Nanospherical Silica as Luminescent Markers Obtained by Sol–Gel

Silica-Based Materials Containing Inorganic Red/NIR Emitters and Their Application in Biomedicine

The low absorption of biological substances and living tissues in the red/near-infrared region (therapeutic window) makes luminophores emitting in the range of ~650-1350 nm favorable for in vitro and in vivo imaging. In contrast to commonly used organic dyes, inorganic red/NIR emitters, including ruthenium complexes, quantum dots, lanthanide compounds, and octahedral cluster complexes of molybdenum and tungsten, not only exhibit excellent emission in the desired region but also possess additional functional properties, such as photosensitization of the singlet oxygen generation process, upconversion luminescence, photoactivated effects, and so on. However, despite their outstanding functional applicability, they share the same drawback-instability in aqueous media under physiological conditions, especially without additional modifications. One of the most effective and thus widely used types of modification is incorporation into silica, which is (1) easy to obtain, (2) biocompatible, and (3) non-toxic. In addition, the variety of morphological characteristics, along with simple surface modification, provides room for creativity in the development of various multifunctional diagnostic/therapeutic platforms. In this review, we have highlighted biomedical applications of silica-based materials containing red/NIR-emitting compounds.

Red-Emitting Hybrid Based on Eu3+-dbm Complex Anchored on Silica Nanoparticles Surface by Carboxylic Acid for Biomarker Application

Luminescent organic-inorganic hybrids containing lanthanides (Ln³⁺) have been prominent for applications such as luminescent bio-probes in biological assays. In this sense, a luminescent hybrid based on dense silica (SiO₂) nanospheres decorated with Eu³⁺ β-diketonate complexes using dibenzoylmethane (Hdbm) as a luminescent antenna was developed by using a hierarchical organization in four steps: (i) anchoring of 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) organosilane on the SiO₂ surface, (ii) formation of a carboxylic acid ligand, (iii) coordination of Eu³⁺ to the carboxylate groups and (iv) coordination of dbm^- to Eu³⁺. The hybrid structure was elucidated through the correlation of thermogravimetry, silicon nuclear magnetic resonance and photoluminescence. Results indicate that the carboxylic acid-Eu³⁺-dbm hybrid was formed on the surface of the particles with no detectable changes on their size or shape after all the four steps (average size of 32 ± 7 nm). A surface charge of -27.8 mV was achieved for the hybrid, assuring a stable suspension in aqueous media. The Eu³⁺ complex provides intense red luminescence, characteristic of Eu³⁺⁵D₀→⁷F_J electronic transitions, with an intrinsic emission quantum yield of 38%, even in an aqueous suspension. Therefore, the correlation of luminescence, structure, particle morphology and fluorescence microscopy images make the hybrid promising for application in bioimaging.

Incorporation of anti-inflammatory agent into mesoporous silica

The unique properties of macroporous, mesoporous, and microporous systems, including their ability to accommodate molecules of different sizes inside their pores and to act as drug delivery systems, have been the object of extensive studies. In this work, mesoporous silica with hexagonal structure was obtained by template synthesis via the sol-gel process. The resulting material was used as support to accommodate the anti-inflammatory agent indomethacin. The alkaline route was used to prepare the mesoporous silica; cetyltrimethylammonium bromide was employed as porogenic agent. The silica particles were functionalized with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane alkoxide (APTES) by the sol-gel post-synthesis method. Indomethacin was incorporated into the silica functionalized with APTES and into non-functionalized silica. The resulting systems were characterized by x-ray diffraction (XRD), specific area, infrared spectroscopy, and thermal analyses (TGA). XRD attested to formation of mesoporous silica with hexagonal structure. This structure remained after silica functionalization with APTES and incorporation of indomethacin. Typical infrared spectroscopy vibrations and organic material decomposition during TGA confirmed silica functionalization and drug incorporation. The specific surface area and pore volume of the functionalized material incorporated with indomethacin decreased as compared with the specific surface area and pore volume of the non-functionalized silica containing no drug, suggesting both the functionalizing agent and the drug were present in the silica. Cytotoxicity tests conducted on normal fibroblasts (GM0479A) cells attested that the silica matrix containing indomethacin was less toxic than the free drug.

Synthesis and investigation of a novel luminous hydrogel

An Eu-containing luminous hydrogel was synthesized by free radical copolymerization and ester hydrolysis. The hydrogel exhibits strong red fluorescence, excellent thermal stability and superhydrophilicity.