Fuel mediated solution combustion synthesis of ZnO supported gold clusters and nanoparticles and their catalytic activity and in vitro cytotoxicity.

Nanocomposites of gold nanoparticles and semiconductor ZnO with wurtzite structure, made by solution combustion synthesis (SCS), as a function of the Zn/fuel ratio with polyethylene glycol (PEG) as fuel exhibit the presence of both nanoparticles and clusters. Atomic gold clusters present on the surface of ZnO nanorods which can be identified by XPS and SEM are easily monitored and characterized by positive ion MALDI experiments as mostly odd numbered clusters, Au3 to Au11 in decreasing amounts. Low concentrations of the fuel produce AuClO and nanoparticles (NPs), with no clusters. Au-ZnO nanocomposites at all [Au] exhibit single blue shifted plasmon absorption and corresponding photoluminescence (PL). Increasing particle size prefers surface plasmon resonance (SPR) scattering of metal that could lead to PL enhancement; however, available ZnO surface in the Au-ZnO composite becomes more important than the particle size of the composite with higher [Au]. The catalytic activity of these Au-ZnO nanocomposites tested on 4-nitrophenol clearly revealed the presence of an intermediate with both NPs and clusters playing different roles. An in vitro study of cytotoxicity on MCF-7 cell lines revealed that these gold nanostructures have turned out to be powerful nanoagents for destruction of cancer cells even with small amounts of gold particles/clusters. The nanorods of ZnO, known to be nontoxic to normal cells, play a lesser role in the anticancer activity of these Au-ZnO nanocomposites.

Surface-modified CdS nanoparticles as a fluorescent probe for the selective detection of cysteine.

We present a novel method for the selective detection of cysteine, a sulfur-containing amino acid, which plays a crucial role in many important biological functions such as protein folding. Surface-modified colloidal CdS nanoparticles have been used as a fluorescent probe to selectively detect cysteine in the presence of other amino acids in the micromolar concentration range. Cysteine quenches the emission of CdS in the 0.5-10 µM concentration range, whereas the other amino acids do not affect its emission. Among the other amino acids, histidine is most efficient in quenching the emission of the CdS nanoparticles. The sulfur atom of cysteine plays a crucial role in the quenching process in the 0.5-10 µM concentration range. Cysteine is believed to quench the emission of the CdS nanoparticles by binding to their surface via its negatively charged sulfur atom. This method can potentially be applied for its detection in biological samples.