Induced lysosomes and ROS level in various cell lines upon interaction with (a) PEG- and (b) APTES-coated SPIONs.

<p>Induced lysosomes and ROS level in various cell lines upon interaction with (a) PEG- and (b) APTES-coated SPIONs.</p

(a) and (b) fluorescence intensities of induced lysosomes and ROS for all cell lines after treatment with PEG- and APTES-coated SPIONs.

<p>(a) and (b) fluorescence intensities of induced lysosomes and ROS for all cell lines after treatment with PEG- and APTES-coated SPIONs.</p

Description of the cell lines used in MTT and XTT studies (DMEM: Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium; Ham's: Nutrient Mixture F-10; FBS: fetal bovine serum; RPMI-1640 (Roswell Park Memorial Institute)).

<p>Description of the cell lines used in MTT and XTT studies (DMEM: Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium; Ham's: Nutrient Mixture F-10; FBS: fetal bovine serum; RPMI-1640 (Roswell Park Memorial Institute)).</p

Figure 1

<p>(a) TEM image of monodisperse iron oxide nanocrystals; Inset at the top left illustrates the selected area diffraction pattern of the SPIONs. (b) FTIR spectra of bare and coated-SPIONs with various polymers; and cell viabilities of the conventional (c) MTT- and XTT-assay and (d) modified MTT- and XTT-methods after treatment with various concentrations of CES-grafted SPIONs. Differences between obtained cell viabilities confirm the importance of toxicity method modifications of conventional methods for NPs.</p

Induced lysosomes in (a) Capan-2, (b) Panc-1, (c) HeLa, and (d) Jurkat cells were obtained upon interaction with CES-coated SPIONs.

<p>In live lysosomes assay, the lysosomes and nuclei are seen as red and blue fluorescence, respectively. Induced ROS level in (e) Capan-2, (f) Panc-1, (g) HeLa, and (h) Jurkat cells were obtained upon interaction with SPIONs. In intracellular ROS assay, the ROS level and nuclei are seen as green and blue fluorescence, respectively; (i) fluorescence intensities of induced lysosomes and ROS for all cell lines.</p

Comparison of the different SPIONs used in this research. Sizes and zeta potentials are presented as mean ± SD (n = 4).

<p>Comparison of the different SPIONs used in this research. Sizes and zeta potentials are presented as mean ± SD (n = 4).</p

Time course variations of the hydrodynamic size of various NPs (400 µL with concentrations of 2 mM), while interacting with cell medium (1 mL of DMEM+FBS 10%).

<p>Time course variations of the hydrodynamic size of various NPs (400 µL with concentrations of 2 mM), while interacting with cell medium (1 mL of DMEM+FBS 10%).</p

A Tripodal Ruthenium–Gadolinium Metallostar as a Potential α_vβ₃ Integrin Specific Bimodal Imaging Contrast Agent

Gd^III-containing <i>metallostar</i> contrast agents are gaining increased attention, because their architecture allows for a slower tumbling rate, which, in turn, results in larger relaxivities. So far, these <i>metallostars</i> find possible applications as blood pool contrast agents. In this work, the first example of a tissue-selective <i>metallostar</i> contrast agent is described. This RGD-peptide decorated Ru^II(Gd^III)₃ <i>metallostar</i> is synthesized as an α_vβ₃-integrin specific contrast agent, with possible applications in the detection of atherosclerotic plaques and tumor angiogenesis. The contrast agent showed a relaxivity of 9.65 s^–1 mM^–1, which represents an increase of 170%, compared to a low-molecular-weight analogue, because of a decreased tumbling rate (τ_R = 470 ps). The presence of the MLCT band (absorption 375–500 nm, emission 525–850 nm) of the central Ru^II(Ph-Phen)₃-based complex grants the <i>metallostar</i> attractive luminescent properties. The ³MLCT emission is characterized by a quantum yield of 4.69% and a lifetime of 804 ns, which makes it an interesting candidate for time-gated luminescence imaging. The potential application as a selective MRI contrast agent for α_vβ₃-integrin expressing tissues is shown by an <i>in vitro</i> relaxometric analysis, as well as an <i>in vitro</i> <i>T</i>₁-weighted MR image

Additional file 1: of Screening for peptides targeted to IL-7Rα for molecular imaging of rheumatoid arthritis synovium

Methods. (PDF 370 kb