Radiation-Responsive Amino Acid Nanosensor Gel (RANG) for Radiotherapy Monitoring and Trauma Care.

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Materials Science
• Radiation Detection

Background:

• Accurate detection of ionizing radiation doses is crucial for developing countermeasures and patient stratification.
• Current radiation detection methods face limitations such as high costs, long processing times, complex systems, and signal degradation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel, cost-effective, and rapid colorimetric approach for detecting ionizing radiation doses.
• To investigate amino acid-facilitated templating of gold nanoparticles as a basis for a new radiation detection system.

Main Methods:

• Screening of amino acids and related compounds for nanoparticle formation upon exposure to ionizing radiation (X-rays).
• Utilizing chemical informatics modeling and NMR spectroscopy to elucidate the mechanisms of nanoparticle formation.
• Fabricating radiation-responsive amino acid nanosensor gels (RANGs) using lead amino acids.

Main Results:

• Phenylalanine and tryptophan demonstrated radiation-induced gold nanoparticle formation, evidenced by increased absorbance.
• Physicochemical properties of amino acids, particularly polarizable regions and partial charges, were identified as key factors in nanoparticle formation.
• RANGs successfully predicted clinical radiation doses in anthropomorphic phantoms and live canine patients undergoing radiotherapy.

Conclusions:

• Amino acid-templated gold nanoparticle formation provides a promising colorimetric method for radiation detection.
• RANGs offer significant advantages over existing systems, including biocompatibility, rapid response, ease of use, and long-lasting readout.
• This technology has potential applications in clinical radiotherapy, radiological emergencies, and trauma care.