Title
Characterizing optical properties, composition of stabilizer-free copper nanoclusters and its interaction with bovine serum albumin
Author
Dillip Kumar Sahu, Kalyanasis Sahu
Year
2017
Journal
Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology A: Chemistry
Abstract
Very recently, synthesis of a stabilizer-free copper nanocluster (CuNC) with enhanced catalytical activity was proposed by simply refluxing copper salt in dimethylformamide (DMF) solvent at an elevated temperature (140 °C). Herein, we characterize optical properties of the CuNCs with steady-state and time-resolved emission spectroscopy; determine the composition and surface ligation of the CuNC with matrix assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) mass and Fourier transformed infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy measurements. We also investigated interaction of the CuNCs with a representative protein, bovine serum albumin (BSA). The CuNC exhibits bright fluorescence in aqueous medium, remains stable over a broad pH range (2–12) and can be easily conjugated to the protein. The interaction of BSA with the CuNC leads to a very minor loss of the secondary structure of the protein. The fluorescence of CuNC-BSA nanocomposite is modulated dramatically due to Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) from tryptophan to CuNC.
Instrument
J-1500
Keywords
Circular dichroism, Secondary structure, Nanostructures, Biochemistry, Materials