Taylor dispersion analysis for measurement of diffusivity and size of gadolinium-based contrast agents

• Published in: European journal of pharmaceutical sciences 2024-09, Vol.200, p.106831, Article 106831
• Main Authors: Somnin, Chutintorn, Leclercq, Laurent, Chamieh, Joseph, Menedeu, Mael Le, Medina, Christelle, Rousseaux, Olivier, Tripier, Raphael, Iglesias, Carlos Platas, Cottet, Hervé
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Chemical Sciences; Diffusion coefficient; Gadolinium-based contrast agents; Hydrodynamic diameter; Magnetic resonance imaging agents; Taylor dispersion analysis
• ISSN: 0928-0987; 1879-0720; 1879-0720
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ejps.2024.106831

•Taylor dispersion analysis can be used to determine size and diffusivity of GBCA.•TDA is fast, straightforward analysis with low sample consumption.•Frontal mode TDA is preferred over plug mode for better sensitivity of detection.•TDA led to diameter and diffusion coefficients consistent with DOSY NMR and DFT.•Inter-capillary RSD on hydrodynamic diameter is about 3.6 %. Gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCA) are complexes of a Gadolinium metal center and a linear or macrocyclic polyamino-carboxylic acid chelating agent. These agents are employed to enhance the visibility of deep abnormalities through MRI techniques. Knowing the precise dimensions of various GBCA is key parameter for understanding their in-vivo and pharmaco-kinetic behaviors, their diffusivity, as well as their relaxivity. However, conventional size characterization techniques fall short when dealing with these tiny molecules (≤1 nm). In this work, we propose to determine the size and diffusivity of gadolinium-based contrast agents using Taylor dispersion analysis (TDA). TDA provided a reliable measurement of the hydrodynamic diameter and the diffusion coefficient. The obtained results were compared to DOSY NMR (Diffusion-ordered Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy) and DFT (Density Functional Theory). [Display omitted]