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Synthesis of 198Au nanoparticles sub 10 nm due optimization on local dose by Monte Carlo simulations for cancer treatment

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Abstract

To enhance the biological effects of radiation damage in cancerous cells, we present an alternative approach to the use of gold nanoparticles (AuNP), focusing on the synthesis and characterization of highly monodisperse, spherical radioactive gold nanoparticles 198AuNP. The size of the AuNP size was optimized with the help of Geant4/TOPAS particle scattering simulations, and energy deposition per nm3 per decay for varying radii (2–10 nm) was evaluated. This work is the foundation for ongoing experimental work to evaluate cell death induced by 198AuNP which aims for the use of radioactive gold nanoparticles in cancer treatment.

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Acknowledgements

This research was financed with the support of: the Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering Department from Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) and Laboratorio de Bioanálisis from Universidad Nacional de Colombia. M.B.H. acknowledges funding by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) 442240902/HA 8528/2-1 and from Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM).

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  1. Marc Benjamin Hahn

    Present address: Universidad Nacional de Colombia , Medellín, Colombia

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá DC, Colombia

    Julián Mateo Zutta Villate

  2. Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, 23284, USA

    Jessika Viviana Rojas

  3. Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM), 12205, Berlin, Germany

    Marc Benjamin Hahn

  4. School of Physics, Universidad Nacional de Colombia , Medellín, Colombia

    Jorge Anselmo Puerta

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Contributions

JMZV performed synthesis, characterization and optimization of the neutron activation of \(^{198}\mathrm{AuNP}\) and wrote the manuscript with input from all authors. MBH performed Geant4/TOPAS particle scattering simulations.

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Correspondence to Julián Mateo Zutta Villate.

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Villate, J.M.Z., Rojas, J.V., Hahn, M.B. et al. Synthesis of 198Au nanoparticles sub 10 nm due optimization on local dose by Monte Carlo simulations for cancer treatment. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 331, 3033–3041 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-022-08355-5

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