Mesoporous silica nanoparticles encapsulating Gd2 O3 as a highly efficient magnetic resonance imaging contrast agent

Abstract

The water-adsorptive capabilities of Gd2 O3 @MCM-41 as contrast agents with various gadolinium additions were evaluated by molecular dynamic simulation, which indicates that increasing gadolinum leads to the decrease in water molecules adsorbed on the surfaces of mesoporous silica and Gd2 O3 nanocluster. Gd2 O3 @MCM-41 nanoparticles were synthesized by a one-step method. The measured microstructure and water-adsorptive capability of Gd2 O3 @MCM-41 consist with their simulated counterparts. The observation disclosed that the nanoparticles injected within mice were distributed in their liver and tumor. The enhancement of in vivo magnetic resonance imaging was detected in the tumor and inferior vena cava of the mice contrasted with Gd2 O3 @MCM-41. © 2011 American Institute of Physics.