Interaction among cadmium sulfide nanoparticles, acridine orange, and deoxyribonucleic acid in fluorescence spectra and a method for deoxyribonucleic acid determination.

Some studies on quantum dots (QD) as donors that enhance the fluorescence of a dye as an acceptor through fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) have been reported. However, in the present work we discovered that CdS quantum dots sharply quenched the fluorescence of acridine orange (AO). Also, DNA enhanced the fluorescent signals of AO quenched by CdS. The extents of enhancement were in good proportion to the DNA concentrations. Based on this, a sensitive method was employed to determine DNA with both good selectivity and sensitivity. The calibration curve was linear over 60-4,000 ng mL(-1) and the determination limit (3sigma) was 4.39 ng mL(-1).