Quantum dots brighten biological imaging.

Quantum dots (QDs) are novel photostable semiconductor nanocrystals possessing wide excitation spectra and narrow, symmetrical emission spectra and can be conjugated to a wide range of biological targets, including proteins, antibodies and nucleic acid probes. These characteristics have provoked considerable interest in their use for bioimaging. Much investigation has been performed into their use for multiplex immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridisation which, when combined with multispectral imaging, has enabled quantitation and colocalisation of gene expression in clinical tissue. Many advances have recently been made using QDs for live cell and in vivo imaging, in which QD-labelled molecules can be tracked and visualised in 3-D. This review aims to outline the beneficial properties presented by QDs along with important advances in their biological application.