Super paramagnetic iron oxide and gadolinium (FeGdO3) nanopowder synthesized by hydrolytic approach passes high level of biocompatibility and MRI-based dual contrast property for competent molecular imaging and therapeutic interventions

Abstract

The synthesis of monodispersable FeGdO3 nanopowder with well-defined architectural framework was carried out by using metal chloride as a single source molecular precursor by modifying reaction conditions to obtain an ultra-pure surface area for better understanding the chemistry involved in micro to nanoscale. By controlling the reaction parameters at the molecular level helps to synthesize a technology oriented nanomaterials with high crystalline particle size and shape with required surface morphologies at the nanoscale. The FeGdO3 nanomaterial was characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM, thermal analysis and FT-IR. The x-ray diffraction patterns indicate the formation of square planar crystallite size of 41.65 nm after annealing. The integral properties of nanomaterial depend upon the synthetic approach through self-assembly which helps in the formation of primary nuclei from metal chloride as smart molecular precursor. This opens a new exciting vista for a better understanding of the reaction conditions and growth mechanisms. We used two cell types; human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from umbilical cord blood and human neuronal cells to evaluate the toxicity and dual contrast properties of FeGdO3 nanoparticles further their application in high contrast imaging and stem cell labeling and tracking. We found that various concentrations of FeGdO3 nanoparticles do not influence the cellular mechanisms involved in cell survival and proliferation which proves high biocompatibility nature of FeGdO3 nanoparticles with cells. Enhanced signal intensity during low-field MRI (1.5T) with iron oxide and gadolinium provides its further clinical implications as dual contrast imaging agent with more advancements.