Elucidating the cellular uptake mechanism of aptamer-functionalized graphene-isolated-Au-nanocrystals with dual-modal imaging.
Elucidating the endocytosis and metabolism of nanoparticles in cells could improve the diagnostic sensitivity and therapeutic efficiency. In this work, we explore the cellular uptake mechanism of a biocompatible nanocrystal nanostructure, graphene-isolated-Au-nanocrystals (GIANs), by monitoring the intrinsic Raman and two-photon luminescence signals of GIANs in live cells. Aptamers functionalized on the GIAN nanostructure through simple, but strong, π-π interactions entered the cells through a clathrin-dependent pathway, while unmodified GIANs mainly entered the cells through a caveolae-mediated endocytosis pathway. Thus, it can be concluded that the mechanism of cellular uptake in these graphene-isolated-Au-nanocrystal nanostructures is determined by the presence or absence of aptamer modification.
Molecular Science and Biomedicine Laboratory, State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Bio-Sensing and Chemometrics, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Biology, Hunan University, Changsha, 410082, China. zhuochen@hnu.edu.cn tan@chem.ufl.edu.
Shanshan
S
Wang
Molecular Science and Biomedicine Laboratory, State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Bio-Sensing and Chemometrics, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Biology, Hunan University, Changsha, 410082, China. zhuochen@hnu.edu.cn tan@chem.ufl.edu.
Zhangkun
Z
Liu
Molecular Science and Biomedicine Laboratory, State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Bio-Sensing and Chemometrics, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Biology, Hunan University, Changsha, 410082, China. zhuochen@hnu.edu.cn tan@chem.ufl.edu.
Yuxiu
Y
Zou
Molecular Science and Biomedicine Laboratory, State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Bio-Sensing and Chemometrics, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Biology, Hunan University, Changsha, 410082, China. zhuochen@hnu.edu.cn tan@chem.ufl.edu.
Xiaofang
X
Lai
Molecular Science and Biomedicine Laboratory, State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Bio-Sensing and Chemometrics, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Biology, Hunan University, Changsha, 410082, China. zhuochen@hnu.edu.cn tan@chem.ufl.edu.
Ding
D
Ding
Faculty of Sciences and Technology, University of Macau, Av. Padre Tomas Pereira Taipa, Macau, China.
Long
L
Chen
Molecular Science and Biomedicine Laboratory, State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Bio-Sensing and Chemometrics, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Biology, Hunan University, Changsha, 410082, China. zhuochen@hnu.edu.cn tan@chem.ufl.edu and Center for Research at Bio/Nano Interface, Department of Chemistry and Department of Physiology and Functional Genomics, Shands Cancer Center, UF Genetics Institute and McKnight Brain Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611-7200, USA.
Liqin
L
Zhang
Molecular Science and Biomedicine Laboratory, State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Bio-Sensing and Chemometrics, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Biology, Hunan University, Changsha, 410082, China. zhuochen@hnu.edu.cn tan@chem.ufl.edu.
Yuan
Y
Wu
Molecular Science and Biomedicine Laboratory, State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Bio-Sensing and Chemometrics, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Biology, Hunan University, Changsha, 410082, China. zhuochen@hnu.edu.cn tan@chem.ufl.edu.
Zhuo
Z
Chen
Molecular Science and Biomedicine Laboratory, State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Bio-Sensing and Chemometrics, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Biology, Hunan University, Changsha, 410082, China. zhuochen@hnu.edu.cn tan@chem.ufl.edu and Center for Research at Bio/Nano Interface, Department of Chemistry and Department of Physiology and Functional Genomics, Shands Cancer Center, UF Genetics Institute and McKnight Brain Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611-7200, USA.
Weihong
W
Tan
D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000378:metabolism; D004705:Endocytosis; D006046:Gold / Q000378:metabolism*; D006108:Graphite; D006367:HeLa Cells; D006801:Humans; D008163:Luminescent Measurements; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000378:metabolism*; D049329:Nanostructures; D013059:Spectrum Analysis, Raman
D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D006046:Gold; D006108:Graphite