Sequential Growth of NaYF4:Yb/Er@NaGdF4 Nanodumbbells for Dual-Modality Fluorescence and Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Hui-Qin Wen; Huang-Yong Peng; Kun Liu; Mao-Hong Bian; Yun-Jun Xu; Liang Dong; Xu Yan; Wei-Ping Xu; Wei Tao; Ji-Long Shen; Yang Lu; Hai-Sheng Qian

doi:10.1021/acsami.6b16842

Sequential Growth of NaYF₄:Yb/Er@NaGdF₄ Nanodumbbells for Dual-Modality Fluorescence and Magnetic Resonance Imaging

ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2017 Mar 22;9(11):9226-9232. doi: 10.1021/acsami.6b16842. Epub 2017 Mar 9.

Authors

Hui-Qin Wen^{1

2}, Huang-Yong Peng, Kun Liu, Mao-Hong Bian², Yun-Jun Xu³, Liang Dong, Xu Yan³, Wei-Ping Xu³, Wei Tao, Ji-Long Shen¹, Yang Lu, Hai-Sheng Qian

Affiliations

¹ Department of Immunology, Department of Pathogen Biology, Provincial Laboratories of Pathogen Biology and Zoonoses Anhui, and Clinical Laboratory of the First Affiliated Hospital, Anhui Medical University , Hefei, Anhui 230022, China.
² Department of Blood Transfusion, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University , Hefei, Anhui 230022, China.
³ Department of Radiology, Anhui Provincial Hospital , Hefei, Anhui 230001, China.

PMID: 28244317
DOI: 10.1021/acsami.6b16842

Abstract

Upconversional core-shell nanostructures have gained considerable attention due to their distinct enhanced fluorescence efficiency, multifunctionality, and specific applications. Recently, we have developed a sequential growth process to fabricate unique upconversion core-shell nanoparticles. Time evolution of morphology for the NaYF₄:Yb/Er@NaGdF₄ nanodumbbells has been extensively investigated. An Ostwald ripening growth mechanism has been proposed to illustrate the formation of NaYF₄:Yb/Er@NaGdF₄ nanodumbbells. The hydrophilic NaYF₄:Yb/Er@NaGdF₄ core-shell nanodumbbells exhibited strong upconversion fluorescence and showed higher magnetic resonance longitudinal relaxivity (r₁ = 7.81 mM^-1 s^-1) than commercial contrast agents (Gd-DTPA). NaYF₄:Yb/Er@NaGdF₄ nanodumbbells can serve as good candidates for high efficiency fluorescence and magnetic resonance imaging.

Keywords: MR imaging compatibility; nanodumbbells; sequential growth; upconversion nanoparticles.