Synthesis of Chitosan-Coated Co0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 Nanoparticles for Contrast Enhancement in Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is an imaging technique that is widely used for the identification of internal organs, and for the medical diagnosis of tumors and cancer in the body. In general, gadolinium is used as a contrast agent to enhance image contrasting in MRI. In this study, chitosan-coated Co_0.5Zn_0.5Fe₂O₄ nanoparticles were synthesized using a co-precipitation method with a calcination temperature of 500 °C. The nanoparticles were then coated with chitosan and treated under an external magnetic field of 400 mT. X-ray diffractometer results showed that the chitosan-coated Co_0.5Zn_0.5Fe₂O₄ nanoparticles had a pure phase of Co_0.5Zn_0.5Fe₂O₄ at the (3 1 1) plane, with an average particle size of 26 nm. The presence of chitosan on the Co_0.5Zn_0.5Fe₂O₄ nanoparticles was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, which showed the primary amine and secondary amine functional groups of chitosan. Here, coating the nanoparticle with chitosan not only prevented nanoparticle agglomeration, but also improved the particle surface charge and reduced the particle toxicity for in vivo testing. Vibrating sample magnetometer results showed that the maximum magnetization value of the magnetic field-assisted process was increased to 8.85 emu/g. Finally, chitosan-coated Co_0.5Zn_0.5Fe₂O₄ nanoparticles with 400 mT of magnetic field assistance increased the average brightness in MRI of mouse liver by 21% compared to using gadolinium.