"A perspective on functionalizing colloidal quantum dots with DNA" by Anirban Samanta, Zhengtao Deng et al.

Article Title

A perspective on functionalizing colloidal quantum dots with DNA

Authors

Anirban Samanta, Present address: MIT, Synthetic Biology Center, Boston, MA, USA
Zhengtao Deng, Present address: MIT, Synthetic Biology Center, Boston, MA, USA
Yan Liu, Present address: MIT, Synthetic Biology Center, Boston, MA, USA
Hao Yan, Present address: MIT, Synthetic Biology Center, Boston, MA, USA

Keywords

colloidal quantum dots, semiconductor nanocrystals, DNA, conjugation, ligand exchange, covalent bond, core/shell

Abstract

ABSTRACT This perspective provides an overview of the techniques that have been developed for the conjugation of DNA to colloidal quantum dots (QDs), or semiconductor nanocrystals. Methods described include: ligand exchange at the QD surface, covalent conjugation of DNA to the QD surface ligands, and one-step DNA functionalization on core QDs or during core/shell QD synthesis in aqueous solution, with an emphasis on the most recent progress in our lab. We will also discuss emerging trends in DNA-functionalized QDs for potential applications.