Color-tunable Gd-Zn-Cu-In-S/ZnS quantum dots for dual modality magnetic resonance and fluorescence imaging

Inorganic nanoparticles have been introduced into biological systems as useful probes for in vitro diagnosis and in vivo imaging, due to their relatively small size and exceptional physical and chemical properties. A new kind of colortunable Gd-Zn-Cu-In-S/ZnS (GZCIS/ZnS) quantum dots (QDs) with stable crystal structure has been successfully synthesized and utilized for magnetic resonance (MR) and fluorescence dual modality imaging. This strategy allows successful fabrication of GZCIS/ZnS QDs by incorporating Gd into ZCIS/ZnS QDs to achieve great MR enhancement without compromising the fluorescence properties of the initial ZCIS/ZnS QDs. The as-prepared GZCIS/ZnS QDs show high T₁ MR contrast as well as "color-tunable" photoluminescence (PL) in the range of 550–725 nm by adjusting the Zn/Cu feeding ratio with high PL quantum yield (QY). The GZCIS/ZnS QDs were transferred into water via a bovine serum albumin (BSA) coating strategy. The resulting Cd-free GZCIS/ZnS QDs reveal negligible cytotoxicity on both HeLa and A549 cells. Both fluorescence and MR imaging studies were successfully performed in vitro and in vivo. The results demonstrated that GZCIS/ZnS QDs could be a dual-modal contrast agent to simultaneously produce strong MR contrast enhancement as well as fluorescence emission for in vivo imaging.