Biodistribution and clearance rates of single-walled carbon nanotubes in rabbits

COLL 45

Paul Cherukuri, cheru@rice.edu1, Christopher Gannon, CJGannon@mdanderson.org2, Tonya Leeuw, leeuw@rice.edu, Howard K. Schmidt, hks@rice.edu3, Sean T. Pheasant, pheasant@rice.edu, Robert Hauge, Hauge@rice.edu4, James. M. Tour, tour@rice.edu5, Steven A. Curley, scurley@mdanderson.org2, and R. Bruce Weisman, weisman@rice.edu6. (1) Department of Chemistry, Carbon Nanotechnology Laboratory, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, MS 100, Houston, TX 77005, (2) MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77025, (3) Carbon Nanotechnology Laboratory, Rice University, 6100 Main St., Houston, TX 77005, (4) Smalley Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, MS100, Houston, TX 77005, (5) Department of Chemistry and Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology, Rice University, MS-222, PO Box 1892, Houston, TX 77251-1892, (6) Department of Chemistry and the Richard E. Smalley Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, MS-60, Houston, TX 77005
Single walled carbon nanotubes are a novel class of xenobiotic nanoscale vectors that could be targeted to cells for the diagnosis and treatment of clinically challenging diseases. We have therefore developed injectable formulations of SWNTs in order to better understand the clearance and biodistribution of these nanoparticles in small animals. Specifically, we have intravenously injected several rabbits with SWNTs that have been non-covalently functionalized with a biocompatible amphiphilic polymer. By measuring the NIR emission properties of carbon nanotubes in circulating blood, we were able to determine the clearance rate and biodistribution of SWNTs over a period of 24 hrs. Our study demonstrates that SWNTs can be tracked in vivo without the need for any additional fluorophore or radiolabel and furthermore we have also shown that these specific formulations of SWNTs are biocompatible, have a long circulation time, and could potentially be used as nanovectors for targeted drug delivery.

 

Advances in Nanomedicine
8:30 AM-12:20 PM, Sunday, 10 September 2006 Sir Francis Drake -- Monterey/Cypress Rooms, Oral

Division of Colloid & Surface Chemistry

The 232nd ACS National Meeting, San Francisco, CA, September 10-14, 2006