(130b) A Radio-Colorimetric Hydrogel for Detection of Therapeutic Levels of Ionizing Radiation Using Plasmonic Nanoparticles in 3D

Modern radiotherapy uses complicated techniques to deliver radiation dose to the tumor in hopes of sparing the healthy tissue. Improvements in radiation techniques has led to minimization of the side effects in cancerous patients. To improve patient wellbeing and quality it is important to monitor and record the dose delivered. Existing sensors are complex and require extensively trained professionals to operate them. In this talk, we discuss a novel colorimetric sensor that can detect therapeutic levels of ionizing radiation. We accomplished this by using ionizing radiation along with cationic micelles, in order to convert colorless Au⁺ ions to a pink colored dispersion of gold nanoparticles incorporated in a hydrogel matrix. Upon increasing the radiation dose, a significant visual increase in intensity of the developed color was observed. The difference in color intensities developed was used as a qualitative indicator of radiation dose and Ultraviolet-Visible spectroscopy was used a quantitative measure. In addition, a fixing agent is allowed to diffuse into the hydrogel and render spatial dose monitoring capability to the nanosensor. The plasmonic nanosensor is able to detect radiation doses in the therapeutic range, making it clinically viable. Our results taken together show a strong potential to be used as an invitro/invivo sensor for verification of dose delivered during radiotherapy in a clinical setting.