Isolation of Monovalent Quantum Dot–Nucleic Acid Conjugates Using

Jun 13, 2014 - Phone: 905 828 5437. ... A population distribution of conjugates is formed even when reactions involve use of one-to-one molar equivale...
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Isolation of monovalent quantum dot – nucleic acid conjugates using magnetic beads Uvaraj Uddayasankar, Zhenfu Zhang, Ravi T Shergill, Claudiu C Gradinaru, and Ulrich J. Krull Bioconjugate Chem., Just Accepted Manuscript • Publication Date (Web): 13 Jun 2014 Downloaded from http://pubs.acs.org on June 23, 2014

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Bioconjugate Chemistry

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Isolation of monovalent quantum dot – nucleic acid

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conjugates using magnetic beads

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Uvaraj Uddayasankar†, Zhenfu Zhang†‡, Ravi T. Shergill†, Claudiu C. Gradinaru†‡ and Ulrich J.

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Krull†*

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Mississauga Road, Mississauga, ON, CA L5L1C6

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1A7

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* Corresponding Author:

Department of Chemical and Physical Sciences, University of Toronto Mississauga, 3359

Department of Physics, University of Toronto, 60 St. George Street, Toronto, ON, CA M5S

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Ulrich J Krull

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Department of Chemical and Physical Sciences

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University of Toronto Mississauga

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3359 Mississauga Road, Mississauga, ON, CA L5L1C6

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E-mail: [email protected]

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Phone: 905 828 5437

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Fax: 905 569 4388

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Abstract

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Control of the valency that is achieved in the decoration of quantum dots (QDs) remains a

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challenge due to the high surface area of nanoparticles. A population distribution of conjugates is

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formed even when reactions involve use of one-to-one molar equivalents of the ligand and QD.

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Monovalent conjugates are of particular interest to enable the preparation of multi-nanoparticle

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constructs that afford improved analytical functionality. Herein, a facile method for the

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formation and purification of QD-DNA monoconjugates (i.e. 1 DNA per QD) is described.

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Using diethylaminoethyl (DEAE) functionalized magnetic beads, a protocol was developed and

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optimized to selectively isolate QD-DNA monoconjugates from a mixture. Monoconjugates

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prepared with oligonucleotides as short as 19 bases and as long as 36 bases in length were

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successfully isolated. The monoconjugates were isolated in less than 5 minutes with isolation

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efficiencies between 68-93 %, depending on the length of oligonucleotide that was used. The

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versatility of the method was demonstrated by purifying monoconjugates prepared from

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commercially available, water-soluble QDs. The isolation of monoconjugates was confirmed

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using agarose gel electrophoresis and single molecule fluorescence microscopy. Examples are

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provided comparing the analytical performance of monoconjugates to collections of

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nanoparticles of mixed valencies, indicating the significance of this separation method to prepare

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nanomaterials for bioassay design.

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Introduction

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Monovalent conjugates of nanoparticles with oligonucleotides have enabled the generation of

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unique complexes that have found use in fields such as biomedical imaging 1,2 and biosensing.3,4

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One nanomaterial of particular interest is quantum dots (QDs). QDs are fluorescent

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semiconductor nanoparticles with favorable properties such as high brightness, high

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photostability and spectral properties that facilitate multiplexed detection.5 Biosensing using

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QDs have focused on the use of multivalent conjugates, demonstrating unique transduction

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schemes

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prepare monovalent conjugates can be essential, such as where cross-linking must be avoided.

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When multivalent conjugates are used, rather than the formation of a functional construct, a

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macromolecular aggregate can be formed. The accuracy and precision of quantitative binding

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assays can also benefit from the use of monoconjugates.8 Multivalent conjugates may bind with

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an unknown number of target molecules. Facile strategies for preparation and purification are

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required to enable widespread accessibility to monovalent QD conjugates.

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and improved analytical performance for some applications.7 However, the ability to

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The challenge that is associated with the direct formation of monoconjugates stems from the

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high surface area of nanoparticles. Due to the presence of multiple active sites on the surface,

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incubation with even one equivalent of ligand results in a distribution of conjugates being

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formed.9 Currently, there are two main approaches for the generation of QD monoconjugates.

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One exploits the use of either steric exclusion

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number of molecules immobilized on the surface. The second, and most common approach relies

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on purification of monoconjugates from a mixture of conjugates. An approach that relies on

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purification offers the flexibility to use a variety of surface coatings and conjugation methods.

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Common purification methods such as gel electrophoresis

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chromatography

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accessible but require long run times to obtain sufficient resolution between the various

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conjugates, and the extraction of the monoconjugates from the gel is inefficient

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based on chromatography overcome these limitations.

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2,10

or electrostatic repulsion

1,8,12

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to minimize the

and anion exchange

have demonstrated some success. Gel electrophoretic methods are the most

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. Methods

Anion exchange chromatography has

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been used to isolate QD-DNA monoconjugates, but the shortest length of single stranded nucleic

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acid that could be successfully isolated was 74 bases. Furthermore, current methods are not

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easily amenable to automation or high throughput sample processing. By implementation of

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alternative adjunct technologies there is significant opportunity for improvement of separation

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efficiency for conjugates prepared from short oligonucleotides. This would improve the

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versatility of the separation technique, and would also facilitate use of short probe strands that

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tend to offer much higher selectivity towards hybridization

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siRNA, some mRNA targets and polymorphism screening.

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technology is the use of magnetic beads as a basis for selective extraction.

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as desired for determination of

One such example of an adjunct

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Magnetic beads have become ubiquitous in the field of separation science.16 These

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micrometer-sized particles possess a high surface area, which translates into a high binding

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capacity. The surface modification strategies have been well established and many commercial

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vendors provide magnetic beads with virtually any desired functional groups for common

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conjugation chemistries. This makes the technology widely accessible. Kinetics of capture and

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release are improved as the large surface area associated with the beads can be easily dispersed

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in a given volume and subsequently condensed at a single collection point using a magnet. The

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widespread adoption of this technique has already led to the development of many automated

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systems and is readily scalable.

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In this work, diethylaminoethyl (DEAE) functionalized magnetic beads were used for the

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selective isolation of QD-DNA monoconjugates with the primary interest being isolation of

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monoconjugates that were prepared using oligonucleotides of less than 40 base length. QD-DNA

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conjugates were constructed using the well-established ability of hexahistidine functionalized

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nucleic acids to coordinate onto the inorganic shell of poly(ethylene glycol) coated QDs.17 The

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DNA functionalized QDs were captured onto the DEAE magnetic beads using electrostatic

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interactions. Selective elution of the monoconjugated species was achieved by tuning the ionic

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strength of the wash solutions using sodium chloride. Analysis of the quality of the purified

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conjugates was done using agarose gel electrophoresis. Confirmation that monoconjugates were

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obtained was achieved using single molecule fluorescence microscopy techniques.

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Commercial, water-soluble QDs were used to prepare conjugates in order to demonstrate the

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broad applicability of the purification method using materials that are widely available. The

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significance of the purification procedure in the preparation of QD-DNA monoconjugates for

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quantitative assays was investigated using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) to

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detect hybridization.19

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Results and Discussion

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Quantum dot surface chemistry and bioconjugation Quantum dots, originally dissolved in

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organic solvents, need to be transferred to aqueous solution prior to functionalization with

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biomolecules. Quantum dots (QDs) were made water soluble using a bidentate thiol

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poly(ethylene glycol) (DHLA PEG) coating (Figure 1Figure 1a) that was previously introduced

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by Uyeda et al.20 Successful ligand exchange was confirmed by the colloidal stability of the

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DHLA PEG-QDs in aqueous solutions and a hydrodynamic diameter (Dh) of 12.3 ± 0.2 nm as

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determined using fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS); see Supporting Information,

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Figure S1. According to the manufacturer, the inorganic core of the original QDs are 5.5-7 nm in

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diameter,21 and the increase in hydrodynamic radius of the water soluble conjugates is consistent

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with previous reports.22 A PEG surface coating was chosen to provide excellent colloidal

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stability across a wide range of ionic strengths and also to minimize non-specific adsorption onto

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the solid interface.23 Both of these attributes facilitated the magnetic bead protocol that was used

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to isolate QD-DNA monoconjugates.

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Nucleic acid conjugation onto the nanoparticles was achieved by implementation of the well-

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known interaction between a hexahistidine moiety and the inorganic shell of the QDs (CdS(x)Se(1-

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x)/ZnS;

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be highly efficient, fast and robust.24 Hexahistidine functionalized nucleic acids were obtained by

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conjugating a thiol terminated nucleic acid with a maleimide-functionalized peptide that

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consisted of a hexahistidine moiety. Successful immobilization of the hexahistidine-modified

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nucleic acids to onto the PEG-QDs was experimentally validated by agarose gel electrophoresis

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(Figure 1b). Unmodified nucleic acids did not bind onto the QDs (Supporting information,

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Figure S2). In the gel electrophoretic analysis, bands of higher electrophoretic mobility were

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observed when the QDs were incubated with increasing molar equivalents of DNA. The

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observation of discrete bands rather than a smeared band demonstrates the ability of agarose gel

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electrophoresis to separate QD-DNA conjugates of varying stoichiometric valencies. The ability

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of agarose gel electrophoretic analysis to distinguish between conjugates of varying valences

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makes it a suitable technique to evaluate the performance of the proposed monoconjugate

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purification technique using magnetic beads.

core/shell) (Figure 1Figure 1a). This bioconjugation strategy has been demonstrated to

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In the experiments herein, the ratio of oligonucleotide to QD was kept small (DNA to QD ratio

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of less than 1) to maximize the proportion of monoconjugates that were prepared. The highest

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valency of conjugates of significant population was the diconjugate.

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Figure 1. DNA conjugation onto PEG modified QDs (a) Illustration of the surface coating of

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QDs with bidentate PEG ligands and the conjugation of DNA using hexahistidine modified

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DNA. (b) Agarose gel electrophoretic analysis of PEG-QDs that were incubated with increasing

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molar equivalent amounts of hexahistidine functionalized DNA (i) 0, (ii) 0.25, (iii) 0.50, (iv)

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0.75, and (v) 1.0. The gels used were 2% agarose and electrophoresis was done in 0.5 X TBE at

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3 V cm-1.

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Figure 2. Magnetic bead based purification of QD-DNA (36-mer) monoconjugates (a)

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Illustration of the purification procedure using magnetic beads to capture and selectively elute

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QD-DNA monoconjugates. (b) Determination of the binding capacity of QD-DNA conjugates

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onto the magnetic beads; (inset) agarose gel electrophoresis image of (i) crude mixture, and (ii)

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supernatant after extraction. (c) Optimization of the washing protocol. (i) QD solution prior to

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incubation with magnetic beads, (ii) QD solution after incubation with magnetic beads, (iii) first

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wash solution, (iv) second wash solution. (d) Analysis of eluent solutions using agarose gel

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electrophoresis; (i) Crude mix of QD-DNA conjugates, (ii) 0.25 M NaCl, (iii) 0.275 M NaCl, (iv)

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0.30 M NaCl, (v) 0.325 M NaCl, (vi) 0.35 M NaCl, (vii) 0.375 M NaCl, (viii) 0.40 M NaCl. The

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gels used were 2% agarose and electrophoresis was done in 0.5 X TBE at 3 V cm-1.

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Selective isolation of monoconjugates A protocol using magnetic beads was developed to

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isolate the QD-DNA monoconjugates. The main steps of the protocol are illustrated in Figure

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2Figure 2a. For all initial experiments, the DNA was 36 bases in length. Diethylaminoethyl

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(DEAE) functionalized magnetic beads were used for an ion exchange based purification. Upon

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incubation of the magnetic beads with the QD-DNA mixture, the QD-DNA conjugates were

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captured onto the magnetic bead, with any unmodified QDs remaining in solution. The absence

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of non-specific binding of the QDs onto the beads was confirmed by measuring the fluorescence

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intensity of a solution of PEG QDs (without any DNA) before and after incubation with the

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magnetic beads (Figure 2Figure 2c (i) and (ii)). Similar fluorescence intensities were obtained

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for both solutions, indicating the absence of any significant non-specific adsorption.

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The binding capacity of the magnetic beads for QD-DNA conjugates was determined using

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fluorophore (Cy5) labeled oligonucleotide that was conjugated to the QDs. QDs were

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functionalized with one equivalent of labeled oligonucleotide and then incubated with the

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magnetic beads for 1 minute. The decrease in solution fluorescence intensity of Cy5 as the QD-

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DNA conjugates were captured onto the magnetic beads was used to monitor the binding

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capacity (Figure 2Figure 2b). For QDs incubated with 1 equivalent of DNA, the binding

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capacity was determined to be 0.273 nmol of DNA mg-1 of magnetic beads. According to the

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manufacturer, the total surface area available for one milligram of magnetic beads is 1 x 103

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cm2.25 Thus, the density of QD-DNA conjugates on the nanoparticle surface is 2 x 1011 DNA

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strands cm-2. This immobilization density is consistent with those previously observed for

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nanoparticles immobilized on a solid substrate.26,27 To further confirm the complete capture of

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QD-DNA conjugates, the supernatant was analyzed using gel electrophoresis (Figure 2Figure

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2b, inset). The absence of bands corresponding to the QD-DNA conjugates in the supernatant

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lane indicates complete capture.

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Following capture, a washing step was required to remove fluid that was retained by the

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magnetic beads. The retained solution consisted mainly of unconjugated QDs, and the QD

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fluorescence intensity of the wash solutions was used to optimize the number of wash steps. Two

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washes was determined to be sufficient to remove >95 % of the fluid retained by the magnetic

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beads (Figure 2Figure 2c).

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Selective recovery of the QD-DNA conjugates of varying valences was achieved by tuning the

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ionic strength of the elution solution. Ionic strength was selected for control of elution due to the

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ease of manipulation, especially for the small increments that were desired for adjustment of

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stringency conditions. Elution of the QD-DNA conjugates was achieved by incubating the

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magnetic beads for 30 seconds with solutions of varying ionic strength. Samples of the eluted

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solutions were run on the agarose gels for identification of the various QD-DNA valencies

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(Figure 2Figure 2d). It is important to note that separation on the gels were only used to identify

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composition by comparing the position of bands and was not a part of the purification protocol.

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The lanes labeled “crude mixture” in Figures 2 and 3 represent a small portion of the initial

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solution (before purification). These were sometimes diluted to have sufficient volume to load

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onto the gel. The eluted fractions were often times eluted into a smaller volume, which would

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appear as a brighter band due to its higher concentration. These changes in volume are

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responsible for the variations in band intensities between the crude mixture and the purified

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fractions.

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The QD-DNA monoconjugate of the 36 base oligonucleotide began elution at an ionic strength

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of 0.25 M NaCl with approximately 50 % of the monoconjugates being eluted within an ionic

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strength range of 0.25 and 0.275 M NaCl. While the monoconjugates continued to elute at higher

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ionic strengths, the gel electrophoresis image indicates the co-elution of QD-DNA diconjugates

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at an ionic strength of 0.375 M of NaCl. The purification method may be understood on the basis

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of probability of interaction of the QD-DNA conjugate with the magnetic bead. A larger number

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of oligonucleotides on a QD increases the probability of interaction with the magnetic bead. In

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the presence of sodium chloride, there is competition for binding onto the magnetic bead. Due to

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these competing interactions, as salt concentration is increased the QD-DNA conjugate with the

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lowest probability of binding (QD-DNA monoconjugate) is the first to elute. For short

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oligonucleotides in the diconjugate form, the DNA strands on the QD are likely not long enough

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to wrap around the nanoparticle for each to simultaneously interact with the magnetic bead.

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The co-elution of diconjugates is the main factor that limits the yield of the isolation

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procedure. The agarose gels were quantitatively analyzed using ImageJ, and the isolation

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efficiency calculated using Equation 1,  

     

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(1)

 

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where IPure Monoconjugate represents the sum of band intensities of the monoconjugates that were

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present in fractions with 100 % monoconjugates (indicated on the gel images) and ITotal

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Monoconjugates

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were collected.

represents the sum of band intensities of the monoconjugates in all fractions that

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Based on this analysis, the isolation efficiency of the monoconjugates of 36 base long DNA

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was calculated to be 93 %. Isolation efficiency, rather then absolute yield of material, was used

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as a comparative variable as it is independent of the composition of the crude material.

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Figure 3. Monoconjugate purification of short nucleic acids (0.2 M NaCl). Longer

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oligonucleotides have stronger electrostatic interaction with the magnetic beads, requiring a

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higher ionic strength to displace the QD-DNA conjugate from the surface of the magnetic bead.

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The yield of the isolation process was noted to decrease as the oligonucleotide length was

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decreased. The isolation efficiencies obtained for the three different lengths of oligonucleotides

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are listed in Table 1. The isolation efficiency that can be obtained is limited by the co-elution of

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the diconjugate species. Above a certain ionic strength, a significant proportion of diconjugates

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is co-eluted with the monoconjugates. Reduction of yield of pure monoconjugates occurs to a

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greater extent with the smaller oligonucleotides, as expected based on the electrostatic energetics

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responsible for adsorption on the magnetic beads. Increasing the ionic strength of the solutions

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using smaller increments provides for better yields (Supporting Information; Figure S3). By

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using small increments of ionic strength, more fractions with pure monoconjugates could be

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identified, thus improving isolation efficiency. For example, the isolation efficiency of

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monoconjugate using the 19-mer oligonucleotide was improved from 57 % to 68 % by using

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smaller increments of ionic strength.

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Table 1. Isolation efficiency of the purification procedure used to isolate QD-DNA

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monoconjugates. Length of oligonucleotide (number of bases) 19 29

Monoconjugate Isolation Efficiency (%) 68 ± 3 88 ± 6

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93 ± 1

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Figure 4. Total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy images of single QD-DNA-

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Cy5 particles spin-coated on glass surface: (a) image of the QD emission channel (green color),

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and (b) image of Cy5 emission channel (red color). Circles were added to emphasize the

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individual molecules. Scale bar length represents 5 µm. Intensity-time trajectories of Cy5 dyes

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showing (c) one photobleaching step, and (d) two photobleaching steps. Population distribution

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of (e) the QD-DNA-Cy5 particles, and (f) the DNA-Cy5 molecules, derived from the analysis of

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the number of photobleaching steps of the Cy5 fluorophore.

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Characterization using single molecule fluorescence spectroscopy Single molecule

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fluorescence spectroscopy of conjugates that were spread on glass coverslips was used to

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confirm the extent of oligonucleotide conjugation on QDs. The QDs were functionalized with

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Cy5 labeled oligonucleotides and the monoconjugates were purified. Monitoring of the

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fluorescence intensities of both of the available fluorophores (QD and Cy5) provides insight into

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the valency of the conjugate. The dual color excitation allowed for determination of co-localized

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individual QDs and DNA-Cy5 molecules, as shown in Figure 4Figure 4(a) and (b). The two

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images shown are the maximum intensity projection of image stacks using the ImageJ Z-project

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tool. A custom-written MATLAB program was used to first identify the position of individual

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conjugates based on an intensity threshold and a 2-D Gaussian MLE (Maximum Likelihood

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Estimation) fitting model.29 Once conjugates had been spatially identified, the software then

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produced intensity-time trajectories of all the identified conjugates in the image field on the

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coverslip surface. From the analysis of a total of 1007 fluorescent sites, 53.5% of the DNA-Cy5

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molecules were co-localized with a QD spot, while 46.5% did not overlap with a corresponding

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QD spot in the green channel. The low co-localization is most likely due of the frequent

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excursions of the QDs to a non-radiant dark state. This behavior is typically observed for QDs

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with water-soluble protective coatings, as reported previously by Webb and co-workers.30

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In the red channel, stepwise photobleaching of intensity-time trajectories from individual

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DNA-Cy5 (Figure 4Figure 4 (c) and (d)) were observed. The results obtained from counting the

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photobleaching steps of the Cy5 fluorophore in 733 QD-DNA complexes are summarized in

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Figure 4Figure 4(e). The distribution of the QD-DNA conjugation was found to be 94.2%

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monoconjugate and 5.8% diconjugate. The small bi-conjugate fraction could be due to the fact

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that two QD-DNA-Cy5 molecules were localized within the same diffraction limited spot. The

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photobleaching behavior of 204 DNA-Cy5 molecules, spin-coated on a plasma-cleaned

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coverslip, was investigated using the same TIRF setup. As shown in Figure 4Figure 4f, a

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similarly small population fraction (5.4%) also exhibited 2 photobleaching steps. These results

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confirm the sample preparation method provides product that is highly homogeneous, consisting

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of monoconjugated QD-DNA constructs.

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The hydrodynamic diameter (Dh) of the QD-DNA monoconjugate was measured using FCS

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(Supporting information, Figure S1). The Dh increased from 12.3 ± 0.2 nm (for QDs with no

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DNA) to 14.5 ± 0.3 nm (for QDs conjugated to one DNA strand). This increase in Dh may be

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attributed to the addition of DNA onto the QD. The colloidal stability of the QDs is preserved

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through the purification procedure, as demonstrated by the Dh of the QD-DNA monoconjugates.

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309 310

Figure 5. Isolation of monoconjugates using commercially available QDs. (a) Conjugation

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chemistry for the attachment of thiol functionalized DNA to amine functionalized QDs. (b)

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Agarose gel electrophoresis used for the confirmation of DNA conjugation onto the QDs; (i)

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SMCC modified QDs, and (ii) SMCC-QDs after incubation with DNA. (c) Agarose gel

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electrophoretic analysis of species that are eluted from the magnetic beads at varying ionic

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strengths; (i) Crude mixture, (ii) 0.275 M NaCl, (iii) 0.30 M NaCl, (iv) 0.325 M NaCl, (v) 0.35

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M NaCl, (vi) 0.375 M NaCl, and (vii) 0.40 M NaCl. The gels used were 2% agarose and

317

electrophoresis was done in 0.5 X TBE at 3 V cm-1.

318 319

Monovalent conjugates of commercially available QDs The ability to purify QD-DNA

320

monoconjugates using an alternative bioconjugation chemistry was also demonstrated. QDs that

321

are coated with amphiphillic polymers represent the predominant form of water soluble QDs that

322

are commercially available. These coatings encapsulate the QD in amphiphillic polymer, rather

323

than displace the initial hydrophobic ligands that were present on the QD. This causes minimal

324

disturbance to the nanocrystal surface, preserving the optical properties of the QD while making

325

it water-soluble. The amphiphillic polymer prohibits the use of conjugation chemistries that rely

326

on direct interaction with the inorganic surface of the QD, and this invokes need for

327

implementation of other strategies to achieve covalent conjugation.22 Commercially available

328

QDs functionalized with an amphiphillic PEG amine coating were used to examine whether

329

monoconjugates of QD-DNA could be isolated. Since these QDs were also coated with PEG, the

330

advantages of using PEG coatings still apply. The amine QDs were activated with the

331

heterobifunctional cross-linker SMCC to provide maleimide functional groups that were used to

332

anchor thiol functionalized DNA (29 mer) (Figure 5Figure 5a). Agarose gel electrophoresis was

333

used to confirm the conjugation of DNA onto the maleimide-functionalized nanoparticles

334

(Figure 5Figure 5b). As previously observed, the electrophoretic mobility of the QD-DNA

335

conjugates was higher than the unconjugated QDs. Based on the electrophoretic mobility, the

336

unmodified QDs were also determined to have a small net negative charge. This negative charge

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could be due to the underlying polymer layer or the partial hydrolysis of maleimide groups to

338

maleic acid. Incubation of the reaction mixture containing QD and oligonucleotides with

339

magnetic beads therefore resulted in all components with negative charge binding onto the beads.

340

The unconjugated QDs bound to the magnetic beads due to their slight negative charge, and the

341

wash buffer required an ionic strength of 0.1 M NaCl to remove the unconjugated QDs (See

342

Supporting Information; Figure S4). Further increase of the ionic strength resulted in the elution

343

of the QD-DNA monoconjugates, as identified by gel electrophoretic analysis. The QD-DNA

344

monoconjugates eluted at an ionic strength of 0.275 M NaCl. Additional monoconjugates were

345

eluted with 0.30 M NaCl, but these only had a purity of 83 % monoconjugates (with 17 % of

346

diconjugates being concurrently eluted). Smaller increments in the ionic strength could

347

potentially provide for a higher yield of the monoconjugates, but under the conditions that have

348

been noted, a 65 % isolation efficiency of the monoconjugates was achieved.

349

A lower monoconjugate isolation efficiency for the same length of DNA (29-mer) was

350

achieved for the amphiphillic PEG amine coating in comparison to the DHLA PEG coating. This

351

reduction in yield is attributed to the negative charge of QDs with the amphiphillic coating. The

352

additional negative charge serves as a constant background and results in a decrease of the

353

difference in electrostatic stabilization energy between the monoconjugate and the diconjugate,

354

thus decreasing the selectivity of differential retention.

355

Hybridization analysis of monoconjugates Forster resonance energy transfer (FRET) based 19

356

analysis

was performed to characterize the hybridization properties of the monoconjugates

357

(Figure 6Figure 6a). In FRET, energy is non-radiatively transferred from a donor (the QD) to an

358

acceptor (Cy3 on the DNA). The energy transfer efficiency is dependent on a number of factors

359

(Information about the FRET pairs used in these experiments can be found in the Supporting

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Information), one of them being the distance between the QD and the dye. Hybridization of the

361

complementary target with the probe results in bringing the dye in close proximity to the QD,

362

facilitating efficient energy transfer. The FRET ratio, defined as the ratio of fluorescence

363

intensity of the acceptor to the donor, can be used to quantify the amount of target hybridized.

364 365

Figure 6. FRET based analysis for the investigation of the hybridization properties of QD-DNA

366

monoconjugates. (a) Schematic illustration of the hybridization assay. (b) Dose response curves

367

comparing the performance of QD-DNA monoconjugates (red squares) with QDs incubated with

368

one equivalent of DNA (unpurified) (green circles).

369

It should be noted that the monoconjugate based on the 19-mer oligonucleotide, and DHLA

370

PEG-QDs, was used for hybridization analysis. Short oligonucleotides are affected more by the

371

nanoparticle due to the reduced extension away from the nanoparticle surface.

372

The importance of purifying the monoconjugates prior to use in analysis is illustrated in the

373

response curve shown in Figure 6Figure 6b. For the unpurified samples, the FRET response

374

saturated at a lower limit when compared to the purified monoconjugates. This difference arises

375

from the presence of a significant population of QDs that do not have a recognition element

376

(oligonucleotide probe molecule). These QDs cannot take part in the FRET assay; yet contribute

377

to the emission of the QDs, lowering the overall FRET response. In addition, the amount of

378

probe used is also lower since the QD concentration is usually correlated to the probe

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concentration, which will lead to a lower amount of probe for the unpurified conjugates.

380

Oligonucleotides that were not conjugated to the nanoparticles have not influenced the results as

381

these were removed using spin ultrafiltration prior to assay of target oligonucleotides.

382

Conclusions

383

In this work, DEAE modified magnetic beads were used to selectively isolate QD-DNA

384

monoconjugates. The benefits offered by magnetic beads in comparison to chromatographic

385

methods lie in the speed of purification, the reduced number of interfaces that are encountered

386

where sample loss can occur, and the ability to readily produce a concentrated sample. The DNA

387

strands were relatively short in comparison to the previously reported conjugates that can be

388

separated by anion exchange chromatography. Three different lengths (19-mer, 29-mer and 36-

389

mer) were conjugated onto PEG modified QDs to demonstrate the capability of the method.

390

Incubating the QD-DNA conjugates with magnetic beads resulted in their capture onto the bead

391

surface. Ionic strength was used to tune the stringency of the elution solutions to selectively

392

isolate the QD-DNA monoconjugates. The isolation efficiencies were found to depend on the

393

length of the DNA, and ranged from 68 % for the 19 mer to 93 % for the 36 mer. In addition to

394

achieving high isolation efficiencies, less than 5 minutes were required to isolate the

395

monoconjugates. Monoconjugates prepared from commercially available, water-soluble QDs

396

could be prepared, demonstrating the versatility of the method. The native negative charge of the

397

commercially available QDs reduced the isolation efficiency. Without optimization, the isolation

398

efficiency for monoconjugates prepared using the commercially available QDs was 67 %. The

399

significance of this work lies in the ability to easily purify monoconjugates of short

400

oligonucleotides, which has been a challenge to date. The method also has potential applications

401

for other nanomaterials. The separation mechanism is dependent on the oligonucleotides

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402

immobilized on the particle, making it independent of the type of nanoparticle used. The benefits

403

offered by magnetic beads, such as potential for automation and availability, promises to make

404

this technique a powerful addition to the toolbox available for the production of modified

405

nanoparticles.

406

Methods and Materials

407

All chemical reagents were obtained from Sigma-Aldrich (Oakville, ON, Canada), unless

408

otherwise stated. Details of common instruments used are included in the Supporting

409

Information.

410

Table 2. Sequences of nucleic acids and peptides

19-mer 29-mer 36-mer

PEP1

DNA 5’ - Thiol-ATT TTG TCT GAA ACC CTG T -3’ (Probe) 3’ - Cy3 - TAA AAC AGA CTT TGG GAC A – 5’ (Target) 5’ – Thiol - TTT TTT TTT TCC CTC CCC CAT GCC ATC CT – 3’ 5’- Cy5- CCA CTG CAA ACA CTG GGC TGC AGC TTA TTT GGC CAG - Thiol – 3’

Peptide (6-Maleimidohexanoic acid) – G(Aib)GHHHHHH

411 412

Buffers

413

TB: 100 mM Tris-borate buffer; pH 7.4.

414

PBS: 10 mM phosphate buffer, 2.7 mM potassium chloride and 137 mM sodium chloride; pH

415

7.4.

416

TBE: 50 mM Tris-borate buffer with 2 mM ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid; pH 6.9.

417

Quantum dots CdSxSe1-x/ZnS (core/shell) quantum dots (Cytodiagnostics Inc, Burlington,

418

ON, Canada), with an emission peak of 525 nm, were made water-soluble using a bidentate,

419

poly(ethylene glycol) based coating (DHLA-PEG750). The ligand was synthesized as reported

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by Mei et al 1,8,12,31, and the reaction scheme is presented in the supporting information, Scheme

421

S1.

422

Ligand Exchange: DHLA-PEG750 (~18.7 mg, 2 x 10-5 mol) was dissolved in 1 mL of ethanol,

423

followed by the addition of QDs (1 nmol) that were dissolved in toluene. The resulting mixture

424

was heated to 70 0C for at least 12 hours. The QDs were precipitated from the ethanol solution

425

using a mixture of hexanes and chloroform. The resulting solid was dispersed in 1 mL water and

426

then purified using Amicon Ultra 0.5 mL centrifugal filters (100 KDa MWCO; Millipore,

427

Billerica, MA, USA), as per the manufacturer’s instructions.

428

Peptide functionalized nucleic acid Disulfide functionalized nucleic acids (sequences

429

available in Table 2; obtained from IDT, Coraville, IA, USA) were reduced using dithiothreitol

430

(DTT). An excess of DTT (~ 500 equivalents) was incubated with the DNA in PBS buffer for 1

431

hour. DTT was then removed by extracting the aqueous solution with ethyl acetate. The resulting

432

nucleic acid solution was quantified using UV-Vis spectrometry. The DNA was incubated with 5

433

equivalents of the peptide, PEP1 (sequence available in Table 2; obtained from CanPeptide,

434

Montreal, QC, Canada). Following overnight incubation at room temperature, the DNA-peptide

435

chimera was purified using illustra NAP-5 desalting columns (GE Healthcare Life Sciences,

436

Montreal, QC, Canada) as per the manufacturer’s protocols.

437 438

DNA-QD conjugation The QDs were functionalized with the peptide modified DNA by incubation in the required ratio, in TB buffer, for at least 4 hours.

439

SMCC mediated DNA-QD conjugation Qdot 605 ITK Amino (PEG) Quantum Dots

440

(Invitrogen, Oakville, ON, Canada) were buffer exchanged into 1 X PBS, as per the

441

manufacturer’s protocols. Following buffer exchange, the QDs were incubated with a 200 times

442

molar excess of 4-(N-Maleimidomethyl)cyclohexanecarboxylic acid N-hydroxysuccinimide ester

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(SMCC). After incubating for one hour at RT, excess SMCC was removed using a NAP-5

444

column.

445

Disulfide modified oligonucleotides were reduced to thiols as described above. The SMCC

446

activated QDs were then mixed with the thiol oligonucleotides in the required ratio, and

447

incubated at RT overnight. The QD-DNA conjugates were then buffer exchanged into TB using

448

spin ultrafiltration.

449

Monoconjugate purification The DEAE functionalized magnetic beads (Bioclone Inc, San

450

Diego, CA, USA) were washed twice in TB buffer supplemented with Tween-20 (0.05 %, w/v).

451

The QD-DNA conjugates were incubated with the magnetic beads for 1 minute, after which the

452

magnetic beads were collected to the side of the tube using an Ambion Single Tube Magnetic

453

Stand (Invitrogen, Oakville, ON, Canada). The supernatant was removed and replaced with TB

454

buffer as a wash. The magnetic beads were then sequentially incubated, for 30 seconds each,

455

with solutions of increasing ionic strength. The ionic strength was controlled using sodium

456

chloride. Once the fractions consisting of the monoconjugates were identified (using agarose gel

457

electrophoresis), they were combined into a single aliquot and could be further concentrated

458

using spin ultrafiltration. After use, the magnetic beads were rinsed with a 2 M sodium chloride

459

solution and then stored in ethanol at 4 0C.

460 461

Agarose gel electrophoresis Agarose gels were prepared in 0.5 x TBE buffer at a concentration of 2 % (w/v). The gels were run for at least 2 hours at 3 V cm-1.

462

Single-molecule fluorescence microscopy A sample volume of 50 µL from a 100-200 pM

463

solution of QD monoconjugates made with a Cy5 labeled oligonucleotide (36-mer; see Table 2

464

for sequence) in TB was spin-coated on plasma-cleaned glass coverslips (CA48366-089-1,

465

VWR, USA). A custom-built multicolor total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscope

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13,32,33

467

complexes. The QD excitation was at 473 nm and the dye (Cy5) was excited at 633 nm, using

468

CW lasers controlled by an acousto-optic tunable filter (Gooch & Housego, USA).

469

excitation light was reflected by a quad-edge dichroic mirror (Di01-R405/488/532/635, Semrock,

470

USA) and illuminated the sample after passing through an oil-immersion microscope objective

471

(1.45NA/60X Plan-Apochromat, Olympus, USA). The green (QD) and red (DNA-Cy5)

472

fluorescence emission were collected using the same objective and transmitted through the quad

473

dichroic mirror. In order to remove scattering and cross-talk signals, the QD fluorescence images

474

were collected using a combination of a long-pass (BLP01-488, Semrock, USA) and a bandpass

475

filter (HQ 520/66, Chroma, USA). The DNA-Cy5 images were collected with a long-pass

476

(BLP01-647, Semrock, USA) and a bandpass filter (HQ 685/80 nm, Chroma, USA). A sequence

477

of images was collected using a cooled, ultrasensitive electron-multiplied charge-coupled device

478

(EMCCD, DU-897BV, Andor Technology, USA). The exposure time was 100 ms per frame and

479

the laser excitation intensities used in these experiments was approximately 50 W cm-2.

was used to measure the fluorescence intensity-time trajectories of immobilized QD-DNA

The

480

Hybridization analysis The probe was prepared at a concentration of 0.1 µM (defined by QD

481

concentration; see supporting information for information on QD quantification) in 50 mM TB

482

buffer along with 0.1 M NaCl. The probe was then incubated with varying amounts of target.

483

Hybridization was allowed to proceed for 1 hour at room temperature. The FRET ratio was then

484

determined by measuring the fluorescence spectra (See Supporting Information for data

485

analysis). Data was collected for purified monoconjugates and also unpurified conjugates to

486

identify the impact of purification of some aspects of analytical performance.

487

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

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Bioconjugate Chemistry

We would like to acknowledge the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of

489

Canada (NSERC) for financial support of this research. U. U. is thankful to NSERC for the

490

provision of a graduate fellowship.

491

ASSOCIATED CONTENT

492

Supporting Information. Schematic of ligand synthesis, descriptions of the instruments used,

493

fluorescence correlation spectroscopy analysis of QD-DNA conjugates, UV-Vis analysis of QD-

494

DNA conjugates, information on the FRET pair and other supporting information as described in

495

the text. This material is available free of charge via the Internet at http://pubs.acs.org.

496

ABBREVIATIONS

497

QD: Quantum dot

498

DNA: Deoxyribonucleic acid

499

DEAE: Diethylaminoethyl

500

RNA: Ribonucleic acid

501

FRET: Förster resonance energy transfer

502

DHLA PEG: Dihydroxylipoic acid poly(ethylene glycol)

503

FCS: Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy

504

Cy5: Cyanine 5

505

TIRF: Total internal reflection fluorescence

506

Dh: Hydrodynamic diameter

507

DTT: Dithiothreitol

508

SMCC: Succinimidyl-4-(N-maleimidomethyl)cyclohexane-1-carboxylate

509 510

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Bioconjugate Chemistry

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Bioconjugate Chemistry

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Bioconjugate Chemistry

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Bioconjugate Chemistry

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Bioconjugate Chemistry

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Bioconjugate Chemistry

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Bioconjugate Chemistry

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