Formulation of iron oxides by nanoparticles of poly-lactide- co-D- α -tocopherol-polyethylene glycol 1000 succinate biodegradable polymer for magnetic resonance imaging

Abstract

Iron oxide nanocrystals of superparamagnetic nature provide diverse applications, which are extended for assessing and treating diseases in humans. Such nanocrystals are usually coated with a hydrophilic layer which enhances the property of the particles in vivo. In the current study, we have used a novel amphiphilic copolymer, poly-lactide-co-D- α -tocopherol-polyethylene glycol 1000 succinate to encapsulate Iron oxide nanocrystals to form polymer nanospheres with high encapsulation efficiency; the magnetic study of the nanoparticles showed that the iron oxide nanocrystals retained their magnetic property with a slight loss in the magnetic saturation. The relaxivity study performed using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed that such nanoparticles formulation of iron oxides are useful for T2 weighted imaging, which is thus of great potential for MRI with better imaging effects and less clinical side effects. The particles were tested for the contrast enhancement in an in vivo model. © 2010 American Institute of Physics.