Facile preparation of rare-earth based fluorescence/MRI dual-modal nanoprobe for targeted cancer cell imaging

Nowadays, cancer has become a serious threat to public health worldwide. Early and precise diagnosis is critical for the detection, monitoring and management of cancer. Herein, a facile strategy for developing a fluorescence/MRI dual-modal nanoprobe (FA-PEI-NaGdF₄:Eu nanoparticles) has been reported for targeted cancer cell imaging. The fluorescence/MRI nanoprobes have strong fluorescence and the high signal-to-noise ratio, which is suitable for the fluorescence imaging. Moreover, the FA-PEI-NaGdF₄:Eu nanoprobes have high longitudinal relaxivity, making them suitable for T₁-weighted MR imaging. Additionally, due to modification with FA, the fluorescence/MRI nanoprobes could target cancer cells that possessed large numbers of folate receptors. The results of the cytotoxicity assay revealed that the nanoprobes had the excellent biocompatibility. With the high biocompatibility, excellent imaging performance and superior targeting, the FA-PEI-NaGdF₄:Eu nanoprobes can be used as a promising candidate for targeted fluorescence/MRI cancer cell imaging and would bring more opportunities for the biomedical applications.