Naoto Saito
Shinshu University, Japan
Title: Carbon nano-tube toxicity: In-situ imaging method using peapods to evaluate the bio-kinetics of carbon nano-tubes
Biography
Biography: Naoto Saito
Abstract
The bio-safety of carbon nano-tubes (CNTs) is a concern, and CNT bio-kinetics is a key bio-safety issue. CNTs labelled with carbon isotopes, functionalized with moieties, or coated with colloidal metal particles have been used to monitor CNT bio-kinetics, though major technical issues (such as isotope preparation and handling or change in CNT surface properties) remain. The present report aims at establishing an advanced and simple in-situ imaging method of CNTs monitoring in vivo involving the use of CNTs filled with heavy metal particles (peapods). Gd-peapods containing GdCl3 were synthesized using double-walled CNTs. The limits of Gd-peapods detection on MRI in solutions and agarose gel cubes were 1.3µg/ml and 4µg/ml, respectively. The peapods in rats was easily visualized by MRI and the change in signal intensity was dose-dependent. This newly developed method can be used to monitor CNT bio-kinetics in vivo without tedious tissue preparation.