11-mercaptoundecanoic-acid and 1-6-hexanedithiol

Gold nanospheres modified with bifunctional molecules have been separated and characterized by using agarose gel electrophoresis as well as optical spectroscopy and electron microscopy. The electrophoretic mobility of a gold nanosphere capped with 11-mercaptoundecanoic acid (MUA) has been found to depend on the number of MUA molecules per gold nanosphere, indicating that it increases with the surface charge of the nanoparticle. The extinction spectrum of gold nanospheres capped with MUA at an MUA molecules per gold nanosphere value of 1000 and connected via 1,6-hexanedithiol (HDT) decreases by 33% in magnitude and shifts to the red as largely as 22 nm with the increase of the molar ratio of HDT to MUA (R(HM)). Gold nanospheres capped with MUA and connected via HDT have been separated successfully using gel electrophoresis and characterized by measuring reflectance spectra of discrete electrophoretic bands directly in the gel and by monitoring transmission electron microscope images of gold nanoparticles collected from the discrete bands. Electrophoretic mobility has been found to decrease substantially with the increment of HDT to MUA, indicating that the size of aggregated gold nanoparticles increases with the concentration of HDT.

Topics: Electrophoresis, Agar Gel; Fatty Acids; Gold; Metal Nanoparticles; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; Particle Size; Sulfhydryl Compounds; Surface Plasmon Resonance

The detection of antisperm antibody (AsAb) by electrochemical method based on Au nanoparticles with a mixed monolayer for eliminating nonspecific binding is presented. Impedance spectroscopy is used to characterize the modified procedures, the immobilization of sperm antigen (SpAg) and binding of AsAb in the presence of [Fe (CN)(6)](3-/4-). In addition, piezoelectric quartz crystal, PQC, was used to analyze the immobilization quantity of Au nanoparticles as well as to optimize experimental conditions. The change of electron-transfer resistance was correlated with the concentration of AsAb in a range from 25 to 600 mU/ml with the detection limit of 10 mU/ml. The analytical results of several human serum samples using the developed technique are in satisfactory agreement with those given by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method.

Topics: Adsorption; Antibodies; Antigens, Surface; Complement C3; Electrochemistry; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; Fatty Acids; Gold; Gold Colloid; Humans; Male; Nanostructures; Palmitic Acids; Particle Size; Quartz; Serum Albumin; Spermatozoa; Sulfhydryl Compounds