Labelling of human breast cancer cells with PEG/biotin encapsulated B-type Y2O3: 2 O 3: Eu nanophosphors for fluorescence detection

The development of non-toxic quantum dots (QDs) for fluorescence labelling of cancer cells can bring significant advancements in the disease detection. Such findings can effectively replace the conventional toxic fluorescent probes by virtue of its tunable optical characteristics. Through this work, we present the development of an efficient fluorescent probe based on B-type Y2O3: Eu QDs for labelling MCF 7 cell lines. The QDs surface was encapsulated by poly ethylene glycol (PEG) along with tumour targeting ligand, biotin. The luminescence capability of the QDs were established through photoluminescence experiments. The QDs were tested to be nontoxic through MTT assay. Fluorescence detection experiments on MCF 7 cells using the nanophosphor established the material's potential to serve as an efficient probe for cancer cell detection.