Near-Infrared Photoactive Theragnostic Gold Nanoflowers for Photoacoustic Imaging and Hyperthermia

Abstract

Branched anisotropic gold nanostructures present distinguished performance acting both as contrast agents for photoacoustic imaging and as active agents for photothermal therapies. Despite advances in their fabrication methods, the synthesis of such gold nanomaterials in a simple and reproducible way is still a challenge. In this paper, we report the development of branched anisotropic gold nanoparticles, the so-called gold nanoflowers (AuNFs), as near-infrared active theragnostic materials for cancer therapy and diagnosis. In situ chemical synthesis of the AuNFs was optimized to obtain monodisperse nanoflowers with controllable size and optical properties. Upon varying the temperature and gold ion concentrations, it was possible to tune the optical activity of the nanoparticles from 590 to 960 nm. The AuNFs exhibited good stability in the cell culture medium, and under laser irradiation. Photoacoustic imaging revealed that the NFs could be imaged in phantom systems even at low concentrations. In vitro tests revealed that the nanoflowers were effective in the photothermal therapy of a rat hepatocarcinoma (HTC) cell lineage. In addition, no toxicity was observed to mouse fibroblast (FC3H) cells incubated with the AuNFs. Our results reveal a simple method to synthesize branched anisotropic gold nanostructures, which is a promising platform for photothermal and photoacoustic therapies.

Numerical Simulation of Enhancement of Superficial Tumor Laser Hyperthermia with Silicon Nanoparticles

“…A comparison of these two irradiation regimes evidences the longer time necessary for cancer cell necrosis in the latter case [99]. Nevertheless, Gaussian laser beams are often employed for cancer theranostics (e.g., [100]). To compare effects for both cases, we carried out simulations for the Gaussian laser beam with the same parameters as were employed for the flat beam.…”

Surface-Fabrication of Fluorescent Hydroxyapatite for Cancer Cell Imaging and Bio-Printing Applications

“…Good biocompatibility and high imaging efficiency are two necessary prerequisites for nanomaterial cellular imaging [ 32 ]. Although Hydroxyapatite (HAP) is widely used for cell imaging due to its good biocompatibility [ 33 , 34 ], its negative charge on the surface has insufficient affinity with the negatively charged cell membrane, resulting in low cell imaging efficiency [ 35 , 36 ].…”

Advances of gold nanoclusters for bioimaging

“…AuNPs exhibiting surface plasmon resonance effects and NIR absorption have attracted much attention as exogenous contrast agents ( Li and Chen, 2015 ). AuNPs commonly used for PA imaging include Au nanorods, Au nanoflowers, Au nanocages, vesicles, and oversized spherical AuNPs (>5 nm in diameter) ( Chen et al., 2021 ; Huang et al., 2013 ; Santos et al., 2021 ; Wang et al., 2021 ; Yan et al., 2021 ).…”