Combining gold nanoparticle antennas with single-molecule fluorescence resonance energy transfer (smFRET) to study DNA hairpin dynamics

Nanoscale ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (14) ◽  
pp. 6611-6619 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinyong Hu ◽  
Meiyan Wu ◽  
Li Jiang ◽  
Zhensheng Zhong ◽  
Zhangkai Zhou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Energy Transfer ◽  
Gold Nanoparticle ◽  
Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer ◽  
Single Molecule ◽  
Fluorescence Enhancement ◽  
Resonance Energy Transfer ◽  
Resonance Energy ◽  
Dna Hairpin ◽  
Single Molecule Fluorescence ◽  
Fluorescence Resonance

Gold nanoparticle antennas as a promising platform not only for fluorescence enhancement but also for the studies of single-molecule kinetics.

Single molecule fluorescence resonance energy transfer scanning near-field optical microscopy: potentials and challenges

2015 ◽  
Vol 184 ◽  
pp. 51-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. K. Sekatskii ◽  
K. Dukenbayev ◽  
M. Mensi ◽  
A. G. Mikhaylov ◽  
E. Rostova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Energy Transfer ◽  
Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer ◽  
Single Molecule ◽  
Near Field ◽  
Resonance Energy Transfer ◽  
Resonance Energy ◽  
Nitrogen Vacancy ◽  
Single Molecule Fluorescence ◽  
Single Molecule Fret ◽  
Fluorescence Resonance

A few years ago, single molecule Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer Scanning Near-Field Optical Microscope (FRET SNOM) images were demonstrated using CdSe semiconductor nanocrystal–dye molecules as donor–acceptor pairs. Corresponding experiments reveal the necessity to exploit much more photostable fluorescent centers for such an imaging technique to become a practically used tool. Here we report the results of our experiments attempting to use nitrogen vacancy (NV) color centers in nanodiamond (ND) crystals, which are claimed to be extremely photostable, for FRET SNOM. All attempts were unsuccessful, and as a plausible explanation we propose the absence (instability) of NV centers lying close enough to the ND border. We also report improvements in SNOM construction that are necessary for single molecule FRET SNOM imaging. In particular, we present the first topographical images of single strand DNA molecules obtained with fiber-based SNOM. The prospects of using rare earth ions in crystals, which are known to be extremely photostable, for single molecule FRET SNOM at room temperature and quantum informatics at liquid helium temperatures, where FRET is a coherent process, are also discussed.

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