Controlled growth of uniform noble metal nanocrystals: Aqueous-based synthesis and some applications in biomedicine

Aqueous-dispersed single and binary noble metal nanocrystals have attracted much attention as key materials in many fields, especially in biomedicine, catalysis, etc. Controlled growth of the metal nuclei allow for the manipulation of uniform morphology of final products. This behavior would tailor their unique physiochemical and electronic properties and follows by their practical applications. This review presents an overall picture of kinetic formation of a particle and then summarizes an overview of recent progress in many research groups concerning aqueous- and/or polyol-based syntheses of many types of aqueous-dispersed single metallic and bimetallic nanocrystals with controlled shape. The main advantages in these synthetic approaches for the shape-controlled metal nanocrystals are simple, versatile, environmentally friendly, low cost, pure and single-crystalline products, and high yield. The formed products can be easily dispersed in water medium and compatible for biotechnological field. Particularly the biomolecule (antibody including protein and/or DNA)-conjugated gold nanocrystals have been utilized as an active agent for a broad range of biomedical applications. We expect that this review will have a high potential towards novel materials fabrication and nanotechnological fields.

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► Single and binary noble metal nanocrystals (NCs) have been of great research interest due to their selectively unique properties.
► Using the efficient aqueous-based synthetic approaches as well as understanding of their nucleation and growth kinetics that would allow for the control of uniform morphology of water-dispersed single and binary metal NCs resulting of tailoring their electronic properties.
► The antibody (biomolecule: protein and/or DNA)-conjugated metallic nanocrystals (gold or gold-based materials) with shape, structure, surface modification controls have been utilized as an active agent for a broad range of biomedical applications.
► Particularly they serve as light-activated nanoscopic heaters useful for photothermal cancer treatment and further in optical imaging probes and drug delivery.