Semiconductor quantum dots (QDs), also known as nanocrystals, have unique photophysical properties that have allowed them to find utility in many applications, including television and display technologies. They also have significant potential as imaging agents in the biomedical field. To gain the most value from the use of QDs as health-related fluorescent probes, they must be biologically targetable and sensitive to metabolic analytes such as pH and O₂, and the resulting signal must be quantifiable. To achieve these goals, QDs need to be conjugated to vectors such as antibodies or environmentally sensitive chromophores. Until recently, the functionalization of these nanomaterials required a complex fully “bottom-up” approach beginning with the synthesis of the QDs and subsequent manipulations. To simplify this process, our group set out to develop straightforward methods to prepare functionalized nanomaterials for biological imaging and sensing using low-cost, commercially available aqueous QD dispersions.

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胶体稳定性和电荷在水量子点功能化中的作用

半导体量子点（QD），也称为纳米晶体，具有独特的光物理特性，使其可以在包括电视和显示技术在内的许多应用中找到用途。它们还具有作为生物医学领域显像剂的巨大潜力。为了从使用QD作为与健康相关的荧光探针中获得最大价值，它们必须具有生物靶向性并且对代谢分析物（例如pH和O _2）敏感，并且产生的信号必须是可量化的。为了实现这些目标，需要将QD与载体结合，例如抗体或对环境敏感的发色团。直到最近，这些纳米材料的功能化还需要一种复杂的完全“自下而上”的方法，从合成QD和后续操作开始。为了简化此过程，我们的小组着手开发简单的方法，以使用低成本的市售QD水性分散液制备用于生物成像和传感的功能化纳米材料。