Study on the Interaction Between Water-Soluble CdTe Quantum Dots and Ovalbumin by Optical Spectroscopy

ABSTRACT

CdTe quantum dots (QDs) modified by 2-mercaptoethylamine hydrochloride (CA) and thioglycolic acid (TGA), respectively, were synthesized in aqueous medium. The interaction of CdTe QDs with ovalbumin has been investigated in depth by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), UV-Vis absorption, fluorescence-quenching spectrometry, and resonance Rayleigh scattering spectroscopy (RRS). Fluorescence data show that the quenching type of ovalbumin by CA-CdTe QDs is static quenching with the binding constant being 10^?4 M^?1, and the number of binding sites being one. The calculated thermodynamic parameters demonstrate that the main binding forces are hydrophobic interaction and electrostatic attraction. In contrast, the quenching style of ovalbumin by TGA-CdTe QDs is verified to be dynamic quenching. Under suitable acidity conditions, the interaction of CA-CdTe QDs or TGA-CdTe QDs with ovalbumin leads to the remarkable enhancement of RRS, and the increments are found to be proportional to the concentration of ovalbumin in a certain range. A simple and highly sensitive RRS approach for determining ovalbumin is developed. In addition, the causes for the enhancement of RRS and the quenching of fluorescence are investigated to shed light on the quenching mechanism.