bind the biotin moiety thereby generating the FRET (C. Y.
Zhang, Yeh, Kuroki, & Wang, 2005). The complex thereby
emits light through photobioluminescence and FRET
thereby generating an intense signal. In the absence of
target DNA the fluorophore will be spatially distant from
the quantum dot to generate the intense signal above background.
In a further assay, the emittant quenching effect of
quantum dots by transition metal nanoparticles have been
described in a process referred to as nanosurface energy
transfer (NSET) or dipole to metal particle transfer
(DMPET). In one example, quantum dots are complexed
with gold nanoparticles through aptamers. Upon binding
of the target to the aptamer the quantum dot complex is
released thereby no longer quenched by the metal nanobead
and so leading to an increase in fluorescence (Pisanic Ii
et al., 2014). There are several further examples FRET
and NSET/DMPET based assays with the common feature
of being high sensitivity and requiring less user input
compared with traditional hybridization assays