A team of researchers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and other prestigious organizations have discovered a potential new dye that could rival gadolinium contrast agents.

According to Livingston Ledger, researchers have developed a new high-resolution contrast agent made of coated iron oxide nanoparticles.

Each tiny iron oxide nanoparticle is coated with a zwitterion substance, which is a word used for molecules that carry both positive and negative electrical charges, rendering them neutral. Researchers said the coated iron oxide is designed to completely empty through the kidneys because the coating allows the iron oxide particles to be soluble in water.

One coated iron oxide nanoparticle measures 4.7 nanometers. The maximum size a substance can be and still clear the kidneys is 5.5 nanometers, which means there should not be an accumulation of any iron oxide in the body at all, said the research team.

The research team said the next step is to conduct further toxicology tests to prove the particles are safe, but they don’t anticipate any roadblocks. Iron oxide has been used for many years in cosmetics and food coloring. Iron oxide is commonly known as rust.

The announcement regarding the promising prospect of iron oxide nanoparticles follows a similar discovery made earlier this year regarding manganese.

In August, Massachusetts General Hospital researchers said a manganese-based contrast agent known as Mn-PyC3A was found to show tumor contrast clarity on MRIs. As a naturally occurring essential element found in humans, manganese also was more completely eliminated from the body when compared to gadolinium-based dyes.

Potential Side Effects of Gadolinium Contrast Agents

Nearly one-third of the 60 million MRI tests performed around the world every year use contrast dyes to enhance the images. The majority of the dyes contain gadolinium, an element that helps aberrations appear in lighter shades than the rest of the images on the scan.

Even though most patients experience no side effects with gadolinium contrast dye, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has found that trace amounts of gadolinium stay in the brains of some patients.  The FDA is continuing to investigate whether patients suffer any repercussions from the remaining element residing in their brain matter.

In some patients with kidney disease, the use of gadolinium contrast agents has resulted in a rare illness called nephrogenic systemic fibrosis, a potentially fatal condition that causes thickening and hardening of the skin on the arms and legs. Over time, victims develop painful joints, and the fibrosis can affect the lungs, liver, muscles and heart.

In November 2017, Chuck Norris and his wife Gena filed a $10 million lawsuit against gadolinium contrast agent manufacturer McKesson Corporation, alleging the dye left her with a condition called Gadolinium Deposition Disease. She said she underwent three MRIs in a short amount of time to help doctors evaluate her rheumatoid arthritis. The couple says Gena has suffered from memory loss and debilitating episodes of a painful burning feeling throughout her body ever since the MRIs.