Trivalent lanthanide ions display fascinating optical properties. The discovery of the corresponding elements and their first industrial uses were intimately linked to their optical properties. This relationship has b...Trivalent lanthanide ions display fascinating optical properties. The discovery of the corresponding elements and their first industrial uses were intimately linked to their optical properties. This relationship has been kept alive until today when many high-technology applications of lanthanide-containing materials such as energy-saving lighting devices, displays, optical fibers and amplifiers, lasers, responsive luminescent stains for biomedical analyses and in cellulo sensing and imaging, heavily rely on the brilliant and pure-color emission of lanthanide ions. In this review we first outlined the basics of lanthanide luminescence with emphasis on f-f transitions, the sensitization mechanisms, and the assessment of the luminescence efficiency of lanthanide-containing emissive molecular edifices. Emphasis was then put on two fast developing aspects of lanthanide luminescence： materials for telecommunications and light emitting diodes, and biomedical imaging and sensing. Recent advances in NIR-emitting materials for plastic amplifiers and waveguides were described, together with the main solutions brought by researchers to minimize non-radiative deactivation of excited states. The demonstration in 1999 that erbium tris（8-hydroxyquinolinate） displayed a bright green emission suitable for organic light emitting diodes （OLEDs） was followed by realizing that in OLEDs, 25% of the excitation energy leads to singlet states and 75% to triplet states. Since lanthanide ions are good triplet quenchers, they now also play a key role in the development of these lighting devices. Luminescence analyses of biological molecules are among the most sensitive analytical techniques known. The long lifetime of the lanthanide excited states allows time-resolved spectroscopy to be used, suppressing the sample autofluorescence and reaching very low detection limits. Not only visible lanthanide sensors are now ubiquitously provided in medical diagnosis and in cell imaging, but the feasibility of using NIR emission of ions such 展开更多
Recently, photothermal therapy （PTT） has attracted tremendous attention because of its high efficacy in tumor ablation and minimal damage to normal tissues. While many inorganic nanomaterials, especially various gol...Recently, photothermal therapy （PTT） has attracted tremendous attention because of its high efficacy in tumor ablation and minimal damage to normal tissues. While many inorganic nanomaterials, especially various gold nanostructures and nanocarbons, have been extensively explored for near-infrared （NIR） light triggered PTT in the past decade, a variety of organic photothermal agents have also emerged in recent years, aiming at replacing their inorganic counterparts which usually are not biodegradable. In this mini-review, we will summarize several typical classes of recently developed NIR-absorbing organic PTT nano- agents, which include NIR dye-containing micelles, porphysomes, protein-based agents, conjugated polymers, and organic/inorganic nanocomposites. The development of imaging-guided PTT and combination therapy will be introduced as well. Finally, the perspectives and challenges in the future development of PTT will be discussed.展开更多
基金Project supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation
文摘Trivalent lanthanide ions display fascinating optical properties. The discovery of the corresponding elements and their first industrial uses were intimately linked to their optical properties. This relationship has been kept alive until today when many high-technology applications of lanthanide-containing materials such as energy-saving lighting devices, displays, optical fibers and amplifiers, lasers, responsive luminescent stains for biomedical analyses and in cellulo sensing and imaging, heavily rely on the brilliant and pure-color emission of lanthanide ions. In this review we first outlined the basics of lanthanide luminescence with emphasis on f-f transitions, the sensitization mechanisms, and the assessment of the luminescence efficiency of lanthanide-containing emissive molecular edifices. Emphasis was then put on two fast developing aspects of lanthanide luminescence： materials for telecommunications and light emitting diodes, and biomedical imaging and sensing. Recent advances in NIR-emitting materials for plastic amplifiers and waveguides were described, together with the main solutions brought by researchers to minimize non-radiative deactivation of excited states. The demonstration in 1999 that erbium tris（8-hydroxyquinolinate） displayed a bright green emission suitable for organic light emitting diodes （OLEDs） was followed by realizing that in OLEDs, 25% of the excitation energy leads to singlet states and 75% to triplet states. Since lanthanide ions are good triplet quenchers, they now also play a key role in the development of these lighting devices. Luminescence analyses of biological molecules are among the most sensitive analytical techniques known. The long lifetime of the lanthanide excited states allows time-resolved spectroscopy to be used, suppressing the sample autofluorescence and reaching very low detection limits. Not only visible lanthanide sensors are now ubiquitously provided in medical diagnosis and in cell imaging, but the feasibility of using NIR emission of ions such
文摘Recently, photothermal therapy （PTT） has attracted tremendous attention because of its high efficacy in tumor ablation and minimal damage to normal tissues. While many inorganic nanomaterials, especially various gold nanostructures and nanocarbons, have been extensively explored for near-infrared （NIR） light triggered PTT in the past decade, a variety of organic photothermal agents have also emerged in recent years, aiming at replacing their inorganic counterparts which usually are not biodegradable. In this mini-review, we will summarize several typical classes of recently developed NIR-absorbing organic PTT nano- agents, which include NIR dye-containing micelles, porphysomes, protein-based agents, conjugated polymers, and organic/inorganic nanocomposites. The development of imaging-guided PTT and combination therapy will be introduced as well. Finally, the perspectives and challenges in the future development of PTT will be discussed.
