Abstract
Copper (Cu2+) ions is an essential element for human health. Excessive intake of copper has been a threat to human health, becoming a concern of many people. This paper introduces a new type of nanoprobe which can be used to detect copper ion. The probe is made of connecting Cu2+ to the surface of core/shell upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) with the bridging of polyethylene glycol (PEG) molecules. Cu2+ ion reduce the fluorescence intensity of core-shell UCNPs by fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET), so it can quench the fluorescence emission. In the experiment, it is observed that the green intensity of PEG-coated UCNPs decreases as the rising concentration of Cu2+. The detection limit of upconversion fluorescence of core/shell UCNPs are 0.11 nM and 0.20 μg/g in solution and in blood serum, respectively. In addition, core/shell UCNPs is more sensitive to the detection of Cu2+ ions than core UCNPs. The new nanoprobe opens a new way to the development of assays for biosensing based on a combination of trace metal ions with UCNPs.
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