title: Aqueous synthesis of color-tunable CuInS2/ZnS nanocrystals for the detection of human interleukin 6.
abstract: In this Article, we present a facile microwave-assisted synthesis route for the preparation of water-soluble and high-quality CuInS2/ZnS nanocrystals (NCs) with glutathione as the stabilizer. The as-prepared CuInS2/ZnS NCs exhibited small particle sizes (~3.3 nm), long photoluminescence lifetimes, and color-tunable properties ranging from the visible to the near-infrared by varying the initial ratio of Cu/In in the precursors. The low-toxicity, highly luminescent and biocompatible CuInS2/ZnS NCs were applied to cell imaging, showing that they could be used as promising fluorescent probes. Furthermore, the CuInS2/ZnS NCs were used as the signal labels for a fluoroimmunoassay of the biomarker IL-6, showing their great potential for use as reliable point-of-care diagnostics for biomarkers of cancer and other diseases.
authors.affiliation: State Key Lab of Analytical Chemistry for Life Science, and School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, PR China.
authors.forename: Wei-Wei
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Xiong
authors.forename: Guo-Hai
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Xing-Cai
authors.initials: XC
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Jun-Jie
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Zhu
mesh_terms: D005456:Fluorescent Dyes / Q000737:chemistry; D005978:Glutathione / Q000737:chemistry; D006801:Humans; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D008872:Microwaves; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology; D013440:Sulfides / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction; D017967:Zinc Compounds / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D015850:Interleukin-6; D013440:Sulfides; D017967:Zinc Compounds; D014867:Water; D005978:Glutathione; C031238:zinc sulfide