In medical science, Raman spectroscopy has received considerable attention as the next noninvasive diagnostic imaging technique. However, its clinical applications are limited by the weak signal intensities of Raman active molecules. Previously, we showed that a methylene-blue-loaded gold nanorod@silica (MB-GNR@SiO 2 ) core@shell nanostructure is promising for the development of a cancer theranostic agent due to its excellent surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) performance and synergistic cancer-destroying efficacy. In this study, we successfully synthesized MB-embedded agglomerated gold nanorod@SiO 2 (MB-A.GNR@SiO 2 ) composites, in which the many interparticle junctions created by the agglomerated GNRs were able to enhance the SERS signal of the loaded MB by a factor of five compared to MB-GNR@SiO 2 . This high SERS performance of the present MB-A.GNR@SiO 2 could provide us with an approach to explore a rapid and ultra-sensitive SERS detection method for various biological molecules.
In order to reveal the growth mechanism of gold nanorods (GNRs) in a binary surfactant system, we synthesized various GNRs by changing the concentration of the surfactants, AgNO 3 , and HBr in the growth solution. We found that the benzyldimethylhexadecylammoniumchloride surfactant had weak interaction with the gold ions, but it could reduce the membrane fluidity. In addition, we could dramatically decrease the cetyltrimethylammonium bromide concentration required for GNR growth by adding an HBr solution. Notably, Ag + ions were necessary to break the symmetry of the seed crystals for GNR growth, but increasing the concentration of Ag + and Br − ions caused a decrease in the template size.
Many applications of nanoparticles have been developed since 1970s. Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect can be generated at the surface of nanoparticles by illumination. SPR is the resonant oscillation of conduction electrons at the surface material stimulated by incident light. The collisions between excited electrons and metal atoms can cause the production of thermal energy (photothermal effect). Here, we presented the development of thermo-cosmetics using photothermal effect of gold nanoparticles. Gold nanoparticles (GNPs) were chosen for it's low toxicity. We also and investigated the cell biocompatibility and heating effectiveness for photothermal effect of GNPs. Synthesized GNPs were verified by UV-vis spectrophotometer, where GNP has a characteristic absorbance spectrum. Concentration of GNP was measured by atomic absorption analyzer. The cytotoxicity was confirmed by MTT assay and double staining assay. Photothermal effect of GNP was demonstrated by the thermal increasing properties depending on GNP concentration, which was taken by an IR-thermal camera with a xenon lamp as the light source. If the thermal effect of GNP is applied for thermo-cosmetics, it can supply heat to skin by converting solar energy into thermal energy. Thus, cosmetics contain
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.