Albumin-based nanoparticles loaded with hydrophobic gadolinium chelates as T-1-T-2 dual-mode contrast agents for accurate liver tumor imaging

作者：Wang, Lirong; Lin, Hongyu; Ma, Lingceng; Jin, Jianbin; Shen, Taipeng; Wei, Ruixue; Wang, Xiaomin; Ai, Hua; Chen, Zhong; Gao, Jinhao^*

来源：Nanoscale, 2017, 9(13): 4516-4523.

DOI：10.1039/c7nr01134b

• HUMAN SERUM-ALBUMIN
• IRON-OXIDE
• HEPATOCELLULAR-CARCINOMA
• MRI
• T-1
• SENSITIVITY
• RELAXIVITY
• LIPOSOMES
• DIAGNOSIS
• PARTICLES

Magnetic resonance contrast agents with T-1-T-2 dual mode contrast capability have attracted considerable interest because they offer complementary and synergistic diagnostic information, leading to high imaging sensitivity and accurate diagnosis. Here, we reported a facile strategy to construct albumin based nanoparticles loaded with hydrophobic gadolinium chelates by hydrophobic interaction for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We synthesized a glycyrrhetinic acid-containing Gd-DOTA derivative (GGD) and loaded GGD molecules into BSA nanoparticles to form GGD-BSA nanoparticles (GGD-BSA NPs). The large size and porous structure endow GGD-BSA NPs with geometrical confinement, which restricts the tumbling of GGD and the diffusion of surrounding water molecules. As a result, GGD-BSA NPs exhibit ultrahigh T-1 and T-2 relaxivities, which are approximately 8-fold higher than those of gadolinium-based clinical contrast agents at 0.5 T. Besides, due to the intrinsic properties of their components, GGD-BSA NPs show good biocompatibility in vitro and in vivo, which warrants their great potential in clinical translation. Furthermore, GGD-BSA NPs show remarkable sensitivity in noninvasive detection of liver tumors by self-confirmed T-1-T-2 dual-mode contrast-enhanced MRI. All of these merits make GGD-BSA NPs a potential candidate for fruitful biomedical and preclinical applications.

• 出版日期2017-4-7
• 单位四川大学; 厦门大学