One-step synthesis of amino-dextran-protected gold and silver nanoparticles and its application in biosensors

A sensitive method for the detection of the lectin protein concanavalin A (Con A) was developed using amino-dextran (AD)-protected gold (AD-Au) and silver nanoparticles (AD-Ag) as sensitive optical probes. The AD-Au and AD-Ag nanoparticles were synthesized by directly applying amino-dextran as a reductive and protective reagent. The size of the nanoparticles could be altered by changing the molar ratio of AD to the metal salt. The amino-dextran bound to Con A by forming a 4:1 Au-Con A complex at neutral pH, and the nanoparticles were induced to aggregate by Con A. The absorption intensity of the nanoparticles decreased linearly with as the Con A concentration was increased from 3.85×10^–8 to 6.15×10^–7 M. The Au-Con A complex was dissociated by the disaccharide isomaltose, which has a higher affinities for Con A than Au; this competitive strategy could also be used to detect similar types of saccharides.