Amphiphilic and Perfluorinated Poly(3-Hydroxyalkanoate) Nanocapsules for (19)F Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Nanoparticles have recently emerged as valuable tools in biomedical imaging techniques. Here PEGylated and fluorinated nanocapsules based on poly(3-hydroxyalkanoate) containing a liquid core of perfluorooctyl bromide PFOB were formulated by an emulsion-evaporation process as potential (19)F MRI imaging agents. Unsaturated poly(hydroxyalkanoate), PHAU, was produced by marine bacteria using coprah oil and undecenoic acid as substrates. PHA-g-(F; PEG) was prepared by two successive controlled thiol-ene reactions from PHAU with firstly three fluorinated thiols having from 3 up to 17 fluorine atoms and secondly with PEG-SH. The resulting PHA-g-(F; PEG)-based PFOB nanocapsules, with a diameter close to 250–300 nm, are shown to be visible in (19)F MRI with an acquisition time of 15 min. The results showed that PFOB-nanocapsules based on PHA-g-(F; PEG) have the potential to be used as novel contrast agents for (19)F MRI.