Highly Luminescent Heterostructured Copper-Doped Zinc Sulfide Nanocrystals for Application in Cancer Cell Labeling.

Abstract

The structural characteristics of the seed-mediated synthesis of heterostructured CuS-ZnS nanocrystals (NCs) and Cu-doped ZnS (ZnS:Cu) NCs synthesized by two different protocols are compared and analyzed. At high Cu dopant concentrations, segregated subclusters of ZnS and CuS are observed. The photoluminescence quantum yield of ZnS:Cu NCs is about 50-80 %; a value much higher than that of ZnS NCs (6 %). Finally, these NCs are coated with a thin silica shell by using (3-mercaptopropyl)triethoxysilane in a reverse microemulsion to make them water soluble. Cytotoxicity experiments show that these silica-coated NCs have greatly reduced toxicity on both cancerous HeLa and noncancerous Chinese hamster ovary cells. The labeling of cancerous HeLa cells is also demonstrated.

• Authors: Huixiang Ang, Michel Bosman, Ramesh Thamankar, Muhammad Faizal B Zulkifli, Swee Kuan Yen, Anushya Hariharan, Thankiah Sudhaharan, Subramanian Tamil Selvan
• Journal: Chemphyschem : a European journal of chemical physics and physical chemistry (Chemphyschem) Vol. 17 Issue 16 Pg. 2489-95 (Aug 18 2016) ISSN: 1439-7641 [Electronic] Germany
• PMID: 27146419 (Publication Type: Journal Article)
• Copyright: © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Chemical References

• Sulfides
• Zinc Compounds
• Silicon Dioxide
• Copper
• zinc sulfide

Topics

• Animals
• CHO Cells
• Cell Survival (drug effects)
• Copper (chemistry, pharmacology)
• Cricetulus
• Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
• HeLa Cells
• Humans
• Luminescence
• Molecular Structure
• Nanoparticles (chemistry)
• Neoplasms (diagnosis, pathology)
• Particle Size
• Silicon Dioxide (chemistry, pharmacology)
• Sulfides (chemistry, pharmacology)
• Surface Properties
• Zinc Compounds (chemistry, pharmacology)