Enhanced dual contrast agent, Co(2+)-doped NaYF4:Yb(3+),Tm(3+) nanorods, for near infrared-to-near infrared upconversion luminescence and magnetic resonance imaging.
Dual-modality imaging with magnetic resonance (MR) and upconversion luminescence (UCL) is a promising technique for molecular imaging in biomedical research. Multifunctional lanthanide-based nanoparticles have been widely investigated as agents for contrast enhanced MR and fluorescence imaging. However, the use of rare earth fluoride nanoparticles for dual-modality imaging of T2-weighted MR and UCL is rarely reported. We find that NaYF4:Yb(3+),Tm(3+),Co(2+) (MUC) nanorods can be applied as a high-performance dual contrast agent for both T2-weighted MR and UCL dual-modality imaging. After modification with 6-O-carboxymethyl chitosan (OCC), MUC nanorods can be endocytosed by cells without showing signs of cytotoxicity. High-quality UCL images of living cells incubated with MUC-OCC nanorods were acquired on a near-infrared (NIR) confocal microscopy under the excitation at 980 nm. Moreover, MUC-OCC nanorods display high transverse (r2) relaxivities in vitro. The application of low-dose MUC-OCC nanorods for NIR-to-NIR UCL and MR dual-modality in vivo imaging was also carried out successfully. In addition, the toxicity of MUC-OCC nanorods was evaluated by MTT assay, serological tests and histological analysis of visceral organs.
['Xia|Ao|A|', 'Zhang|Xiaofeng|X|', 'Zhang|Jun|J|', 'Deng|Yunyun|Y|', 'Chen|Qiang|Q|', 'Wu|Shishan|S|', 'Huang|Xiaohua|X|', 'Shen|Jian|J|']
D000818:Animals D045744:Cell Line, Tumor D002470:Cell Survival D048271:Chitosan D003287:Contrast Media D005260:Female D056945:Hep G2 Cells D006801:Humans D028581:Lanthanoid Series Elements D049449:Luminescence D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging D051379:Mice D008819:Mice, Nude D018613:Microscopy, Confocal D053758:Nanoparticles D043942:Nanotubes D019265:Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared D018675:Toxicity Tests
Nanorod Upconversion luminescence Magnetic resonance imaging Lanthanide nanoparticle Multi-modality imaging Rare earth nanomaterials