Spontaneous reduction of KMnO4 with MoS2 quantum dots for glutathione sensing in tumors

Abstract

Transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) have attracted a lot of attention due to their electronic, optical, mechanical, and catalytic properties. In addition, TMDCs possess rich redox chemistry that enables the decoration of metal nanoparticles directly on their surfaces. In this paper, MnO₂/MoS₂ nanocomplexes were obtained by the spontaneous reduction of KMnO₄ with MoS₂ QDs as the reductive agent. The formed MnO₂/MoS₂ nanocomplexes exhibited activated fluorescence and MR imaging signal in the presence of glutathione (GSH). After conjugation with an AS1411 aptamer, specific in vivo MR imaging and fluorescence labeling of the 786-O tumor cells were realized, showing their promising potential for biomedical applications.