A Water-Soluble And Upconverting Sr2laf7: Yb/Er@Psioam Bio-Probe For In Vitro/Vivo Fluorescence Imaging

In this study, a water-soluble and upconverting PSIOAm-modified Sr2LaF7: 20%Yb3+/6%Er3+ (abbreviated as SLF@PSIOAm) with a small size of similar to 10 nm was designed and prepared for bioimaging. The optimum and intensest red-light emission at 640-690 nm was modulated via 6% Er3+ doped under irradiation at 980 nm, and the ratio of red and green emission intensely (I-red/I-green) was as high as 1.378. Interestingly, biological experimental results showed that SLF@PSIOAm with low toxicity and excellent cell/tissues permeability could not only be applied to cells imaging, but also successfully visualize lipid-rich tissues in living zebrafish. Therefore, it can be anticipated that the as-prepared material would be a potential tool for upconversion fluorescence bioimaging.