A DNA sensor based on upconversion nanoparticles and two-dimensional dichalcogenide materials
Konstantina Alexaki1, Davide Giust1, Maria-Eleni Kyriazi1, Afaf H. El-Sagheer2,3, Tom Brown2, Otto L. Muskens1,4, Antonios G. Kanaras1,4()
1. School of Physics and Astronomy, Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK 2. Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, Chemistry Research Laboratory, Oxford OX1 3TA, UK 3. Chemistry Branch, Department of Science and Mathematics, Faculty of Petroleum and Mining Engineering, Suez University, Suez 43721, Egypt 4. Institute for Life Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK
We demonstrate the fabrication of a new DNA sensor that is based on the optical interactions occurring between oligonucleotide-coated NaYF4: Yb3+; Er3+ upconversion nanoparticles and the two-dimensional dichalcogenide materials, MoS2 and WS2. Monodisperse upconversion nanoparticles were functionalized with single-stranded DNA endowing the nanoparticles with the ability to interact with the surface of the two-dimensional materials via van der Waals interactions leading to subsequent quenching of the upconversion fluorescence. By contrast, in the presence of a complementary oligonucleotide target and the formation of double-stranded DNA, the upconversion nanoparticles could not interact with MoS2 and WS2, thus retaining their inherent fluorescence properties. Utilizing this sensor we were able to detect target oligonucleotides with high sensitivity and specificity whilst reaching a concentration detection limit as low as 5 mol·L–1, within minutes.
. [J]. Frontiers of Chemical Science and Engineering, 2021, 15(4): 935-943.
Konstantina Alexaki, Davide Giust, Maria-Eleni Kyriazi, Afaf H. El-Sagheer, Tom Brown, Otto L. Muskens, Antonios G. Kanaras. A DNA sensor based on upconversion nanoparticles and two-dimensional dichalcogenide materials. Front. Chem. Sci. Eng., 2021, 15(4): 935-943.
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