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Dendrimer‐Assisted Formation of Fe 3 O 4 /Au Nanocomposite Particles for Targeted Dual Mode CT/MR Imaging of Tumors
Author(s) -
Cai Hongdong,
Li Kangan,
Li Jingchao,
Wen Shihui,
Chen Qian,
Shen Mingwu,
Zheng Linfeng,
Zhang Guixiang,
Shi Xiangyang
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
small
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.785
H-Index - 236
eISSN - 1613-6829
pISSN - 1613-6810
DOI - 10.1002/smll.201500856
Subject(s) - dendrimer , nanoprobe , carbodiimide , materials science , nanocomposite , nanoparticle , molar ratio , dual mode , nanotechnology , nuclear chemistry , polymer chemistry , chemistry , organic chemistry , aerospace engineering , engineering , catalysis
A unique dendrimer‐assisted approach is reported to create Fe 3 O 4 /Au nanocomposite particles (NCPs) for targeted dual mode computed tomography/magnetic resonance (CT/MR) imaging of tumors. In this approach, preformed Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles (NPs) are assembled with multilayers of poly(γ‐glutamic acid) (PGA)/poly( l ‐lysine)/PGA/folic acid (FA)‐modified dendrimer‐entrapped gold nanoparticles via a layer‐by‐layer self‐assembly technique. The interlayers are crosslinked via 1‐ethyl‐3‐(3‐dimethylaminopropyl)carbodiimide chemistry, the assembled Au core NPs are then used as seed particles for subsequent seed‐mediated growth of Au shells via iterative Au salt reduction process, and subsequent acetylation of the remaining amines of dendrimers leads to the formation of Fe 3 O 4 /Au n .Ac‐FA NCPs with a tunable molar ratio of Au/Fe 3 O 4 . It is shown that the Fe 3 O 4 /Au n. Ac‐FA NCPs at an optimized Au/Fe 3 O 4 molar ratio of 2.02 display a relatively high R 2 relaxivity (92.67 × 10 −3 M −1 s −1 ) and good X‐ray attenuation property, and are cytocompatible and hemocompatible in the given concentration range. Importantly, with the FA‐mediated targeting, the Fe 3 O 4 /Au n. Ac‐FA NCPs are able to be specifically uptaken by cancer cells overexpressing FA receptors, and be used as an efficient nanoprobe for targeted dual mode CT/MR imaging of a xenografted tumor model. With the versatile dendrimer chemistry, the developed Fe 3 O 4 /Au NCPs may be differently functionalized, thereby providing a unique platform for diagnosis and therapy of different biological systems.