The synthesis and surface modification of upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) composed of a host lattice NaYF4 doped with sensitizers (Yb3+, Nd3+) and luminescent emitters (Er3+) were investigated for potential integration in biological applications.The fascination of NaYF4: Nd3+, Yb3+, Er3+ upconverting nanoparticles derives from their capacity to be excited in the biologically transparent window (650-950 nm) enabling deep tissue penetration. In particular, the ability to convert near infrared radiation into visible light (upconversion), which prevents autofluorescence and over-heating effect of biological tissues.In biological applications especially in vivo, morphology and size of the nanoparticles plays a crucial role in determination of cellular responses and fate in living organism. Heterogeneously sized nanoparticles, in contrast to uniform ones, might be distributed unevenly in the organism causing undesirable toxic side effects. Therefore, precise control of the nanoparticle size, distribution, and reproducibility were main tasks in the first part of this work. Colloidal upconverting nanoparticles were synthesized using coprecipitation method. Synthetic parameters such as reaction temperature (280-320 °C), and time (5-30 min) were used to tailor the nanoparticle morphology, crystal phase (cubic or hexagonal) and particle size (sub-10 - 20 nm).
Integration of these nanoparticles in biological applications requires dispersibility in aqueous media. Hence hydrophobic UCNPs were surface-modified with low molecular weight ligands including O-phospho-L-threonine, alendronic acid, and PEG-phosphate ligands to generate water-dispersible UCNPs. Furthermore, in this work, photocrosslinking of diacetylenes is presented as an effective way to create robust UCNPs with a crosslinked shell.
Finally, the protein corona formation on UCNPs coated with charged, zwitterionic and nearly neutral ligands was investigated. The composition of protein binding to UCNP is notably influenced by the surface charges of the UCNPs. Overall, the results obtained in the frame of this work show that the NaYF4: Nd3+, Yb3+, Er3+ UCNPS have the potential to replace conventional fluorophores in bioimaging applications due to their remarkable optical properties, as well as the derivatization flexibility of their surface
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:DRESDEN/oai:qucosa:de:qucosa:34248 |
| Date | 14 June 2019 |
| Creators | Nsubuga, Anne |
| Contributors | Steinbach, Jörg, Kumke, Michael U., Technische Universität Dresden |
| Source Sets | Hochschulschriftenserver (HSSS) der SLUB Dresden |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion, doc-type:doctoralThesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/doctoralThesis, doc-type:Text |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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