Near-infrared fluorescence imaging with water-soluble lead salt quantum dots

A simple procedure for transferring PbS and PbSe quantum dots into water is presented, along with characterization of the resulting water-soluble quantum dots. The external surface of the water-soluble quantum dots include carboxylic groups, which will allow target-specific labeling of cells. As a first example, near-infrared fluorescence imaging of human colon cancer cells is demonstrated using these water-soluble near-infrared fluorophores.