Functionalized Buckyballs for Visualizing Microbial Species in Different States and Environments.
To date, in situ visualization of microbial density has remained an open problem. Here, functionalized buckyballs (e.g., C60-pyrrolidine tris acid) are shown to be a versatile platform that allows internalization within a microorganism without either adhering to the cell wall and cell membrane or binding to a matrix substrate such as soil. These molecular probes are validated via multi-scale imaging, to show association with microorganisms via fluorescence microscopy, positive cellular uptake via electron microscopy, and non-specific binding to the substrates through a combination of fluorescence and autoradiography imaging. We also demonstrate that cysteine-functionalized C60-pyrrolidine tris acid can differentiate live and dead microorganisms.
Department of Electrical and Biomedical Engineering, University of Nevada, Reno, 1664 N Virginia Street, Reno NV, 89503, USA.|Life Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, MS-977, Berkeley CA, 94720, USA.
Qingsu
Q
Cheng
Life Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, MS-977, Berkeley CA, 94720, USA.
Ashwin
A
Aravind
Life Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, MS-977, Berkeley CA, 94720, USA.
Matthew
M
Buckley
Brookhaven National Laboratory, Bioscience Department, Bldg490, Upton, NY 11973, USA.
Andrew
A
Gifford
Department of Electrical and Biomedical Engineering, University of Nevada, Reno, 1664 N Virginia Street, Reno NV, 89503, USA.|Life Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, MS-977, Berkeley CA, 94720, USA.
Bahram
B
Parvin
D044822:Biodiversity; D037741:Fullerenes / Q000378:metabolism*; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal / Q000379:methods; D008854:Microscopy, Electron / Q000379:methods; D012988:Soil Microbiology
D037741:Fullerenes