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Updated: May 23, 2026
Compact Quantum Dots for Single-molecule Imaging
Published on: October 9, 2012
Water-soluble Ag(2)S quantum dots for near-infrared fluorescence imaging in vivo
Peng Jiang1, Chun-Nan Zhu, Zhi-Ling Zhang
1Key Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry for Biology and Medicine (Ministry of Education), College of Chemistry and Molecular Sciences, Research Center for Nanobiology and Nanomedicine (MOE 985 Innovative Platform), State Key Laboratory of Virology, and Wuhan Institute of Biotechnology, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, PR China.
Abstract:
A one-step method for synthesizing water-soluble Ag(2)S quantum dots terminated with carboxylic acid group has been reported. The crystal structure and surface of the prepared Ag(2)S quantum dots were characterized. The prepared Ag(2)S quantum dots exhibited bright photoluminescence and excellent photostabilities. The photoluminescence emissions could be tuned from visible region to near-infrared (NIR) region (from 510 nm to 1221 nm). Ultra-small sized Ag(2)S nanoclusters were synthesized with high initial monomer concentration in the current system. The in vivo imaging experiments of nude mice showed that the NIR photoluminescence of the prepared Ag(2)S quantum dots could penetrate the body of mice. Compared to the conventional NIR quantum dots, the Ag(2)S quantum dots don't contain toxic elements to body (such as Cd and Pb), thus, the prepared Ag(2)S quantum dots could serve as excellent NIR optical imaging probes and would open the opportunity to study nanodiagnostics and imaging in vivo.
