Work

Production and Targeting of Monovalent Quantum Dots

Year: 2014

Type: article

Abstract: The multivalent nature of commercial quantum dots (QDs) and the difficulties associated with producing monovalent dots have limited their applications in biology, where clustering and the spatial organization of biomolecules is often the object of study. We describe here a protocol to produce monovalent quantum dots (mQDs) that can be accomplished in most biological research laboratories via a simple mixing of CdSe/ZnS core/shell QDs with phosphorothioate DNA (ptDNA) of defined length. After a single ptDNA strand has wrapped the QD, additional strands are excluded from the surface. Production of mQDs in this manner can be accomplished at small and large scale, with commercial reagents, and in minimal steps. These mQDs can be specifically directed to biological targets by hybridization to a complementary single stranded targeting DNA. We demonstrate the use of these mQDs as imaging probes by labeling SNAP-tagged Notch receptors on live mammalian cells, targeted by mQDs bearing a benzylguanine moiety.

Source: Journal of Visualized Experiments

DOI: 10.3791/52198

Authors: Daeha Seo, Justin Farlow, Kade Southard, Young-wook Jun, Zev J. Gartner

Institutions: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, University of California, San Francisco, University of California, Berkeley

Language: English

Topic: Quantum Dots Synthesis And Properties

Subfield: Materials Chemistry

Field: Materials Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: bronze