<i>In Vivo</i> Toxicity Studies of Chitosan-Coated Cobalt Ferrite Nanocomplex for Its Application as MRI Contrast Dye

Cobalt ferrite nanoparticle (CFN) has received attention in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as a promising contrast agent due to its higher saturation magnetization and magneto-crystalline anisotropy. However, the in vitro cytotoxicity of CFN has raised concern for its biomedical application as a diagnostic agent. The coating of CFN by a biocompatible polymer such as chitosan (CH) might lessen the biocompatibility concern. Therefore, in this study, we examined the applicability of chitosan-coated cobalt ferrite nanoparticle (CCN) as an MRI contrast dye and investigated its biocompatibility in vivo. Phantom MRI images revealed that the relaxivity of CCN was 121 (±8) mM–1s–1, indicating the potential of CCN as a T2-weighted contrast agent. A single intravenous (iv) administration of CCN (10 mg/kg) improved the…