Researchers at Sandia National Laboratories has developed a way of engineering multi-purpose nanomaterials, for imaging and even therapeutics, made of metal-organic framework materials (MOFs). MOFs are composite molecules made of metal nodes and carbon rids that link them. They have interesting characteristics, such as long-term multi-color fluorescence, can be formed into different shapes with huge surface areas, a they can work as catalysts, depending on their shapes and metals used.
Sandia’s particles are made of lanthanides, which are rare earth metals, including europium, which fluoresces red, and neodymium and ytterbium that fluoresce in the near infrared. Having multiple metals makes them more stable in water, and the researchers gave the particles complex shapes with large pores that can hold drugs and also so they would be well visible when imaged.
The nanoparticles glow for more than two days once energized, which is remarkable compared to much shorter timeframes that are currently available. Moreover, the team has developed a whole technique for creating new particles that glow in different colors, extending their applications.
The team tested their particles for water stability and for imaging inside of living mammalian cells. They were shown to be stable, but some of their other characteristics still need to be fine tuned to achieve optimal results.
Study in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces: Multifunctional, Tunable Metal–Organic Framework Materials Platform for Bioimaging Applications…
Via: Sandia…