Controlled microfluidic flow synthesis of brightly luminescent semiconducting polymer dot nanoparticles for bioanalysis********

纳米颗粒是存在于比人类头发宽度小一千倍的尺寸尺度上的颗粒，在诊断和治疗医学以及基础健康科学研究方面具有巨大潜力。对于许多纳米颗粒材料，一个主要的障碍是可控和可再生的制造。我们将与Precision Nanosystems Inc.合作。(PNI)开发一种用于合成半导体聚合物点（Pdot）的微流体方法--Pdot是一种非常明亮的荧光纳米颗粒，在生物检测、成像和联合治疗与诊断（所谓的“治疗诊断学”）方面具有潜在的应用前景。预期所提出的微流体合成方法将提供相对于Pdot合成的当前实验室方法大大增强的控制、再现性和可扩展性。这些改进将加速Pdot材料从研发到实际应用（例如临床）的转化。

Nanoparticles, which are particles that exist on a size scale a thousand times smaller than the width of a human hair, have tremendous potential for diagnostic and therapeutic medicine, as well as fundamental health science research. For many nanoparticle materials, a major roadblock is controllable and reproducible manufacturing. We will partner with Precision Nanosystems Inc. (PNI) to develop a microfluidic method for the synthesis of semiconducting polymer dots (Pdots)--a type of extraordinarily bright fluorescent nanoparticle that has prospective applications in biological detection, imaging, and combined therapy and diagnosis (so-called "theranostics"). It is anticipated that the proposed microfluidic synthesis method will provided greatly enhanced control, reproducibility, and scalability versus current laboratory methods of Pdot synthesis. These improvements will accelerate the translation of Pdot materials from R&D to practical applications (e.g. clinical).