TY - JOUR
T1 - Spectroscopic properties and biocompatibility Studies of CdTe quantum dots capped with biologica thiols
AU - Díaz, V.
AU - Ramírez-Maureira, M.
AU - Monrás, J. P.
AU - Vargas, J.
AU - Bravo, D.
AU - Osorio-Román, I. O.
AU - Vásquez, C. C.
AU - Pérez-Donoso, J. M.
PY - 2012/5
Y1 - 2012/5
N2 - CdTe quantum dots (QDs) capped with two relevant biological thiols, glutathione (GSH) or cysteine (Cys) were synthesized in aqueous solution using CdCl 2, K 2TeO 3 and NaBH 4 and their chemical, spectroscopic and biocompatibility properties were assessed. Synthesized nanoparticles (NPs) are 3-6 nm in diameter, with emission spectra between 480-580 nm depending on QDs size, and emission quantum yields between 0.35-0.65. The toxicity of thiol-capped CdTe NPs to different bacterial strains was determined. Increased biocompatibility for Cys-capped QDs was observed. In addition, QDs uptake by eukaryotic cells was evaluated by fluorescence microscopy. CdTe-GSH NPs were incorporated into MKN45 cells only in the presence of lipofectamine. On the other hand, although CdTe-Cys NPs were freely incorporated into these cells, the amount of incorporation as well as the number of fluorescent cells was lower than that observed with GSH-capped QDs. Finally, no significant changes in cell morphology as a consequence of GSH- or Cys-capped QDs incorporation were observed. Summarizing, our results indicate that the as-synthesized GSH- and Cys-capped QDs display differential spectroscopic properties and cellular interactions, being CdTe-Cys more biocompatible than CdTe-GSH NPs.
AB - CdTe quantum dots (QDs) capped with two relevant biological thiols, glutathione (GSH) or cysteine (Cys) were synthesized in aqueous solution using CdCl 2, K 2TeO 3 and NaBH 4 and their chemical, spectroscopic and biocompatibility properties were assessed. Synthesized nanoparticles (NPs) are 3-6 nm in diameter, with emission spectra between 480-580 nm depending on QDs size, and emission quantum yields between 0.35-0.65. The toxicity of thiol-capped CdTe NPs to different bacterial strains was determined. Increased biocompatibility for Cys-capped QDs was observed. In addition, QDs uptake by eukaryotic cells was evaluated by fluorescence microscopy. CdTe-GSH NPs were incorporated into MKN45 cells only in the presence of lipofectamine. On the other hand, although CdTe-Cys NPs were freely incorporated into these cells, the amount of incorporation as well as the number of fluorescent cells was lower than that observed with GSH-capped QDs. Finally, no significant changes in cell morphology as a consequence of GSH- or Cys-capped QDs incorporation were observed. Summarizing, our results indicate that the as-synthesized GSH- and Cys-capped QDs display differential spectroscopic properties and cellular interactions, being CdTe-Cys more biocompatible than CdTe-GSH NPs.
KW - Biocompatible nanoparticles
KW - Capped-Agent
KW - CdTe
KW - Quantum dots
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84866847669&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1166/sam.2012.1327
DO - 10.1166/sam.2012.1327
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84866847669
SN - 1947-2935
VL - 4
SP - 609
EP - 616
JO - Science of Advanced Materials
JF - Science of Advanced Materials
IS - 5-6
ER -