Gold Nanoparticle Mediated Phototherapy for Cancer

Figure 7

Fluorescence images of a tumor-bearing mouse after being injected with AuNP-Pc 4 conjugates in normal saline (0.9% NaCl, pH 7.2), (a) 1 min, (b) 30 min, and (c) 120 min after intravenous tail injection. Any bright signal is due to Pc 4 fluorescence, without which no fluorescence signals were detected from the mouse. (To reduce autofluorescence, the animal was fed a special diet for more than 2 weeks before the experiment.) Unprecedented delivery efficiency and accumulation rate of the drug in the tumor are monitored via the fluorescence increase in the tumor area (white circle). For comparison, a mouse that got only a Pc 4 formulation without the AuNP vector injected is shown in panel (d). No circulation of the drug in the body or into the tumor was detectable 2 h after injection without the AuNP as drug vector. Reprinted with permission from [45]. Copyright (2008) American Chemical Society.

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