Preparation, characterization, and magnetic resonance imaging of Fe nanowires
Xiaoming Cao,
Shike Hu,
Hua Zheng,
Aiman Mukhtar,
KaiMing Wu,
Liyuan Gu
Affiliations
Xiaoming Cao
School of Nuclear Technology and Chemistry and Biology, Hubei University of Science and Technology
Shike Hu
School of Nuclear Technology and Chemistry and Biology, Hubei University of Science and Technology
Hua Zheng
School of Nuclear Technology and Chemistry and Biology, Hubei University of Science and Technology
Aiman Mukhtar
The State Key Laboratory of Refractories and Metallurgy, Hubei Province Key Laboratory of Systems Science in Metallurgical Process, International Research Institute for Steel Technology, Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Steels, Wuhan University of Science and Technology
KaiMing Wu
The State Key Laboratory of Refractories and Metallurgy, Hubei Province Key Laboratory of Systems Science in Metallurgical Process, International Research Institute for Steel Technology, Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Steels, Wuhan University of Science and Technology
Liyuan Gu
School of Nuclear Technology and Chemistry and Biology, Hubei University of Science and Technology
Abstract A facile template method was employed to synthesize Fe nanowires of different sizes, dimensions. Comprehensive analyses were conducted to explore their morphology, structure, composition, and magnetic properties. The surface of as-prepared Fe nanowires was modified with SiO2 by sol–gel method to improve the dispersion of as-prepared Fe nanowires in aqueous solution. Furthermore, the relaxation properties, biocompatibility and in vivo imaging abilities of the Fe@SiO2 nanowires were evaluated. The study revealed that the SiO2-coated Fe nanowires functioned effectively as transverse relaxation time (T2) contrast agents (CAs). Notably, as the length of the Fe@SiO2 nanowires increased, their diameter decreased, leading to a higher the transverse relaxivity (r2) value. Our study identified that among the Fe nanowires synthesized, the Fe3@SiO2 nanowires, characterized by a diameter of around 30 nm and a length of approximately 500 nm, exhibited the highest r2 value of 59.3 mM−1 s−1. These nanowires demonstrated good biocompatibility and non-toxicity. Notably, upon conducting small animal imaging a 1.5 T with Sprague–Dawley rats, we observed a discernible negative enhancement effect in the liver. These findings indicate the promising potential of Fe@SiO2 nanowires as T2 CAs, with the possibility of tuning their size for optimized results.
