silicon and malachite-green

In this paper, a nanostructured biosensor is developed to detect glucose in tear by using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) quenching mechanism. The designed FRET pair, including the donor, CdSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs), and the acceptor, dextran-binding malachite green (MG-dextran), was conjugated to concanavalin A (Con A), an enzyme with specific affinity to glucose. In the presence of glucose, the quenched emission of QDs through the FRET mechanism is restored by displacing the dextran from Con A. To have a dual-modulation sensor for convenient and accurate detection, the nanostructured FRET sensors were assembled onto a patterned ZnO nanorod array deposited on the synthetic silicone hydrogel. Consequently, the concentration of glucose detected by the patterned sensor can be converted to fluorescence spectra with high signal-to-noise ratio and calibrated image pixel value. The photoluminescence intensity of the patterned FRET sensor increases linearly with increasing concentration of glucose from 0.03mmol/L to 3mmol/L, which covers the range of tear glucose levels for both diabetics and healthy subjects. Meanwhile, the calibrated values of pixel intensities of the fluorescence images captured by a handhold fluorescence microscope increases with increasing glucose. Four male Sprague-Dawley rats with different blood glucose concentrations were utilized to demonstrate the quick response of the patterned FRET sensor to 2µL of tear samples.

Topics: Animals; Biosensing Techniques; Blood Glucose; Cadmium Compounds; Canavalia; Coloring Agents; Concanavalin A; Dextrans; Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer; Glucose; Hydrogel, Polyethylene Glycol Dimethacrylate; Male; Models, Molecular; Nanotubes; Quantum Dots; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Rosaniline Dyes; Selenium Compounds; Signal-To-Noise Ratio; Silicon; Sulfides; Tears; Zinc Compounds; Zinc Oxide

We report a novel method for generating magneto-plasmonic carbon nanofilms and nanoscrolls using a combination of two gas-phase synthetic techniques. Ternary Fe@Ag@Si "onion-like" nanoparticles (NPs) are produced by a magnetron sputtering inert gas condensation source and are in situ landed onto the surface of carbon nanofilms, which were previously deposited by a DC arc discharge technique. Subsequently, a polyethylenimine-mediated chemical exfoliation process is performed to obtain carbon nanoscrolls (CNS) with embedded NPs (CNS-NPs). Of note, the carbon nanofilms undergo an interfacial transition upon addition of NPs and become rich in the sp

Topics: Adenosine Triphosphate; Colloids; Gold; Isothiocyanates; Metal Nanoparticles; Nanostructures; Nanotubes, Carbon; Rosaniline Dyes; Silicon; Silver; Spectrum Analysis, Raman

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) has been considered as a promising sensing technique to detect low-level analytes. However, its practical application was hindered owing to the lack of uniform SERS substrates for ultrasensitive and reproducible assay. Herein, inspired by the natural cactus structure, we developed a cactus-like 3D nanostructure with uniform and high-density hotspots for highly efficient SERS sensing by both grafting the silicon nanoneedles onto Ag dendrites and subsequent decoration with Ag nanoparticles. The hierarchical scaffolds and high-density hotspots throughout the whole substrate result in great amplification of SERS signal. A high Raman enhancement factor of crystal violet up to 6.6 × 10(7) was achieved. Using malachite green (MG) as a model target, the fabricated SERS substrates exhibited good reproducibility (RSD ∼ 9.3%) and pushed the detection limit down to 10(-13) M with a wide linear range of 10(-12) M to 10(-7) M. Excellent selectivity was also demonstrated by facilely distinguishing MG from its derivative, some organics, and coexistent metal ions. Finally, the practicality and reliability of the 3D SERS substrates were confirmed by the quantitative analysis of spiked MG in environmental water with high recoveries (91.2% to 109.6%). By virtue of the excellent performance (good reproducibility, high sensitivity, and selectivity), the cactus-like 3D SERS substrate has great potential to become a versatile sensing platform in environmental monitoring, food safety, and medical diagnostics.

Topics: Metal Nanoparticles; Particle Size; Rosaniline Dyes; Silicon; Silver; Spectrum Analysis, Raman; Surface Properties