Nanoscale Metal-Organic Frameworks as a Photoluminescent Platform for Bioimaging and Biosensing Applications

The tracking of nanomedicines in their concentration and location inside living systems has a pivotal effect on the understanding of the biological processes, early-stage diagnosis, and therapeutic monitoring of diseases. Nanoscale metal-organic frameworks (nano MOFs) possess high surface areas, definite structure, regulated optical properties, rich functionalized sites, and good biocompatibility that allow them to excel in a wide range of biomedical applications. Controllable syntheses and functionalization endow nano MOFs with better properties as imaging agents and sensing units for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases. This minireview summarizes the tunable synthesis strategies of nano MOFs with controllable size, shape, and regulated luminescent performance, and pinpoints their recent advanced applications as optical elements in bioimaging and biosensing. The current limitations and future development directions of nano MOF-contained materials in bioimaging and biosensing applications are also discussed, aiming to expand the biological applications of nano MOF-based nanomedicine and facilitate their production or clinical translation.