Monitoring the trans-membrane transport of single fluorescent silicon nanoparticles based on the force tracing technique

Fluorescent silicon nanoparticles (SiNPs) have been proven to be promising materials for diagnosis and therapy of diseases. As the drug carriers and markers in imaging, fluorescent SiNPs trans-membrane is the first step. However, the details of the trans-membrane transport mechanismof SiNPs are still unclear. Herein, we aimto investigate the dynamic trans-membrane transport process of single SiNPs in normal cells (Vero) and cancer cells (HeLa) by utilizing the force tracing technique based on atomic force microscopy.