Recombinant Protein (Luciferase-IgG Binding Domain) Conjugated Quantum Dots for BRET-Coupled Near-Infrared Imaging of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptors

For the highly sensitive near-infrared (NIR) optical detection of epidermal growth factor receptors (EGFRs) expressed on cancer cells, bioluminescence resonance energy transfer (BRET) coupled NIR quantum dots (QDs) are prepared by direct conjugation of his-tagged Renilla luciferase (RLuc) recombinant protein (HisRLuc.GB1) to glutathione-coated CdSeTe/CdS QDs (GSH-QDs). The recombinant protein has two functional groups consisting of a luciferase enzyme and an immunoglobulin binding domain (GB1) of protein G. Recombinant protein (HisRLuc.GB1) conjugated QDs (GB1-RLuc-QDs) show BRET-coupled NIR emission, which results from energy transfer from luciferin to QDs with a high BRET efficiency of ca. 50%. Since the GB1.RLuc-QDs have the GB1 domain at their surface, the QDs have an ability to bind the Fc moiety of immunoglobulin G (IgG). The resulting IgG bound QDs can be used as a molecular imaging probe with NIR fluorescence and BRET-coupled NIR emission. For NIR optical detection of EGFRs on cancer cells, we conjugated anti-EGFR monodonal antibody to the GB1.RLuc-QDs. Herein, we show that the detection sensitivity of EGFRs by BRET-coupled NIR emission of GB1.RLuc-QDs is at least three times higher than that of the NIR fluorescence of the QDs. The conjugates between anti-EGFR antibody and GB1.RLuc-QDs make it possible to perform BRET-based highly sensitive NIR imaging of EGFRs in living cells.