Diagnostic Value of CT- and MRI-Based Texture Analysis and Imaging Findings for Grading Cartilaginous Tumors in Long Bones.

OBJECTIVE: To confirm the diagnostic performance of computed tomography (CT)-based texture analysis (CTTA) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based texture analysis for grading cartilaginous tumors in long bones and to compare these findings to radiological features. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-nine patients with enchondromas, 20 with low-grade chondrosarcomas and 16 with high-grade chondrosarcomas were included retrospectively. Clinical and radiological information and 9 histogram features extracted from CT, T1WI, and T2WI were evaluated. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed to determine predictive factors for grading cartilaginous tumors and to establish diagnostic models. Another 26 patients were included to validate each model. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were generated, and accuracy rate, sensitivity, specificity and positive/negative predictive values (PPV/NPV) were calculated. RESULTS: On imaging, endosteal scalloping, cortical destruction and calcification shape were predictive for grading cartilaginous tumors. For texture analysis, variance, mean, perc.01%, perc.10%, perc.99% and kurtosis were extracted after multivariate analysis. To differentiate benign cartilaginous tumors from low-grade chondrosarcomas, the imaging features model reached the highest accuracy rate (83.7%) and AUC (0.841), with a sensitivity of 75% and specificity of 93.1%. The CTTA feature model best distinguished low-grade and high-grade chondrosarcomas, with accuracies of 71.9%, and 80% in the training and validation groups, respectively; T1-TA and T2-TA could not distinguish them well. We found that the imaging feature model best differentiated benign and malignant cartilaginous tumors, with an accuracy rate of 89.2%, followed by the T1-TA feature model (80.4%). CONCLUSIONS: The imaging feature model and CTTA- or MRI-based texture analysis have the potential to differentiate cartilaginous tumors in long bones by grade. MRI-based texture analysis failed to grade chondrosarcomas.

Cardiorespiratory arrest after iso-osmolar iodinated contrast injection: A case report of contrast-induced encephalopathy following contrast-enhanced computed-tomography.

RATIONALE: Contrast-induced encephalopathy (CIE) is a rare complication caused by administration of intravascular contrast media and characterized by acute reversible neurological disturbance. Most of the CIE cases are reported after arterial administration of contrast media such as during cerebral or coronary angiographies, yet only a few articles have reported CIE secondary to intravenous contrast. A case of CIE secondary to intravenous contrast administration is reported here. PATIENT CONCERNS: A 68-year-old man was admitted to our hospital for contrast-enhanced chest computed-tomography (CT) examination due to suspected pulmonary nodules. After CT examination, the patient lost consciousness and experienced a cardiorespiratory arrest. An emergency plain brain CT was done immediately which showed abnormal cortical contrast enhancement and cerebral sulci hyperdensity. DIAGNOSES: After excluding other differential diagnoses such as electrolytes imbalance, hypo/hyperglycemia, cardiogenic pathologies and other neurological emergencies such as cerebral hemorrhage, cerebral infarction, the final diagnosis of CIE was made. INTERVENTIONS: The patient was admitted to the intensive care unit for further management. A series of supportive treatments were arranged. OUTCOMES: Follow-up visits at the outpatient clinic showed no lasting neurological deficits. LESSONS: CIE should be considered as 1 of the differential diagnoses for a patient with acute neurologic symptoms after iodinate contrast administration. Neuroradiological imaging examinations are essential to rule out other etiologies such as acute cerebral infarction or intracranial hemorrhage.

Assessment of the cross-sectional areas of the psoas major in patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis before skeletal maturity.

BACKGROUND: The psoas major (PM) can support the lumbar spine and plays an important role in lumbar movement and maintaining lumbar curvature. PURPOSE: To analyze morphological changes of PM and its relation with the severity of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS). MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study was conducted on patients with AIS (age range = 10-18 years) with primary lumbar scoliosis. The cross-sectional area (CSA) of the PM at the L1-L5 levels were measured. The CSA of the PM in patients with AIS was compared with the average CSA of the PM in age-matched controls. The difference in PM at the apical vertebrae level was compared with the Cobb angle to determine the association between PM imbalance and severity of scoliosis. RESULTS: The CSA of the PM was larger on the concave side than the convex side at the apical vertebrae level and other lumber levels. Patients with a larger Cobb angle had statistically higher PM imbalance at the apical vertebrae level. The CSA of the PM on both the concave and convex sides of patients with AIS were larger than the average CSA of controls aged 16-18 years; however, there was no significant difference between patients with AIS and controls aged 10-15 years. CONCLUSION: There is a significant PM imbalance in patients with AIS before skeletal maturity, and the imbalance is related to the severity of scoliosis. The morphology of PM changed with the progression of scoliosis.

Primary alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma of retrorectal-presacral space in an adult patient: A case report of an uncommon tumor with rare presentation.

RATIONALE: Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) has known as a highly malignant soft tissue sarcoma, representing 5% to 10% of all solid tumors in childhood. Alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma (ARMS) of the retrorectal-presacral space is an extremely rare lesion for adult, no study has been reported in the English literature. PATIENT CONCERNS: A 51-year-old male presented with abdominal pain for 1 month, significantly worse when having a bowel movement. DIAGNOSIS: Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the pelvis showed a solid-cystic, enhancing lesion of dimension located in retrorectal-presacral space. The surgical specimen was reported as ARMS after pathological evaluation. INTERVENTIONS: The tumor was complete surgical resection, and after surgery, the patient was treated with combination chemotherapy. OUTCOMES: At 23 months follow up, the patient was asymptomatic with no evidence of metastases or local recurrence. LESSONS: Improvements in imaging in addition to early surgical intervention and chemotherapy treatment are crucial to improve survival chances against RMS.

A five year CT surveillance of ciliated retroperitoneal foregut cyst resembling a cystic pancreatic lesion: A case report.

INTRODUCTION: Ciliated retroperitoneal foregut cysts are rare, and to obtain a preoperative definitive diagnosis of this condition is relatively difficult. In addition, the exact mechanism and formation of ciliated retroperitoneal foregut cysts remains unknown. CASE PRESENTATION: Here, we report a case of a 47-year-old woman who presented with an unusual shaped cystic lesion associated with a patch of solid components between the pancreas and the left kidney, initially misdiagnosed as a cystic pancreatic lesion 5 years previously to presentation at our clinic. During the past years, reports relating to the surveillance of these lesions described that their shapes progressively change while its volumes remain invariably unchanged. We did not observe this phenomenon in any literatures to our knowledge. The patient was diagnosed with ciliated retroperitoneal foregut cyst with remote hemorrhage, after the laparoscopic surgery. CONCLUSIONS: Ciliated retroperitoneal foregut cysts have characteristic manifestations. From this case, we summarized that cysts in the retroperitoneum, associated with a changing shape of the lesion, highly suggest the diagnosis of foregut cysts, which are safe under long-term surveillance.

Lymphadenitis associated with cat-scratch disease simulating a neoplasm: Imaging findings with histopathological associations.

The lymphadenitis associated with cat-scratch disease (CSD) is often confused with neoplasms by a number of radiologists and clinicians, and consequently, unnecessary invasive procedures or surgeries are performed. In the present study, the contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings of 10 patients (6 men and 4 women) with clinically and pathologically confirmed lymphadenitis associated with CSD were retrospectively analyzed (CT in 3 patients, MRI in 6 patients, and CT and MRI in 1 patient) at The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine (Hangzhou, China) between January 2007 and November 2014. As a result, 17 enlarged lymph nodes were identified in 10 cases. The 5 nodes identified by CT scan exhibited relatively inhomogeneous isodensity to muscle, with patchy low density in the center. All 14 nodes identified by MRI scan exhibited homogeneous or heterogeneous isointensity to muscle or slightly increased intensity compared with that of muscle on T1-weighted images (T1WI), and homogeneous or heterogeneous hyperintensity on fat-suppressed T2WI. Following enhancement, all 17 enlarged lymph nodes associated with CSD demonstrated the following 3 different enhancement patterns: Moderate homogeneous enhancement (n=8), which was associated with histologically identified early disease stage; marked heterogeneous enhancement with no enhancement of the necrotic areas (n=4), and heterogeneous enhancement with progressively 'spoke-wheel-like' (defined as radiating enhancement from the center) enhancement of the patchy low-density area (n=1), which was associated with histologically identified intermediate disease stage; and astral low-density/hypointensity with marked enhancement (n=2) or a 'rose flower' sign (n=2), which was associated with histologically identified late disease stage. We hypothesized that the CT and MRI results of lymphadenitis in CSD may be associated with the pathological features. It may be suggested that the diagnosis of CSD may be formed when considering the characteristic CT and MRI features of astral low-density/hypointensity with marked enhancement or a 'rose flower' sign (defined as marginal petaloid enhancement) in the late disease stage, or the MRI results of homogeneous, moderate enhancement in the early disease stage, or the CT/MRI data of heterogeneous enhancement with non-enhancing area in the center in the intermediate disease stage, in solitary or multiple enlarged lymph nodes associated with general subcutaneous edema in the vicinity of the nodes on CT/MRI and with a history of cat exposure.

Contrast-enhanced multiple-phase imaging features of intrahepatic mass-forming cholangiocarcinoma and hepatocellular carcinoma with cirrhosis: A comparative study.

The intrahepatic mass-forming cholangiocarcinoma (IMCC) is frequently misdiagnosed as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with cirrhosis, by numerous radiologists and clinical doctors, which results in the incorrect therapeutic treatment. A retrospective case-control study was conducted, and the contrast-enhanced multiple-phase (CEMP) computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings of 22 pathologically confirmed IMCC patients and 22 HCC controls with underlying liver cirrhosis were analyzed at the present hospital, from January 2010 to December 2015. In addition, serum tests were conducted and clinical symptoms of patients evaluated. A statistical analysis revealed that the enhancement pattern, signal on MRI delayed phase (P<0.001), maximum diameter, capsule retraction, portal vein invasion, bile duct dilation and abdominal lymphadenectasis characteristics were different between IMCC and HCC patients with cirrhosis. On CEMP CT and MRI analysis, the most frequently occurring enhancement patterns of IMCC were progressive patterns (P=0.001 or P<0.001). Conversely, the most frequently occurring enhancement patterns present in HCC were the washout patterns (P<0.001). Therefore, the diagnosis of IMCC in cirrhotic patients should be verified with CEMP CT and MRI analysis for the future, to determine presence or absence of progressive and/or peripheral rim-like enhancement, a hyperintensive delayed phase with capsule retraction, portal vein invasion, bile duct dilation, abdominal lymphadenectasis and increased levels of CA199.

T2-Weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Hepatic Tumor Guided by SPIO-Loaded Nanostructured Lipid Carriers and Ferritin Reporter Genes.

Nowadays, there is a high demand for supersensitive contrast agents for the early diagnostics of hepatocarcinoma. It has been recognized that accurate imaging information is able to be achieved by constructing hepatic tumor specific targeting probes, though it still faces challenges. Here, a AGKGTPSLETTP peptide (A54)-functionalized superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO)-loaded nanostructured lipid carrier (A54-SNLC), which can be specifically uptaken by hepatoma carcinoma cell (Bel-7402) and exhibited ultralow imaging signal intensity with varied Fe concentration on T2-weighted imaging (T2WI), was first prepared as an effective gene carrier. Then, an endogenous ferritin reporter gene for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with tumor-specific promoter (AFP-promoter) was designed, which can also exhibit a decrease in signal intensity on T2WI. At last, using protamine as a cationic mediator, novel ternary nanoparticle of A54-SNLC/protamine/DNA (A54-SNPD) as an active dual-target T2-weighted MRI contrast agent for imaging hepatic tumor was achieved. Owing to the synergistic effect of A54-SNLC and AFP-promoted DNA targeting with Bel-7402 cells, T2 imaging intensity values of hepatic tumors were successfully decreased via the T2 contrast enhancement of ternary nanoparticles. It is emphasized that the novel A54-SNPD ternary nanoparticle as active dual-target T2-weighted MRI contrast agent were able to greatly increase the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of hepatic cancer.

Primary intracerebral osteosarcoma: a rare case report and review.

BACKGROUND: Primary intracranial osteosarcoma is a extremely rare disease entity. We describe a case of primary intracerebral osteosarcoma in an adult brain. CASE DESCRIPTION: A patient who presented with a 1-week history of headaches, and MRI examination was performed. The immunohistochemical diagnosis confirmed primary intracerebral osteosarcoma. The patient was treated with a surgical resection of the tumor. CONCLUSION: Primary osteosarcomas occurring in the brain are extremely rare. The MRI images did not provide a specific pretreatment diagnosis, and the histopathology was the mainstay in establishing the diagnosis.

Differential CT and MR imaging diagnosis between low- and high-grade malignant vascular tumors of bone.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the CT and MR imaging findings and differential diagnosis of malignant vascular tumors of bone. MATERIALS AND METHODS: CT and MR imaging findings of 18 patients with histopathology-proven malignant vascular tumors of bone were examined. Assessed image features included age, sex, location, CT findings, and MR imaging appearances and dynamic contrast-enhanced MR imaging. RESULTS: The study group comprised 18 cases, of which 7 were categorized as low-grade malignant vascular tumors (LMT), and 11 were categorized as high-grade malignant vascular tumors (HMT). Malignant vascular tumors of bone showed osteolytic lesions with heterogeneous signs and enhancement, and frequently associated with soft tissue masses and peritumorous edema. The mean age of patient was respectively 34.7 years in LMT with 3 patients younger than 20 and 49.9 years in HMT with 3 patients older than 60 years. The mean lesion diameter was 3.6 cm (range 2-7.2) in LMT with two lesions <3 cm and 7.1 cm (range 3-13) in HMT with 3 lesions greater than 10 cm. LMT showed multifocal (57.1 %) and well-defined (71.5 %) lesions with residual bone (57.1 %), peripheral sclerosis (85.7 %), and slightly hetergeneous enhancement (71.4 %), compared to those of HMT with 9.1, 45.5, 27.3, and 72.7 %, and 9.1 % respectively. Also, HMT appeared as expansive (54.5 %), ill-defined (54.5 %), macroscopic necrosis/cystic (81.8 %) or hemorrhagic (27.3 %) lesion with pathological fracture (27.3 %), and often presented with obviously hetergeneous enhancement (81.8 %), compared to those of LMT with 42.9, 28.6, 42.9, 0, 14.3 and 14.3 % respectively. CONCLUSIONS: There are some differences in the imaging features between LMT and HMT, while unifocal/multifocal, expansive, ill-defined, necrosis/cystic, hemorrhagic features with age, lesion diameter, peripheral sclerosis, residual bone tissue, pathological fracture and slightly/obviously hetergeneous enhancement highly suggest their differential diagnosis.

Multifunctional SPIO/DOX-loaded A54 Homing Peptide Functionalized Dextran-g-PLGA Micelles for Tumor Therapy and MR Imaging.

Specific delivery of chemotherapy drugs and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agent into tumor cells is one of the issues to highly efficient tumor targeting therapy and magnetic resonance imaging. Here, A54 peptide-functionalized poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)-grafted dextran (A54-Dex-PLGA) was synthesized. The synthesized A54-Dex-PLGA could self-assemble to form micelles with a low critical micelle concentration of 22.51 µg. mL-1 and diameter of about 50 nm. The synthetic A54-Dex-PLGA micelles can encapsulate doxorubicin (DOX) as a model anti-tumor drug and superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) as a contrast agent for MRI. The drug-encapsulation efficiency was about 80% and the in vitro DOX release was prolonged to 72 hours. The DOX/SPIO-loaded micelles could specifically target BEL-7402 cell line. In vitro MRI results also proved the specific binding ability of A54-Dex-PLGA/DOX/SPIO micelles to hepatoma cell BEL-7402. The in vivo MR imaging experiments using a BEL-7402 orthotopic implantation model further validated the targeting effect of DOX/SPIO-loaded micelles. In vitro and in vivo anti-tumor activities results showed that A54-Dex-PLGA/DOX/SPIO micelles revealed better therapeutic effects compared with Dex-PLGA/DOX/SPIO micelles and reduced toxicity compared with commercial adriamycin injection.

Inflammatory pseudotumor of the pineal region: First reported case.

Inflammatory pseudotumors originating in the central nervous system (CNS) are quite rare. To the best of our knowledge, the present study reports the first case of a inflammatory pseudotumor that developed in the pineal region, and describes the neuroimaging, morphological and immunohistochemical findings. A 53-year-old male presented with hearing loss that had been apparent for 1 year and blurred vision that had persisted for 10 months. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) demonstrated a homogeneously-enhanced mass in the pineal region and obstructive hydrocephalus. A pathological examination revealed that the lesion was comprised predominantly of spindled cells in a collagenous background, with dense infiltrates of small lymphocytes, plasma cells and uninucleated histiocytes. Immunopositivity for cluster of differentiation (CD)138 was noted. Immunohistochemical staining showed that the cells were immunonegative for glial fibrillary acidic protein, S-100, placental alkaline phosphatase, neurofilament and Pit-Oct-Unc class 5 homeobox 1. The Ki-67 labeling index was <5%. The lymphocytic infiltrates consisted of CD3- and CD43-positive T-cells, and CD20- and CD79A-positive B-cells. Plasma cells displayed polytypic reactivity for immunoglobulin κ and λ light chains. Based on the MRI and the morphological and immunohistochemical analysis, a diagnosis of an inflammatory pseudotumor was formed. The patient underwent a surgical resection of the tumor and currently has a good prognosis.

Eosinophilic gastroenteritis associated with eosinophilic cystitis: Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging findings.

Eosinophilic gastroenteritis (EG) is a rare, distinct clinical entity, and EG associated with eosinophilic cystitis (EC) is extremely rare and has not been well documented. Here, we report two cases of EG and coexistent EC along with findings from computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). An 18-year-old male with a history of hematuria, urgency and occasional urodynia for two weeks and a 34-year-old male with a history of abdominal distention for one week were admitted to our hospital. Abdominal contrast-enhanced CT in both patients revealed wall thickening in different parts of the gastrointestinal tract with inhomogeneous reinforcement, coexistent with local or diffuse bladder wall thickening with progressive enhancement, and also showed that the bladder mucosal lining was nondestructive. Pelvic MRI showed that the local or diffuse thickened bladder wall was iso-intense on T1-weighted images, hypo-intense on T2-weighted images, and slightly restricted on diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) in one case. After therapy, the thickened wall of the gastrointestinal tract and urinary bladder had improved markedly in the two cases. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the radiological imaging of EG and coexistent EC by both CT and MRI and the first with DWI findings.

Specific targeting of A54 homing peptide-functionalized dextran-g-poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) micelles to tumor cells.

The delivery of chemotherapeutics into tumor cells is a fundamental knot for tumor-target therapy to improve the curative effect and avoid side effects. Here, A54 peptide-functionalized poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)-grafted dextran (A54-Dex-PLGA) was synthesized. The synthesized A54-Dex-PLGA self-assembled to form micelles with a low critical micelle concentration of 16.79 µg·mL(-1) and diameter of about 50 nm. With doxorubicin (DOX) base as a model antitumor drug, the drug-encapsulation efficiency of DOX-loaded A54-Dex-PLGA micelles (A54-Dex-PLGA/DOX) reached up to 75%. In vitro DOX release from the A54-Dex-PLGA/DOX was prolonged to 72 hours. The A54-Dex-PLGA micelles presented excellent internalization ability into hepatoma cells (BEL-7402 cell line and HepG2 cell line) in vitro, and the cellular uptake of the micelles by the BEL-7402 cell line was specific, which was demonstrated by the blocking experiment. In vitro antitumor activity studies confirmed that A54-Dex-PLGA/DOX micelles suppressed tumor-cell (BEL-7402 cell) growth more effectively than Dex-PLGA micelles. Furthermore, in vivo biodistribution testing demonstrated that the A54-Dex-PLGA micelles had a higher distribution ability to BEL-7402 tumors than that to HepG2 tumors.

Pelvic solitary plasmacytoma: computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging findings with histopathologic correlation.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the imaging features of pelvic solitary plasmacytoma and to correlate them with the pathologic grade. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective study was performed on the imaging features of 10 patients with a histological diagnosis of pelvic solitary plasmacytoma. The imaging studies were assessed for bone expansion, cortical destruction, signal intensity/density of soft tissue mass and enhancement manifestations, which were then correlated to the pathologic grade. RESULTS: The imaging features of pelvic solitary plasmacytoma revealed 3 different types: multilocular type (n = 5), unilocular type (n = 2) and complete osteolytic destruction type (n = 3) on computed tomography and MRI. Pathologically, the tumors were classified into low, intermediate and high grades. Features such as multilocular change, perilesional osteosclerosis, slight expansion, local bone cortex disruptions and masses inside bone destruction, often suggest a low-grade solitary plasmacytoma; complete osteolytic destruction, huge soft tissue mass, and osseous defects imply a higher pathologic grade. CONCLUSION: Pelvic solitary plasmacytoma has various imaging manifestations, while a slight expansile osteolytic feature with multilocular change or homogeneous enhancement highly suggests its diagnosis. The distinctive imaging features of pelvic solitary plasmacytoma are well correlated to the pathologic grade.

Computed tomography findings of a solitary extramedullary plasmacytoma of the spleen: A case report and literature review.

Solitary extramedullary plasmacytoma (EMP) of the spleen is a rare condition. The present study describes the case of a 23-year-old female with an extremely rare solitary EMP of the spleen. Upon examination, the tumor demonstrated unusual and notable multiple-phase spiral computed tomography (CT) findings. The lesion was a solitary, well-defined mass, with areas of variable splenic necrosis and cystic degeneration. Contrast-enhanced CT revealed progressive enhancement of the lesion in the cystic wall, internal septa and solid portion, a finding that has not previously been described. The patient underwent a splenectomy and recovered without complications. No evidence of tumor recurrence has occurred during the past two years of follow-up. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to examine the CT findings of a solitary EMP of the spleen. The study aimed to investigate the imaging features of solitary EMP, in particular the multiple-phase spiral CT findings, and raise awareness of the disease to reduce misdiagnoses.

Preliminary Study on Hepatocyte-Targeted Phosphorus-31 MRS Using ATP-Loaded Galactosylated Chitosan Oligosaccharide Nanoparticles.

Background. The clinical applications of hepatic phosphorus-31 magnetic resonance spectroscopy (31P MRS) remain to be difficult because the changes of phosphates between normal hepatic tissues and pathological tissues are not so obvious, and furthermore, up to now there is few literature on hepatocyte-targeted 31P MRS. Materials and Methods. The ATP-loaded Gal-CSO (Gal-CSO/ATP) nanoparticles were prepared and the special cellular uptake of them as evaluated by using HepG-2 tumor cells and A549 tumor cells, respectively. Two kinds of cells were incubated with the nanoparticles suspension, respectively. Then were prepared the cell samples and the enhancement efficiency of ATP peaks detected by 31P MRS was evaluated. Results. The cellular uptake rate of Gal-CSO/ATP nanoparticles in HepG-2 cells was higher than that in A549 cells. Furthermore, the enlarged ATP peaks of Gal-CSO/ATP nanoparticles in HepG-2 cells were higher than those in A549 cells in vitro detected by 31P MRS. Conclusions. Gal-CSO/ATP nanoparticles have significant targeting efficiency in hepatic cells in vitro and enhancement efficiency of ATP peaks in HepG-2 cells. Furthermore, 31P MRS could be applied in the research of hepatic molecular imaging.

Galactosylated chitosan oligosaccharide nanoparticles for hepatocellular carcinoma cell-targeted delivery of adenosine triphosphate.

Nanoparticles composed of galactosylated chitosan oligosaccharide (Gal-CSO) and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) were prepared for hepatocellular carcinoma cell-specific uptake, and the characteristics of Gal-CSO/ATP nanoparticles were evaluated. CSO/ATP nanoparticles were prepared as a control. The average diameter and zeta potential of Gal-CSO/ATP nanoparticles were 51.03 ± 3.26 nm and 30.50 ± 1.25 mV, respectively, suggesting suitable properties for a drug delivery system. Subsequently, the cytotoxicity of Gal-CSO/ATP nanoparticles were examined by the methyl tetrazolium (MTT) assay, and the half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values were calculated with HepG2 (human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line) cells. The results showed that the cytotoxic effect of nanoparticles on HepG2 cells was low. In the meantime, it was also found that the Gal-CSO/ATP nanoparticles could be uptaken by HepG2 cells, due to expression of the asialoglycoprotein receptor (ASGP-R) on their surfaces. The presented results indicate that the Gal-CSO nanoparticles might be very attractive to be used as an intracellular drug delivery carrier for hepatocellular carcinoma cell targeting, thus warranting further in vivo or clinical investigations.