| 1 min read
Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
1:00
ANN ARBOR, Mich.—Many biosensor technologies rely on a correlation between analyte binding and luminescence fluctuations. Unfortunately, this correlation is not always straightforward as it can be perturbed by local analyte concentration variations, the scattering properties of the sample, and absolute reading variations from instrument to instrument. An article in Nature Materials, however, suggests a possible solution.
 
Nanotechnologists at the University of Michigan, Athens' Ohio University, and Korea's Pusan National University have developed a sensor based on exciton-plasmon interactions between CdTe nanowires (NW) and Au nanoparticles (NP) connected by a molecular spring—a molecular spring assembly (MSA). In this case, the nanostructure is held together using PEG-antibody conjugates to form an NP-PEG-Ab-PEG-NW construct.
 
In the absence of antigen, the NW excitons interact with the NP plasmons to produce a specific luminescent spectrum. When antigen is present, however, the MSA is stretched, causing the exciton-plasmon interaction to be disrupted, and giving the exciton more time to diffuse along the NW. This results in the spectrum being red-shifted. The researchers found that the reaction was entirely reversible by washing the system with excess free antibody. Furthermore, using anti-streptavidin/streptavidin, spectral shifting was concentration dependent over five magnitudes. With fine tuning, the researchers are confident they can create biosensors for specific concentration ranges and with improved sensitivity.
 
"Compared with previous methods of sensing with Au and similar nanoparticles based predominantly on intensity variations, wavelength-shift MSAs can be particularly useful for biological applications, where the difference in the optical conditions of samples of heterogeneous tissues can be high," the authors wrote.

About the Author

Related Topics

Loading Next Article...
Loading Next Article...
Subscribe to Newsletter

Subscribe to our eNewsletters

Stay connected with all of the latest from Drug Discovery News.

Subscribe

Sponsored

A doctor wearing blue gloves and a white lab coat with a stethoscope around their neck holds a rendering of a digestive system on a glass pane with a swirled blue background.

Connecting the gut and liver to enhance drug development

Explore how a dual-organ microphysiological system connects human gut and liver tissue to bridge gaps in predicting how drugs behave in the body.
A syringe draws liquid from a glass vial, with several glass ampoules reflected on a glossy surface in the background

Turning up the heat: thermal analysis for biotherapeutics

Explore essential thermal stability techniques to ensure the safety, quality, and efficacy of biologic drugs.
A 3D-rendered image of a pink and white twisted RNA strand floating against a green, blurred cellular background.

Cutting the time and cost out of plasmid generation

Discover a hassle-free path to obtaining long, complex plasmid DNA.
Drug Discovery News March 2025 Issue
Latest IssueVolume 21 • Issue 1 • March 2025

March 2025

March 2025 Issue

Explore this issue