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Ultrabright NIR fluorescent mesoporous silica nanoparticles
S Palantavida1, R Tang, G P Sudlow
1Departments of Mechanical Engineering, Tufts University, Medford, MA 02155, USA. igor.sokolov@tufts.edu achilefus@mir.wustl.edu.
Journal of Materials Chemistry. B
|April 9, 2020
Summary
Researchers developed ultrabright, near-infrared fluorescent silica nanoparticles for biomedical imaging. These stable, biocompatible nanoparticles show enhanced brightness and cellular uptake, aiding early disease diagnosis.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Imaging
- Nanotechnology
- Materials Science
Background:
- Near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent tags are crucial for biomedical imaging.
- Developing bright, stable, and biocompatible NIR nanoparticles can improve early disease diagnosis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize and characterize ultrabright, water-dispersible, NIR fluorescent mesoporous silica nanoparticles.
- To evaluate their properties for potential biomedical imaging applications.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of mesoporous silica nanoparticles encapsulating the NIR dye LS277.
- Characterization of particle size, fluorescence properties (excitation/emission wavelengths, quantum yield, absorptivity), and brightness.
- Assessment of cellular internalization in 4T1luc breast tumor cells and photostability.
Main Results:
- Synthesized nanoparticles (28 ± 3 nm) exhibit ultrabright fluorescence with peak excitation/emission at 804/815 nm.
- Encapsulation increased the dye's quantum yield to 1.5% and absorptivity to 2.1 × 10^8 M^-1 cm^-1.
- Particles are over 2000x brighter than individual dye molecules and 4x brighter than commercial quantum dots (QD800).
- Nanoparticles were readily internalized by 4T1luc cells and maintained brightness for over 9 weeks.
Conclusions:
- The synthesized NIR mesoporous silica nanoparticles offer superior brightness, stability, and biocompatibility for biomedical imaging.
- Their enhanced properties and cellular uptake demonstrate significant potential for early disease diagnosis and tracking.
