IMAGING REIMAGINED

Fluorescence technologies are powerful research tools for biochemical and cellular studies. With the aid of modern epifluorescence, confocal, and multiple photon microscopes, in combination with fluorescence probes life processes can be visualized and measured with precision and clarity. 

In contrast to proteins and nucleic acids whose interactions are strong, interactions of a single glycan with proteins or other carbohydrates are typically weak. As a result, single glycans are rarely successful as probes or interference agents in glycan interactions. This realization spurred intense efforts in the design of multivalent glycan constructs where multiple copies of same glycan molecule are presented on a polymeric scaffold.

Although fluorescinated glycopolymers are available commercially and have shown an exceptional utility for studying carbohydrate interactions with living systems, the quantum efficiency of such polymers is many orders of magnitude lower that that of the quantum dots. In addition, large fluorescein molecules intermixed with small glycans at the surface of polymer may interfere with biorecognition.

For the above reasons we developed and patented ZDots, which are exceptionally bright (and optically tunable from green to infrared wavelengths) glycan modified luminescent nanoparticles (quantum dots) for studying distribution of cell surface glycoreceptors. The technology is currently being lisensed from the National Institutes of Health for use in cancer imaging studies.These glycoquantum dots are smaller than 5nm in hydrodynamic size, which makes them ideally suitable for biological imaging of live animals.

In constrast to quantum dots available from other vendors and adapted mostly for protein conjugation, ZDots are made without extensive surface coverage with polymeric materials. The latter often exceed 1MDa in mass and are therefore are not very suitable for attachment of small glycomolecules.  ZDot technology has been tested in breast cancer models for imaging of involvement of galectin-3 cell receptor in cancer development and metastasis.

We are looking for technology development partners both from bioimaging industry and academia.