title: Label-free biosensing based on multilayer fluorescent nanocomposites and a cationic polymeric transducer.
abstract: This study describes the preparation and characterization of a DNA sensing architecture combining the molecular recognition capabilities of a cationic conjugated polymer transducer with highly fluorescent core-shell nanoparticles (NPs). The very structure of the probe-labeled NPs and the polymer-induced formation of NP aggregates maximize the proximity between the polymer donor and acceptor NPs that is required for optimal resonant energy transfer. Each hybridization event is signaled by a potentially large number of excited reporters following the efficient plasmon-enhanced energy transfer between target-activated polymer transducer and fluorophores located in the self-assembled core-shell aggregates, resulting in direct molecular detection of target nucleic acids at femtomolar concentrations.
authors.affiliation: Département de chimie and Centre d'optique, photonique et laser (COPL), Université Laval, Québec (QC), Canada G1V 0A6.
authors.forename: Danny
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Brouard
authors.forename: Mathieu L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Viger
authors.forename: A Guillermo
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Bracamonte
authors.forename: Denis
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Boudreau
mesh_terms: D015374:Biosensing Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation*; D002412:Cations; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes / Q000138:chemical synthesis; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence / Q000295:instrumentation*; D050997:Nanomedicine; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis / Q000295:instrumentation*; D010316:Particle Size; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA / Q000295:instrumentation*; D013194:Staining and Labeling; D014159:Transducers
chemical_list: D002412:Cations; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D011108:Polymers