Cetyltrimethylammonium bromide-modified spherical and cube-like gold nanoparticles as extrinsic Raman labels in surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy based heterogeneous immunoassays

Single gold nanoparticles counter: an ultrasensitive detection platform for one-step homogeneous immunoassays and DNA hybridization assays

In this paper, we present for the first time a single gold nanoparticle counter (SGNPC) in solution based on the photon bursting in a highly focused laser beam (less than 1 fL) due to the plasmon resonance scattering and Brownian motion of gold nanoparticles (GNPs). The photon burst intensity of single 36 nm GNPs is several tens to hundreds times stronger than that of quantum dots (QDs) and organic dyes. The relationship between the photon burst counts and GNPs concentration shows an excellent linearity. The linear range is over 4 orders of magnitude, and the detection limit of GNPs (36 nm) is 17 fM. On the basis of this single nanoparticle technique, we developed an ultrasensitive and highly selective detection platform for homogeneous immunoassay and DNA hybridization assays using GNPs as probes, which were 2-5 orders of magnitude more sensitive than current homogeneous methods. We used this technology to construct homogeneous sandwich immunoassays for cancer biomarkers, such as carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and alpha fetal protein (AFP), and aptamer recognition for thrombin. The detection limits are 130 fM for CEA, 714 fM for AFP and 2.72 pM for thrombin. Our method was successfully applied for direct determination of CEA, AFP and thrombin levels in sera from healthy subjects and cancer patients. In homogeneous DNA hybridization detection, we chose methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene as a target. This assay successfully distinguished DNA sequences with single base mismatches, and the detection limits for the target were at 1 fM level.

Synthesis of magnetic Fe2O3/Au core/shell nanoparticles for bioseparation and immunoassay based on surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy

Magnetic Fe2O3/Au core/shell nanoparticles can be particularly used in biological separation, but the development of an appropriate technique including a production process for higher efficient separation and the subsequent immunoassay for lower level still represent a great challenge. In this article, Fe2O3/Au core/shell nanoparticles with different Au ratios were prepared by reducing HAuCl4 on the surface of gamma-Fe2O3 nanoparticles. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) spectra clearly show that the surfaces of Fe2O3 nanoparticles were covered by Au. SERS signals of pyridine (Py) have been obtained on the Fe2O3/Au nanoparticles, and it has been found that the SERS intensity enhanced with the increase of iterative additions of HAuCl4. The antigens in test solution have been effectively separated by the magnetic Fe2O3/Au core/shell nanoparticles, and subsequent rapid detection was examined by immunoassay analysis based on SERS. The result demonstrates that the magnetic bioseparation program used by this magnetic Fe2O3/Au core/shell nanoparticles could separate almost all of the antigens in test solution. The ease of operation and good separation efficiency of this effective method has shown a potential application for magnetic Fe2O3/Au core/shell nanoparticles in bioseparation.

Homogeneous immunoassay for soy protein determination in food samples using gold nanoparticles as labels and light scattering detection

A homogeneous aggregation immunoassay involving the use of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and light scattering detection is described for soy protein determination in food samples. AuNPs act as enhancers of the precipitate that appears when the antigen-antibody complex is formed. The AuNPs-antibody conjugate has been synthesized by physical adsorption of polyclonal anti-soy protein antibodies onto the surface of commercial AuNPs with a nominal diameter of 20nm. The direct assay is based on the reaction of the conjugate with soy protein, which reaches the equilibrium in about 10min, and the measurement of the light scattering intensity at 530nm, which is proportional to the analyte concentration. The dynamic range of the calibration graph is 0.2-20microgm L(-1) and the detection limit value is 65ngm L(-1). The precision, expressed as relative standard deviation, has been assayed at two different concentrations, 0.2 and 1microgm L(-1), giving values ranging from 4.7 to 5.9%. The interference of other proteins has been assayed. The usefulness of this method has been shown by its application to the analysis of fruit juice and "nonmilk yoghourt" samples. The results obtained with the proposed method are similar to those obtained by using a commercial ELISA kit, but the assay time is significantly shorter and the detection limit was about 10 times lower. A recovery study has been also performed, giving values in the range of 84.0-119.3%.

Large third-order optical nonlinear effects of gold nanoparticles with unusual fluorescence enhancement

The third-order nonlinear optical properties of two solutions of gold nanoparticles protected by carbazolyldiacetylene derivatives were investigated using the Z-scan technique. Both gold nanoparticle colloid solutions in toluene show unusual fluorescent enhancement and large third-order nonlinear optical properties including nonlinear absorption and refractive effects. When extending the pi-conjugated length of the ligands, the third-order nonlinear properties of composite materials based on gold nanoparticles were enhanced accordingly.