Fluorescent glyconanoparticles as a sensitive device to monitor sugar-involving molecular events

We prepared sugar-displayed fluorescent nanoparticles using photopolyinerization of the vesicles of diacetylene-containing glycolipids. After photopolymerization, the nanoparticles exhibited fluorescent emission at 400-600 nm upon excitation at 380 nm. The binding of sugar-recognizing proteins (lectins) onto the fluorecent nanoparticles induced changes in fluorescence. The fluorescent intensity of the nanoparticles decreased with an increase in lectin concentration. On the contrary, the enzymatic release of oligosaccharides from the glyconanoparticles gave an increase in fluorescence. Using a phosphatidylcholine-type lipid as the matrix lipid of the nanoparticles, the non-specific adsorption of lectins on the surface was drastically restricted, leading to the generation of a specific response to the target proteins.