A temperature controller (model 210-J) and heating mantle were purchased from J-KEM Scientific, Inc. (St. Louis, MO, USA). The thermocouple (type 316 SS probe) was purchased from McMaster-Carr (Los Angeles, CA, USA). All glassware was purchased from VWR (Radnor, PA, USA). Synthesis method SIPPs, stabilized with the various fatty amines, were synthesized using slight modifications of a procedure we have described previously [2, 8, 9]. Briefly, 1.0 mmol of Fe(NO3)3 · 9 H2O and 1.0 mmol of Pt(acac)2 were combined with 12.5 mmol ODA
in a 25-mL three-neck round bottom flask fitted with a reflux condenser. Alternately, HDA, TDA, or DDA were used instead Proteasome inhibitor of ODA. Refluxing (340°C to 360°C) was continued for either 30 or 60 min, and then the reaction flask was removed from the heat and allowed to cool to room temperature. The resulting black particles were collected in approximately 80 mL of hexane. The 20-mL aliquots of the collected particles, in hexane, were placed in 50-mL conical tubes and diluted with 30 mL of ethanol (EtOH). The suspensions were then centrifuged at 1,462 × g for 10 min. The solution was discarded and the pelleted particles were again suspended in 20 mL hexane. The resuspended
particles were then equally divided in the two 50-mL conical tubes, diluted with 40 mL of EtOH, and centrifuged at 1,462 × g for 5 min. The EtOH serves to wash the excess ligand from the nanoparticle solutions. Finally, CA-4948 the solution was discarded, and the purified SIPP pellets were collected in a total volume of 20 mL hexane and stored at room temperature in glass scintillation vials. Characterization methods Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was used to quantify the size and polydispersity of the SIPPs, as well as to check details determine the morphology. A 5-μL aliquot of particles was applied to a 7.0-nm-thick
carbon-coated copper grid purchased from Dr. Stephen Jett (University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA) and allowed to dry. The samples were then imaged on a Hitachi 7500 TEM with an acceleration voltage of 80 kV. The resultant TEM images were analyzed using ImageJ Software [12]. At least Uroporphyrinogen III synthase 200 particles were counted, per sample. A region of interest (ROI) was drawn around each particle, and the mean Feret diameters and standard deviations were calculated. The compositions of the various SIPPs were investigated using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The hexane was allowed to evaporate from the aliquots of SIPPs in the hood overnight, and portions of the dried SIPPs were then placed in TGA crucibles (Robocasting Enterprises LLC, Albuquerque, NM, USA) after taring. Weight loss profiles of the dried samples were measured against a reference crucible using an SDT Q600 TGA/DSC (TA Instruments, New Castle, DE, USA) under a flow of nitrogen. The ligand and naked FePt content were quantified by measuring the change in mass as the temperature was raised from room temperature to 900°C at a 20°C per minute ramping rate.