Magnetically Responsive Optical Nanoprobes (MagRONs) and Systems

摘要

Magnetically Modulated Optical Nanoprobes (MagMooNs) are chemical and physical probes that blink in response to rotating magnetic fields. The blinking distinguishes probe fluorescence from autofluorescent backgrounds, allowing chemical measurements based on fluorescence spectrum, even in the presence of background. In addition, the blinking rate reveals information about particle size and local viscosity on a single probe level. We expanded our capabilities for fabrication of MagMOONS, while developing new applications and techniques for the MagMOON platform. We made MagMOONs that sense pH, developed a general method to make uniformly magnetic half-shell MagMOONs by depositing magnetic materials onto a wide range of nanospheres, and improved our immunoassay techniques. Brownian MOONs (300 nm) were used to observe biomechanical rotation inside living macrophages. These tools have promising applications for disease and pathogen detection, measuring material properties and mechanical forces on the nanoscale, and observing cell response to drug candidates and other stimuli.