Terbium to quantum rod Förster resonance energy transfer for homogeneous bioassays with picomolar detection limits

We report on the proof-of-principle of using semiconductor nanorods (quantum rods; QRs) in homogeneous Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) bioassays. Terbium complexes (Tb) with long photoluminescence lifetimes were used as FRET donors, and biological recognition was accomplished by biotin-QR to Tb-streptavidin binding. Time-resolved and steady-state spectroscopy were used to investigate varying relative donor/acceptor concentrations and different lengths of polyethylene glycol (PEG)-based surface coatings. Homogeneous bioassays displayed low picomolar detection limits in 150 μL samples, independent of whether 1 and 10 kDa biotin-PEG-SH surface ligands were used. The results suggest that the combination of Tb-to-QR FRET with time-gated detection may become a powerful tool for homogeneous biosensing.Graphical AbstractFörster resonance energy transfer between Tb complexes and semiconductor quantum rods is accomplished by biotin-streptavidin recognition to demonstrate highly sensitive homogeneous biosensing.