the time-dependent cell viability of
the BSA-coated sAuNRs for RAW 264.7 macrophages and normal
HSCs is examined with the BSA-coated bAuNRs serving as the
control sample. As shown in Fig. 2, the smaller sAuNRs exhibit
much higher cell viability than bAuNRs. For example, after incubation
for 48 h, the cell viability of sAuNRs is as high as (89 ± 3)% for
macrophages whereas that of bAuNRs is (73 ± 3)%. With regard to
normal HSCs, the cell viability of the sAuNRs is (92 ± 4)% in contrast
to (57 ± 3)% for the bAuNRs. It indicates that reduction of the
nanorod diameter from 14 to 7 nm decreases the cytotoxicity of the
AuNRs rendering them more suitable in clinical applications.