I am working with the polymeric modification of iron oxide particles and I am trying to get phantom MRI images at each stage of modification to comment on how the contrast effects are altered by the addition of polymer but the first two forms settle quickly so I cannot simply suspend them in water or PBS. I have tried suspending them in 2% agarose and glycine solutions but the gel seems to have an interference effect upon imaging. Any suggestions on the best way to get comparison images then? Or an alternate way to characterize them from state to state? Thanks!
As you noticed, messing with the viscosity will change the relaxivity quite a lot. There is a fun thing geologist use to separate heavy and light mineral grains: They make a solution of sodium tungstate (which has high density) in water tuned so that one mineral sinks and one floats. Sodium tungstate is only diamagnetic and should have moderate effect on viscosity. If you make a solution just strong enough you should be ablew to suspend the iron oxide for a long time.
The gel does have a relative change on the T1,T2 of the bulk. Of course, you can make a relative scale of stiff gel with particles as your bulk relaxation values and then investigate the FeO particle effect in the gel. The T2* will be unaffected in this case as an outer sphere relaxation mechanism. Hygrogel does not have as great an effect on bulk water relaxation. Depending on the size of your FeO particles a large enough polymer network should suspend it. Ive used polysaccharides such as dextran to suspend IONP.
See following review for more details - Article Bio-nano interactions: binding proteins, polysaccharides, li...
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