Shape-Controlled Synthesis of Isotopic Yttrium-90-Labeled Rare Earth Fluoride Nanocrystals for Multimodal Imaging

• Published in: ACS nano Vol. 9; no. 9; pp. 8718 - 8728
• Main Authors: Paik, Taejong, Chacko, Ann-Marie, Mikitsh, John L, Friedberg, Joseph S, Pryma, Daniel A, Murray, Christopher B
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 22.09.2015
• Subjects: Biomedical materials; Fluorides - chemistry; Humans; Imaging; Magnetic resonance imaging; Metals, Rare Earth - chemistry; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; Multimodal Imaging - methods; Nanocrystals; Nanomaterials; Nanoparticles - chemistry; Nanoparticles - therapeutic use; Nanostructure; Radioisotopes - chemistry; Rare earth metals; Surgical implants; Yttrium - chemistry; radioluminescence; yttrium-90; GdF3; MRI; Cerenkov luminescence; nanoplate
• ISSN: 1936-0851; 1936-086X
• DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.5b03355

Isotopically labeled nanomaterials have recently attracted much attention in biomedical research, environmental health studies, and clinical medicine because radioactive probes allow the elucidation of in vitro and in vivo cellular transport mechanisms, as well as the unambiguous distribution and localization of nanomaterials in vivo. In addition, nanocrystal-based inorganic materials have a unique capability of customizing size, shape, and composition; with the potential to be designed as multimodal imaging probes. Size and shape of nanocrystals can directly influence interactions with biological systems, hence it is important to develop synthetic methods to design radiolabeled nanocrystals with precise control of size and shape. Here, we report size- and shape-controlled synthesis of rare earth fluoride nanocrystals doped with the β-emitting radioisotope yttrium-90 (90Y). Size and shape of nanocrystals are tailored via tight control of reaction parameters and the type of rare earth hosts (e.g., Gd or Y) employed. Radiolabeled nanocrystals are synthesized in high radiochemical yield and purity as well as excellent radiolabel stability in the face of surface modification with different polymeric ligands. We demonstrate the Cerenkov radioluminescence imaging and magnetic resonance imaging capabilities of 90Y-doped GdF3 nanoplates, which offer unique opportunities as a promising platform for multimodal imaging and targeted therapy.