAL OF C60 FULLERENES AS ADJUVANTS OF NONSPECIFIC IMMUNITY.

The paper shows the immunomodulatory potential of fullerenes C60 against human neutrophils under antigenic load in vitro. Venous blood samples from 13 healthy volunteers evaluated the effects of C 60 aqueous dispersion on cell viability and proteinase-3 (Pr3) secretion. It was shown that with bacterial stimulation, the survival rate of neutrophils decreases to 81.32%, while the addition of fullerenes C60 has a protective effect, increasing viability to 86.73%. This cytoprotection is probably due to the antioxidant properties of the fullerene scaffold and its ability to inactivate free radicals. In addition to survival, the experimental group showed an almost twofold increase in Pr3 secretion compared to the stimulation control, reaching 2, 14 ng/ml. Statistical analysis by RM-ANOVA confirmed the significance of these differences, indicating that C 60 actively stimulates degranulation. Morphological observations are consistent with these data: in the presence of nanoparticles, there is a tendency to normalize nuclear segmentation and a decrease in toxic grain size. The lack of correlation between cell death and enzyme yield suggests that Pr3 is secreted by active exocytosis rather than passive membrane disruption. Therefore, C60 fullerenes act as functional stimulants enhancing antimicrobial potential without depleting the neutrophil pool. These results position C60 as a promising candidate for the development of new adjuvants and approaches to the regulation of innate immunity. Overall, the study confirms that water-soluble fullerenes are able to simultaneously maintain cell viability and enhance the effector functions of the primary immune response.