Nanotubes can be Monitored Non-Invasively in Live Cells

A non-invasive method of monitoring both metallic and semiconducting nanotubes within cells and blood plasma has been developed by Purdue researchers.

This method used two near-infrared lasers that can energize and detect the shining nanotubes within the cells and is called as transient absorption.

Ji-Xin Cheng, an associate professor of biomedical engineering and chemistry at Purdue University said that this is the first time that researchers have been able to monitor nanotubes in living cells. "Because we can do this at high speed, we can see what's happening in real time as the nanotubes are circulating in the bloodstream," he said in a released statement, adding that the method was label-free, which means the tubes do not have to be marked using dyes.

The research details appear in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.

Source: Medindia