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Recent developments in targeted photothermal therapy focus on integrating near‐infrared (NIR) light and biocompatible nanostructures. It is yet unclear if graphene oxide nanosheets (GO) can assist in the photothermal response of cellular barriers under NIR irradiation. Herein, this study investigates the photothermal response of a cellular barrier treated with different concentrations of GO under the irradiation of NIR light. The synthesized GO nanosheets show good stability in aqueous media. No toxic effects are imposed onto human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) when the cells are treated with GO up to 20 μg/mL for 1 day. In addition, the in vitro cellular barrier model with intercellular tight junctions is formed by using HUVECs, which have a high transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) value of 89.3 Ω · cm2. Under the irradiation of NIR light (980 nm), the photothermal response on the cellular barrier is enhanced by introducing GO, which has been verified by the decrease of TEER value and the increase in the transport of dextran. The results indicate that the thermal response of a cellular barrier exposed to NIR light is non‐linearly enhanced with increasing concentration of GO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fluorescence polarization (FP) has been applied in detecting chemicals and biomolecules for early-stage diagnosis, food safety analyses, and environmental monitoring. Compared to organic dyes, inorganic nanomaterials such as quantum dots have special fluorescence properties that can enhance the photostability of FP-based biosensing. In addition, nanomaterials, such as metallic nanoparticles, can be used as signal amplifiers to increase fluorescence polarization. In this review paper, different types of nanomaterials used in in FP-based biosensors have been reviewed. The role of each type of nanomaterial, acting as a fluorescent element and/or the signal amplifier, has been discussed. In addition, the advantages of FP-based biosensing systems have been discussed and compared with other fluorescence-based techniques. The integration of nanomaterials and FP techniques allows biosensors to quickly detect analytes in a sensitive and cost-effective manner and positively impact a variety of different fields including early-stage diagnoses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]