Abstract

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most prevalent neurological disorder among elderly. Efficient and accurate diagnostic method for AD have not established yet, even magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) only shows brain shrinkage of brain regions in later stages of AD. Tau deposition in brain as a crucial biomarker of AD can be utilized in MRI for prognosis and diagnosis. However, significant challenges including limited blood-brain-barrier penetration (BBB), poor targeting of tau neurofibrillary tangles and unclear MR imaging still remain. Herein, tau-targeting T807-NH₂ covalently conjugated on folic acid-fabricated manganese dioxide nanoflower (MnO₂-FA) is developed. MnO₂-FA exhibits large surface area of loading and good T1-weighted contrast effect for MRI, while T807-NH₂ provides high binding affinity and targeting ability to tau and enhanced penetration of BBB. The results showed that MnO₂-FA-T807-NH₂ nanoflower is well synthesized. This platform is envisioned as a promising strategy for future Alzheimer’s Disease diagnosis.