Gadopentetic Acid-Doped, Multifunctional, Potentially Targeted Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles As A Novel Mri Nano-Contrast Agent: Synthesis, Characterization And Mri Study

Gadolinium-doped mesoporous silica nanoparticles (Gd-MSNs) with potential molecular targeting capability have drawn worldwide attention as a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agent. However, to date, Gd-MSNs have exhibited less-than-ideal properties. In this study, a reverse microemulsion method was used to dope gadopentetic acid (GA) into the mesopores of mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) to synthesize, for the first time, novel Gd-MSNs with high gadolinium content (GC). These Gd-MSNs were characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and a Malvern Zetasizer. The GCs and stability of the Gd-MSNs were determined by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES). Cell viability was tested via the Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay. Finally, cellular and rat MRI was performed to determine the in vitro and in vivo MR enhancing effects of the Gd-MSNs. We observed a clearly visible pore structure with a large number of doped GA molecules on the Gd-MSNs. The globular Gd-MSNs had higher GC and good stability in a simulated in vitro environment. No significant cellular toxicity was observed in either human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) or human prostate adenocarcinoma cell (PC-3) lines at Gd-MSN concentrations of 25, 50, and 100 mu g/mL. According to the cellular and rat MRI data, Gd-MSNs had strong MR enhancing effects both in vitro and in vivo. Gd-MSN is a promising novel MRI contrast agent for its multifunctional and highly efficient properties.