title: Golden carbon nanotubes as multimodal photoacoustic and photothermal high-contrast molecular agents.
abstract: Carbon nanotubes have shown promise as contrast agents for photoacoustic and photothermal imaging of tumours and infections because they offer high resolution and allow deep tissue imaging. However, in vivo applications have been limited by the relatively low absorption displayed by nanotubes at near-infrared wavelengths and concerns over toxicity. Here, we show that gold-plated carbon nanotubes-termed golden carbon nanotubes-can be used as photoacoustic and photothermal contrast agents with enhanced near-infrared contrast ( approximately 10(2)-fold) for targeting lymphatic vessels in mice using extremely low laser fluence levels of a few mJ cm(-2). Antibody-conjugated golden carbon nanotubes were used to map the lymphatic endothelial receptor, and preliminary in vitro viability tests show golden carbon nanotubes have minimal toxicity. This new nanomaterial could be an effective alternative to existing nanoparticles and fluorescent labels for non-invasive targeted imaging of molecular structures in vivo.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering and Institute for Nanoscale Materials Science and Engineering, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701, USA. jwkim@uark.edu
authors.forename: Jin-Woo
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Ekaterina I
authors.initials: EI
authors.lastname: Galanzha
authors.forename: Evgeny V
authors.initials: EV
authors.lastname: Shashkov
authors.forename: Hyung-Mo
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Moon
authors.forename: Vladimir P
authors.initials: VP
authors.lastname: Zharov
mesh_terms: D000162:Acoustics; D000818:Animals; D003287:Contrast Media / Q000737:chemistry*; D004729:Endothelium, Lymphatic / Q000378:metabolism; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry*; D008027:Light; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D057054:Molecular Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000378:metabolism; D013057:Spectrum Analysis; D013696:Temperature
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D006046:Gold