Two-Photon Fluorescent Molybdenum Disulfide Dots for Targeted Prostate Cancer Imaging in the Biological II Window

[Image: see text] Molybdenum disulfide (MoS(2)) quantum dots (QDs) derived from this two-dimensional (2D) transition metal dichalcogenide are emerging zero-dimensional materials that possess very good optical properties. Bioimaging using light in the biological II window (950–1350 nm) is a next-generation approach that will allow clinicians to achieve deeper tissue imaging with better image contrast and reduced phototoxicity and photobleaching. This article reports the development of a water-soluble, zero-dimensional antibody-conjugated transition metal dichalcogenide MoS(2) QD-based two-photon luminescence (TPL) probe for the targeted bioimaging of cancer cells in the biological II window. The data indicates that MoS(2) QDs exhibit an extremely high two-photon absorption cross-section (σ = 58960 GM) and two-photon brightness (4.7 × 10(3) GM) because of the quantum confinement and edge effects. Experimental data show that anti-PSMA antibody-attached MoS(2) QDs can be used for selective two-photon imaging of live prostate cancer cells using 1064 nm light because of the high two-photon brightness, very good photostability, and very good biocompatibility of these MoS(2) QDs. The data demonstrate that the bioconjugated MoS(2) QDs can distinguish targeted and nontargeted cells. This study illuminates the high two-photon brightness mechanism of MoS(2) QDs and provides a zero-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenide-based selective TPL agent for high-efficiency live cell imaging.