Design and Evaluation of Functional Silicon Quantum Dots for Safe Fluorescence Imaging of Cells

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Novel water-dispersible, pH-stable, and biocompatible quantum dots were synthesized through the surface modification of silicon quantum dots (SiQDs) with monosaccharides. The presence of the monosaccharide on the surface of the SiQDs was recognized by the fluorescence measurements using its complementary lectin (concanavalin A). The fluorescence imaging of fibroblast cells was carried out by using SiQDs functionalized chemically with D-glucosamine, and it was shown that the SiQDs developed in this study are applicable as blue chromophores. In addition, silicon quantum dots were coated with water-soluble polymers using atomic transfer radical polymerization and their fluorescence properties were investigated in aqueous solution. As a result, their advantages over conventional SiQDs originated from polymer-coating became clear by the various experiments.