TY - JOUR
T1 - Carbon Dots as a New Class of Diamagnetic Chemical Exchange Saturation Transfer (diaCEST) MRI Contrast Agents
AU - Zhang, Jia
AU - Yuan, Yue
AU - Gao, Minling
AU - Han, Zheng
AU - Chu, Chengyan
AU - Li, Yuguo
AU - van Zijl, Peter C.M.
AU - Ying, Mingyao
AU - Bulte, Jeff W.M.
AU - Liu, Guanshu
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
PY - 2019/7/15
Y1 - 2019/7/15
N2 - While carbon dots (C-dots) have been extensively investigated pertaining to their fluorescent, phosphorescent, electrochemiluminescent, optoelectronic, and catalytic features, their inherent chemical exchange saturation transfer magnetic resonance imaging (CEST MRI) properties are unknown. By virtue of their hydrophilicity and abundant exchangeable protons of hydroxyl, amine, and amide anchored on the surface, we report here that C-dots can be adapted as effective diamagnetic CEST (diaCEST) MRI contrast agents. As a proof-of-concept demonstration, human glioma cells were labeled with liposomes with or without encapsulated C-dots and implanted in mouse brain. In vivo CEST MRI was able to clearly differentiate labeled cells from non-labeled cells. The present findings may encourage new applications of C-dots for in vivo imaging in deep tissues, which is currently not possible using conventional fluorescent (near-infrared) C-dots.
AB - While carbon dots (C-dots) have been extensively investigated pertaining to their fluorescent, phosphorescent, electrochemiluminescent, optoelectronic, and catalytic features, their inherent chemical exchange saturation transfer magnetic resonance imaging (CEST MRI) properties are unknown. By virtue of their hydrophilicity and abundant exchangeable protons of hydroxyl, amine, and amide anchored on the surface, we report here that C-dots can be adapted as effective diamagnetic CEST (diaCEST) MRI contrast agents. As a proof-of-concept demonstration, human glioma cells were labeled with liposomes with or without encapsulated C-dots and implanted in mouse brain. In vivo CEST MRI was able to clearly differentiate labeled cells from non-labeled cells. The present findings may encourage new applications of C-dots for in vivo imaging in deep tissues, which is currently not possible using conventional fluorescent (near-infrared) C-dots.
KW - CEST MRI
KW - carbon dots
KW - cell labeling
KW - contrast agent
KW - intracranial implantation
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U2 - 10.1002/anie.201904722
DO - 10.1002/anie.201904722
M3 - Article
C2 - 31162873
AN - SCOPUS:85068064240
SN - 1433-7851
VL - 58
SP - 9871
EP - 9875
JO - Angewandte Chemie - International Edition
JF - Angewandte Chemie - International Edition
IS - 29
ER -