A fluorescent, paramagnetic and PEGylated gold/silica nanoparticle for MRI, CT and fluorescence imaging.

ABSTRACT: An important challenge in medical diagnostics is to design all-in-one contrast agents that can be detected with multiple techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), X-ray computed tomography (CT), positron emission tomography (PET), single photon emission tomography (SPECT) or fluorescence imaging (FI). Although many dual labeled agents have been proposed, mainly for combined MRI/FI, constructs for three imaging modalities are scarce. Here gold/silica nanoparticles with a poly(ethylene glycol), paramagnetic and fluorescent lipid coating were synthesized, characterized and applied as trimodal contrast agents to allow for nanoparticle-enhanced imaging of macrophage cells in vitro via MRI, CT and FI, and mice livers in vivo via MRI and CT. This agent can be a useful tool in a multitu

SUBMITTER: van Schooneveld MM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3586549 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Jul-Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature