Synthesis of bismuth nanoparticles for biomedical applications

Bismuth is a biocompatible material that can be employed in the form of nanoparticles to be used as a possible alternative contrast medium for diagnostics. In particular, it has been prepared as spherical nanoparticles in liquid solution by using the technique of the pulsed laser ablation in water. The high atomic number Bi nanoparticles in the solution show surface plasmon resonance effects, high mass absorption coefficient for soft X-ray interaction and high electron and nuclear stopping powers for electrons and ion beams. This biocompatible solution can be injected into living systems, such as mice, in order to study the up-take effect in different organs with a high contrast spatial localization of the X-ray images in the tissues in which the nanoparticles are confined. The high contrast medium for high-resolution imaging in biological systems can be also used as targeting for successive exposure to ionizing radiation during radiotherapy or hyperthermia of diseased cells. The obtained results demonstrate high contrast images of Bi nanoparticles in biological environment by using the X-ray fluorescence in the electron microscopy and the X-ray absorption in mice.