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Synthesis of a colloid solution of silica-coated gold nanoparticles for X-ray imaging applications

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Abstract

This work proposes a method for fabricating silica-coated gold (Au) nanoparticles, surface modified with poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) (Au/SiO2/PEG), with a particle size of 54.8 nm. X-ray imaging of a mouse is performed with the colloid solution. A colloid solution of 17.9 nm Au nanoparticles was prepared by reducing Au ions (III) with sodium citrate in water at 80 °C. The method used for silica-coating the Au nanoparticles was composed of surface-modification of the Au nanoparticles with (3-aminopropyl)-trimethoxysilane (APMS) and a sol–gel process. The sol–gel process was performed in the presence of the surface-modified Au nanoparticles using tetraethylorthosilicate, APMS, water, and sodium hydroxide, in which the formation of silica shells and the introduction of amino groups to the silica-coated particles took place simultaneously (Au/SiO2–NH2). Surface modification of the Au/SiO2–NH2 particles with PEG, or PEGylation of the particle surface, was performed by adding PEG with a functional group that reacted with an amino group in the Au/SiO2–NH2 particle colloid solution. A computed tomography (CT) value of the aqueous colloid solution of Au/SiO2/PEG particles with an actual Au concentration of 0.112 M was as high as 922 ± 12 Hounsfield units, which was higher than that of a commercial X-ray contrast agent with the same iodine concentration. Injecting the aqueous colloid solution of Au/SiO2/PEG particles into a mouse increased the light contrast of tissues. A CT value of the heart rose immediately after the injection, and this rise was confirmed for up to 6 h.

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Acknowledgments

We express our thanks to Prof. T. Noguchi at the College of Science of Ibaraki University, Japan for his support in TEM observations. This work was supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research on Innovative Areas ‘‘Nanomedicine Molecular Science’’ (No. 2306) from Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology of Japan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biomolecular Functional Engineering, College of Engineering, Ibaraki University, 4-12-1 Naka-narusawa-cho, Hitachi, Ibaraki, 316-8511, Japan

    Yoshio Kobayashi, Ryoko Nagasu & Kyosuke Shibuya

  2. Division of Surgical Oncology, Graduate School of Medicine, Tohoku University, Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi, 980-8574, Japan

    Tomohiko Nakagawa, Yohsuke Kubota, Kohsuke Gonda & Noriaki Ohuchi

Authors
  1. Yoshio Kobayashi
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  2. Ryoko Nagasu
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  3. Kyosuke Shibuya
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  4. Tomohiko Nakagawa
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  5. Yohsuke Kubota
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  6. Kohsuke Gonda
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  7. Noriaki Ohuchi
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Correspondence to Yoshio Kobayashi.

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Kobayashi, Y., Nagasu, R., Shibuya, K. et al. Synthesis of a colloid solution of silica-coated gold nanoparticles for X-ray imaging applications. J Nanopart Res 16, 2551 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-014-2551-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-014-2551-7

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