Mentors: Daniel Roxbury and Matthew Card (University of Rhode Island)
Project Location
University of Rhode Island
Project Description
Fluorescent single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) have been recently used in various biosensing, bioimaging, and drug delivery applications for preclinical applications. The interactions between fluorescent SWCNTs and bacteria have remain largely unexplored. Here, a hybrid SWCNT sample will be created by complexation with a cationic amphiphilic polymer (e.g. chitosan) to examine the uptake and retention within cyanobacteria. From previous literature, it is expected that nanoparticles such as SWCNTs with cationic functionalizations are expected to penetrate the cell walls of the bacteria, resulting in cytoplasmic localizations. Once internalized, the near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence signals from the SWCNTs will be used to quantify the total concentration, sub-cellular location, and aggregation state of the SWCNTs. Future studies will use this “spectral fingerprint” to identify biomarkers of interest within the cyanobacteria.
RI NSF EPSCoR is supported in part by the U.S. National Science Foundation under EPSCoR Cooperative Agreements #OIA-2433276 and in part by the RI Commerce Corporation via the Science and Technology Advisory Committee [STAC]. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. National Science Foundation, the RI Commerce Corporation, STAC, our partners or our collaborators.