Abstract

Here, silica-coated PbS quantum dots (QDs) with photoluminescence emission properties in the near-infrared (NIR) region are proposed as potential effective single particle optical nanoprobes for future in vivo imaging of tumors.. The dispersibility in aqueous medium of hydrophobic PbS QDs was accomplished by growing a silica shell on their surface by exploiting a base assisted water-in-oil microemulsion method. The silica-coated PbS QDs were then conjugated with a specifically designed cyclic arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (cRGD) peptide that is able to specifically recognize alpha nu beta 3 integrins, which are overexpressed in angiogenic tumor-induced vasculatures and on some solid tumors, to achieve tumor-specific targeting. The cRGD peptide PbS silica-coated QDs were systematically characterized, at each step of their preparation, by means of complementary optical and structural techniques, demonstrating appropriate colloidal stability and the maintenance of their optical futures in aqueous solutions. The cellular uptake of cRGD peptide functionalized luminescent nanostructures in human melanoma cells, where overexpression of alpha nu beta 3 was observed, was assessed by means of confocal microscopy analysis and cytometric study. The selectivity of the cRGD peptide PbS silica-coated QDs for the alpha nu beta 3 integrin was established, consequently highlighting the significant potential of the developed NIR emitting nanostructures as optically traceable nanoprobes for future alpha nu beta 3 integrin receptor in vivo targeting in the NIR region.

Autore Pugliese

• Saviano Michele , Striccoli Marinella

Tutti gli autori

• Depalo N.; Corricelli M.; De Paola I.; Valente G.; Iacobazzi R. M.; Altamura E.; Debellis D.; Comegna D.; Fanizza E.; Denora N.; Laquintana V.; Mavelli F.; Striccoli M.; Saviano M.; Agostiano A.; Del Gatto A.; Zaccaro L.; Curri M. L.

Titolo volume/Rivista

ACS applied materials & interfaces

Anno di pubblicazione

2017

ISSN

1944-8244

ISBN

Non Disponibile

Numero di citazioni Wos

Nessuna citazione

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Numero di citazioni Scopus

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Ultimo Aggiornamento Citazioni

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Settori ERC

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Codici ASJC

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