Amine functionalized ZrO2 nanoparticles as biocompatible and luminescent probes for ligand specific cellular imaging

Muhammad Nawaz Tahir, Ruben Ragg, Filipe Natalio, Jugal Kishore Sahoo, Phillip Daniel, Kaloian Koynov, Dennis Strand, Susanne Strand, Wolfgang Tremel*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

14 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Surface functionalized ZrO2 nanoparticles show strong photoluminescence and are a versatile tool for cellular targeting due to their chemical functionality. They are highly photostable, biocompatible and amenable to coupling with bioligands (e.g. secondary goat anti-rabbit antibody (GAR) and tri-phenyl phosphine (TPP)) via carbodiimide chemistry. Antibody (GAR) functionalized ZrO2 nanoparticles were used to image the nuclear protein Sirt6, whereas triphenyl phosphonium ion (TPP) functionalized ZrO2 nanoparticles specifically targeted the mitochondria. The versatility and easiness of the ZrO2 surface modification opens up new possibilities for designing non-toxic water dispersible and photostable photoluminescent NPs.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)2371-2377
Number of pages7
JournalJournal of Materials Chemistry B
Volume3
Issue number11
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2015

Funding

Publisher Copyright: © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2015.

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Chemistry
  • Biomedical Engineering
  • General Materials Science

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