Dual Role of Dendronized Gold Nanoparticles as Both Catalyst and Cargo-Loading Core in the Formation of Gold Nanorattles

Hybrid gold nanomaterials, exhibiting unique optical properties as well as morphological versatility, serve as a very valuable scaffold for engineering multifunctional nanoarchitectures. The present study introduces a novel hybrid gold nanomaterial composed of a dendronized gold nanosphere core surrounded by a porous gold cage, named a dendronized gold nanorattle (DAuNRT). Our findings reveal that the assembly of dendrons (branched molecules) onto the core of the nanorattle eliminates the need for other catalysts (such as very hygroscopic sodium sulfide) during the silver coating process. In addition, besides their role as catalysts in the nanorattle formation, the dendrons used as surface ligands on the gold nanosphere core allow for enhanced cargo loading, since they each display eight carboxylic acid termini. Cisplatin (CisPt) was used as a cargo model via coordination to the dendrons, followed by incorporation into the rattle structure, demonstrating the DAuNRTs potential for drug delivery as well as other cargo-carrying applications. The nanostructure reported here combines the advantages of dendron surface coatings and gold nanocages, resulting in a rattle-shaped gold nanomaterial with the potential to display multifunctional capabilities.