Scientists made tiny gold particles coated with a hormone‑like peptide (triptorelin) that stick to certain cancer cells and make them show up brighter on CT scans. In lab tests the particles weren’t toxic to cells and gave up to about three‑times better image contrast than regular agents, but this is still an early‑stage research tool, not a ready‑to‑use product for health‑hacking or personal health protocols.

Increasing research has been focused on the development of various nanocomplexes as targeted contrast media in diagnostic modalities, mainly in computed tomography (CT) scan imaging. Herein, we report a new method that uses Triptorelin [a luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonist]-targeted gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) via alginate for early detection of cancer by molecular CT imaging. In the experimental study, the formed multifunctional AuNPs coated with alginate conjugated with Triptorelin peptide (Triptorelin-Alginate-AuNPs) were synthesized and characterized via different techniques, including transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The MTT assay was applied to calculate the toxicity of the NPs. The results indicated that the formed Triptorelin-Alginate-AuNPs with an Au core size of ~18 nm are noncytotoxic at 127-, 254-, 381- and 508-mM concentrations and revealed significant improvement in the attenuation of X-rays intensity and contrast to noise ratio (CNR), compared with non-targeted cells at the highest energies (90, 120, 140 kVp). At 90 kVp, compared to non-targeted cells, targeted cells (Triptorelin-Alginate-AuNPs) enable 1.58, 1.69, 3.7 and 3.43 times greater contrast at a concentration of 127 mM, 254 mM, 381 mM, and 508 mM, respectively. These results suggest that the developed Triptorelin-Alginate-AuNPs may be considered an effective contrast agent for molecular CT imaging of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) receptor-expressing cancer cells.