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Gold Nanorods: Multifunctional Agents for Cancer Imaging and Therapy

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Book cover Cancer Nanotechnology

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 624))

Abstract

Gold nanorods (GNRs) are strongly absorbing at near-infrared (NIR) frequencies and can be employed as multifunctional agents for biological imaging and theragnostics. GNRs can support nonlinear optical microscopies based on two-photon-excited luminescence and can enhance the contrast of biomedical imaging modalities such as optical coherence tomography and photoacoustic tomography. GNRs are also efficient at mediating the conversion of NIR light energy into heat and can generate localized photothermal effects. However, future clinical applications will require the rigorous removal of CTAB, a micellar surfactant used in GNR synthesis, and reliable methods of surface functionalization for cell-selective targeting and for minimizing nonspecific uptake into cells. This can be accomplished by using polystyrenesulfonate (PSS) as a sorbent for removing CTAB, and in situ dithiocarbamate formation for introducing chemisorptive ligands onto GNR surfaces.

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Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge financial support from the National Institutes of Health (EB-001777) and the Oncological Sciences Center at Purdue University. We thank Dr. Stephan Stern and Dr. Anil Patri (Nanomaterials Characterization Laboratory, SAIC-Frederick) for cytotoxicity evaluations and additional materials characterization, supported under NCI contract N01-CO-12400, and Prof. Ji-Xin Cheng and his group members (Purdue University) for valuable collaborative research and scientific discussions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA

    Alexander Wei, Alexei P. Leonov & Qingshan Wei

Authors
  1. Alexander Wei
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  2. Alexei P. Leonov
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  3. Qingshan Wei
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. Surgery, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA

    Stephen R. Grobmyer

  2. ERC - Engineering Research Center, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA

    Brij M. Moudgil

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Wei, A., Leonov, A.P., Wei, Q. (2010). Gold Nanorods: Multifunctional Agents for Cancer Imaging and Therapy. In: Grobmyer, S., Moudgil, B. (eds) Cancer Nanotechnology. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 624. Humana Press. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-60761-609-2_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-60761-609-2_8

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-60761-608-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-60761-609-2

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