Department of Biology, Lebanon Valley College, Annville, PA 17003, USA.
J Appl Toxicol. 2013 Mar;33(3):227-37. doi: 10.1002/jat.2811. Epub 2012 Sep 14.
As a result of their characteristic physical and optical properties, including their size, intense fluorescence, broad excitation, narrow emission and resistance to photobleaching, semiconductor nanocrystals are potentially useful for a variety of biological applications including molecular imaging, live-cell labeling, photodynamic therapy and targeted drug delivery. In this study, zinc sulfide (ZnS) semiconductor nanocrystals were synthesized in the 3 to 4 nm size range with selected capping agents intended to protect the nanocrystal core and increase its biological compatibility. We show that the biocompatibility of ZnS nanocrystals with primary murine splenocytes is influenced by the chemical structure of the outer capping agent on the nanocrystal. Additionally, the cytotoxicity of ZnS nanocrystals increases markedly as a function of time spent in suspension in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS). These data suggest that the potential therapeutic and/or biological use of ZnS nanocrystals is inherently dependent upon the proper choice of capping agent, as well as the conditions of nanocrystal preparation and storage.
由于其独特的物理和光学特性，包括尺寸、强荧光、宽激发、窄发射和抗光漂白性，半导体纳米晶体在各种生物应用中具有潜在的用途，包括分子成像、活细胞标记、光动力治疗和靶向药物输送。在这项研究中，我们合成了尺寸在 3 到 4nm 范围内的硫化锌（ZnS）半导体纳米晶体，并选择了特定的包覆剂来保护纳米晶核并提高其生物相容性。我们发现，纳米晶体外覆剂的化学结构会影响 ZnS 纳米晶体与原代鼠脾细胞的生物相容性。此外，ZnS 纳米晶体的细胞毒性随在磷酸盐缓冲盐水（PBS）中悬浮时间的增加而显著增加。这些数据表明，ZnS 纳米晶体的潜在治疗和/或生物学用途本质上取决于适当的包覆剂选择，以及纳米晶体的制备和储存条件。
