The federal Project Grant award of $1,249,099, provided by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under the Trans-NIH Research Support program (CFDA 93.310), supports the development of a new class of bright, tunable, and biocompatible near-infrared (NIR-II) fluorescent biolabels for deep tissue molecular imaging. The University of California, Irvine (UC Irvine) will pioneer the use of DNA-stabilized silver nanoclusters (AgN-DNAs) that emit in the NIR-II spectral region, enabling centimeter-scale depth penetration for in vivo monitoring of biomolecular processes. Through high-throughput screening and machine learning, the researchers will create a palette of these small (1-3 nm), highly fluorescent AgN-DNAs and develop strategies to conjugate them to various targeting molecules for tumor, organ, and vascular imaging applications. This research aims to enable a transformative new era of deep tissue fluorescence imaging with a wide range of potential applications from cancer research to microvascular monitoring.
Mod # | Description | Reason For Modification | Federal Obligation (Click to sort descending) | Date (Click to sort ascending) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not listed | $1.2m | 8/23/24 |