Understanding a variety of biochemical features and
biological processes might enable the design of plasmonic particles that home
in on tumors for imaging and therapy.
The use of noble metal particles to stain tumors and achieve
optical contrast for biomedical applications has taken on a clinical dimension,
with applications that include optical hyperthermia to ablate cells and
photoacoustic imaging of cancer. Obtaining plasmonic bands in the near-IR
window to penetrate deeply into biological tissue is now possible by tailoring
the shape and size of the particles used.3 As an example, gold nanorods exhibit
excellent optical absorbance and stability4 and have a surface that can be
modified with functional moieties that alter their biological profiles.