Diamond dust as a potential alternative to contrast agent gadolinium in magnetic resonance imaging
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An unexpected discovery surprised a scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart: Nanometer-sized diamond particles, which were intended for a completely different purpose, shone brightly in a magnetic resonance imaging experiment—much brighter than the actual contrast agent, the heavy metal gadolinium.
Could diamond dust—in addition to its use in drug delivery to treat tumor cells—one day become a novel contrast agent used for MRI? The research team has now published their discovery in Advanced Materials.
Some of the world's greatest discoveries happened by accident. While the discovery of diamond dust's potential as a future MRI contrast agent may never be considered a turning point in science history, its signal-enhancing properties are nevertheless an unexpected finding which may open-up new possibilities: Diamond dust glows brightly even after days of being injected. Does that mean it could perhaps one day become an alternative to the widely used contrast agent gadolinium?
