Fig. 3

TEM images of Au-nanoconjugate internalisation in HCT116 2D cells and Au uptake. a Images of AuNP@PEG 100% clusters (indicated with a black arrow) inside HCT116 2D cells, observing more than four small dark clusters near to cell membrane due to the high electronic density of gold. Scale bars correspond to 1 μm and 200 nm, respectively. b ICP–AES analysis shows an increase of Au uptake in irradiated cells exposed to 10 nM of AuNP@PEG 100% for 4 h. Statistical differences were not observed between AuNP@PEG and AuNP@PEG + Laser samples. Data represent the mean value ± the standard error mean of an independent experiment with three technical replicates for each