Fluorescent molecules that are in close proximity to metallic surfaces, including silver and gold island films, produce increased fluorescence intensity along with increased photostability and decreased fluorescent lifetimes. These metal island films have been largely studied for their ability to increase fluorescent intensities in low quantum yield fluorophores, but little information exists on the ability of these metal islands to enhance the performance of fluorescent dyes used in proteomic and genomic applications. Moreover, the effects of metallic surface characteristics on the enhancement of fluorescent dyes have not been systematically studied, and even less is known about the reproducibility and longevity of these metal island films. The overall objective of this proposal is to enhance fluorescence of near-infrared dyes through the use of metal island films. Fluorescence in the near-infrared offers the additional advantage of significantly lowering the background generated by the visible wavelengths used in currently available array technologies. We will characterize techniques for producing metal island films with respect to reproducibility and longevity. We will also explore metal island geometry that may enhance fluorescence intensity. This work will add to our knowledge of how metallic surfaces can be reproducibly generated and will lay the foundation for a broader understanding of how metal enhanced fluorescence can be used to lower the limit of sample detection. In the long term, the goal of this research will be to develop a microarray slide or substrate that uses metal enhanced fluorescence to decrease the limit of detection while using currently available instrumentation.
| Szmacinski, Henryk; Lakowicz, Joseph R; Catchmark, Jeffrey M et al. (2008) Correlation between scattering properties of silver particle arrays and fluorescence enhancement. Appl Spectrosc 62:733-8 |
