
University:
Jackson State University
Major:
Chemistry
Mentor(s):
Luis Campos
Faculty Sponsor(s):
Craig Hawker
Faculty Sponsor's Department(s):
Materials
Project Title:
SYNTHESIS OF SILICA/POLYMER NANOPARTICLES FOR BIOASSAYS
Project Description:
Proteins regulate biochemical pathways in living cells. The over or under expression of these
biochemical pathways lead to various diseases. Thus, the development of an analytical
bioassay for proteins is of the utmost importance for biomedical research. Nanoparticles have
the potential to be luminescent probes for both diagnostic and therapeutic purposes because of
size compatibility to many important biomolecules and their novel optical, electronic, and
magnetic properties. The controlled synthesis of nanocomposite materials consisting of an
inorganic nanoparticle encapsulated within polymer shells is an area of great focus. The
polymer shell determines the chemical properties and the interaction with the environment,
while the inorganic core and polymer concomitantly control the physical properties (ie. the size
and shape) of the composite nanoparticle. In this research, the desire is to synthesize silicafluorescent
dye- polymer- biomarker composites that have the ability to detect bioassays
(proteins) more efficiently, with higher sensitivity and lower cost.