Multiplexed Biosensing on the Nanoscale Using Time-Resolved Luminescence

Niko Hildebrandt

The investigation of biomolecular recognition via Förster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) plays an important role for quantifying concentrations and distances in many fields of the life sciences. Application of lanthanide-based photoluminescence spectroscopy and microscopy for the analysis of FRET offers several advantages concerning versatility, sensitivity, and specificity. Lanthanide FRET donors can be molecular (e.g., lanthanide complexes) or nanoparticular (e.g., upconversion nanoparticles) and their FRET acceptor counterparts provide the same nanomolecular flexibility (e.g., quantum dots, dyes, fluorescent proteins). Adding the broad choice of biological recognition molecules, including antibodies, artificial protein binders, aptamers, nucleic acids, or peptides to the FRET toolbox provides a boundless source for designing fluorescent probes for biosensing and bioimaging. The presentation will explain time-resolved and time-gated FRET and the specific benefits for spectral and temporal luminescence multiplexing with different materials and instruments. Then, recent applications of multiplexed FRET biosensing and bioimaging with hybrid lanthanide-nanomaterials in solution, in-vitro, in-situ, and in-vivo will be discussed.