Barlow Brendan R, Kim Jinhwan
Department of Surgery, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA, USA.
Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, USA.
Nanomedicine (Lond). 2025 Jun;20(12):1479-1493. doi: 10.1080/17435889.2025.2504330. Epub 2025 May 12.
Photoacoustic (PA) imaging integrates ultrasound with the molecular contrast afforded by optical imaging, enabling noninvasive, real-time visualization of tissue structures and contrasts. Gold nanoparticles (GNPs) have been extensively studied as contrast agents for PA imaging due to their strong optical absorption derived from localized surface plasmon resonance, particularly when engineered to absorb in the near-infrared (NIR) region to enhance tissue penetration. However, the use of conventional anisotropic nanoparticles that absorb the NIR wavelengths is limited by their poor photostability under pulsed lasing conditions, which restricts their applicability in longitudinal imaging studies. This review first outlines the fundamental principles of PA imaging and introduces conventional GNP-based contrast agents, emphasizing their applications and inherent limitations. Subsequently, recent advances in GNP engineering are discussed, with particular focus on strategies to improve photostability, and a future perspective on the development of GNP-based PA contrast agents is provided.
光声（PA）成像将超声与光学成像提供的分子对比度相结合，能够对组织结构和对比度进行无创、实时可视化。金纳米颗粒（GNP）因其源自局域表面等离子体共振的强光学吸收特性，特别是经过设计使其在近红外（NIR）区域吸收以增强组织穿透性，而被广泛研究用作PA成像的造影剂。然而，使用吸收近红外波长的传统各向异性纳米颗粒受到其在脉冲激光条件下光稳定性差的限制，这限制了它们在纵向成像研究中的适用性。本综述首先概述了PA成像的基本原理，并介绍了基于传统GNP的造影剂，强调了它们的应用和固有局限性。随后，讨论了GNP工程的最新进展，特别关注提高光稳定性的策略，并对基于GNP的PA造影剂的发展提供了未来展望。
