We report the nanoscale loading and confinement of aquated Gd3+n-ion clusters within ultra-short single-walled carbon nanotubes (US-tubes); these Gd3+n@US-tube species are linear superparamagnetic molecular magnets with Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) efficacies 40 to 90 times larger than any Gd3+-based contrast agent (CA) in current clinical use.

On the basis of structural considerations in the inner sphere of nine-coordinate, monohydrated Gd(III) poly(aminocarboxylate) complexes, we succeeded in accelerating the water exchange by inducing steric compression around the water binding site. We modified the common DTPA(5-) ligand (DTPA=(diethylenetriamine-N,N,N',N",N"-pentaacetic acid) by replacing one (EPTPA(5-)) or two (DPTPA(5-)) ethylene bridges of the backbone by propylene bridges, or one coordinating acetate by a propionate arm (DTTA-prop(5-)). The ligand EPTPA(5-) was additionally functionalized with a nitrobenzyl linker group (EPTPA-bz-NO(2) (5-)) to allow for coupling of the chelate to macromolecules. The water exchange rate, determined from a combined variable-temperature (17)O NMR and EPR study, is two orders of magnitude higher on [Gd(eptpa-bz-NO(2))(H(2)O)](2-) and [Gd(eptpa)(H(2)O)](2-) than on [Gd(dtpa)(H(2)O)](2-) (k(ex)298=150x10(6), 330x10(6), and 3.3x10(6) s(-1), respectively). This is optimal for attaining maximum proton relaxivities for Gd(III)-based, macrocyclic MRI contrast agents. The activation volume of the water exchange, measured by variable-pressure (17)O NMR spectroscopy, evidences a dissociative interchange mechanism for [Gd(eptpa)(H(2)O)](2-) (DeltaV(not equal sign)=(+6.6+/-1.0) cm(3) mol(-1)). In contrast to [Gd(eptpa)(H(2)O)](2-), an interchange mechanism is proved for the macrocyclic [Gd(trita)(H(2)O)](-) (DeltaV (not equal sign)=(-1.5+/-1.0) cm(3) mol(-1)), which has one more CH(2) group in the macrocycle than the commercial MRI contrast agent [Gd(dota)(H(2)O)](-), and for which the elongation of the amine backbone also resulted in a remarkably fast water exchange. When one acetate of DTPA(5-) is substituted by a propionate, the water exchange rate on the Gd(III) complex increases by a factor of 10 (k(ex)298=31x10(6) s(-1)). The [Gd(dptpa)](2-) chelate has no inner-sphere water molecule. The protonation constants of the EPTPA-bz-NO(2) (5-) and DPTPA(5-) ligands and the stability constants of their complexes with Gd(III), Zn(II), Cu(II) and Ca(II) were determined by pH potentiometry. Although the thermodynamic stability of [Gd(eptpa-bz-NO(2))(H(2)O)](2-) is reduced to a slight extent in comparison with [Gd(dtpa)(H(2)O)](2-), it is stable enough to be used in medical diagnostics as an MRI contrast agent. Therefore both this chelate and [Gd(trita)(H(2)O)](-) are potential building blocks for the development of high-relaxivity macromolecular agents.

A combined proton relaxivity and dynamic light scattering study has shown that aggregates formed in aqueous solution of water-soluble gadofullerenes can be disrupted by addition of salts. The salt content of fullerene-based materials will strongly influence properties related to aggregation phenomena, therefore their behavior in biological or medical applications. In particular, the relaxivity of gadofullerenes decreases dramatically with phosphate addition. Moreover, real biological fluids present a rather high salt concentration which will have consequences on fullerene aggregation and influence fullerene-based drug delivery.Water-soluble fullerene derivatives possess potential for biomedical applications as antioxidants, 1 anti-HIV drugs, 2 X-ray contrast agents, 3 bone-disorder drugs 4,5 and photosensitizers for photodynamic therapy. 6 In addition, endohedral metallofullerenes (M@C 2n ) have been suggested as nuclear medicines (M = Ho 3+ ) 7,8 , fluorescent tracers (M = Er 3+ ) 9 and MRI contrast agents (M = Gd 3+ ) 10-13 largely because the closed fullerene cage insures against toxic metal-ion release in vivo. Water-soluble members of the Gd@C 60 family The proton relaxivity, r 1 , which is the gauge of contrast agent efficiency, is remarkably higher (up to 10 times) for gadofullerenes than for typical clinical agents (r 1 is the paramagnetic longitudinal relaxation rate enhancement of water protons, referred to 1 mM concentration). 10-13 The electronic structure of Gd@C 60 involves the transfer of three electrons from the Gd atom to the cage resulting in seven unpaired electrons on the Gd 3+ center and one unpaired electron on the cage. The large relaxivity of the gadofullerenes has been attributed to their slow tumbling in solution and to the large number of surrounding water molecules. 13 This slow tumbling/rotation is related to aggregation phenomena in aqueous solution, and recently, in a variable-pH proton relaxation and dynamic light scattering (DLS) study, we confirmed a pHdependent aggregation of the gadofullerenes and proposed them as pH-responsive MRI contrast agents. 13With the aim of assessing the interaction between the aggregated gadofullerenes, Relaxivity is an ideal reporter of aggregation phenomena in paramagnetic solutions, as previously demonstrated in micellization of amphiphilic Gd 3+ chelates. 19 Disaggregation of the gadofullerenes leads to smaller and more rapidly tumbling entities, which will directly translate into lower relaxivities. On increasing PBS concentration in a gadofullerene solution, the relaxivity, indeed, decreases dramatically, indicating aggregate disruption (Figure 1)In order to separate the disaggregating effect of phosphate and sodium chloride in PBS, we have performed a relaxometric and DLS study of gadofullerene solutions at variable NaCl concentration (no phosphate). As Figure 2 shows, the relaxivity decrease on NaCl addition is also accompanied by a decrease of the hydrodynamic diameter, D H , thus confirming disaggregation as the most likely reason f...