Sugar-attached upconversion lanthanide nanoparticles: a novel tool for high-throughput lectin assay

Area of Science:

• Biochemistry
• Nanotechnology
• Analytical Chemistry

Background:

• Lectins are proteins with diverse biological roles, crucial for cell recognition and adhesion.
• Developing sensitive and high-throughput methods for lectin detection is vital for biological research and diagnostics.
• Current lectin detection methods can be limited in throughput and sensitivity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel high-throughput lectin assay (HTPLA) utilizing lanthanide nanoparticles (LNPs).
• To leverage near-infrared (NIR) excitation for sensitive detection of lectin-carbohydrate interactions.
• To demonstrate the specificity and applicability of the assay for lectin characterization.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of sugar-attached upconversion lanthanide nanoparticles (LNPs).
• Utilizing NIR excitation for luminophore emission detection in aggregated LNPs.
• Employing mannose-coated LNPs for mannose-binding lectin detection.
• Using galactose-coated LNPs for macrophage aggregation assays to assess lectin specificity.

Main Results:

• Significantly enhanced luminophore emission was observed from aggregated mannose-coated LNPs with mannose-binding lectins compared to non-aggregated samples.
• The assay demonstrated high sensitivity, suitable for high-throughput lectin analysis.
• Galactose-coated LNPs successfully facilitated macrophage aggregation assays, confirming lectin sugar-binding specificity.

Conclusions:

• The developed HTPLA method based on NIR-excitable LNPs is sensitive and specific for detecting lectin-carbohydrate interactions.
• This novel assay offers a promising tool for high-throughput screening and characterization of lectins.
• The LNP-based approach provides a versatile platform for studying lectin functions in biological systems.