Reactive Oxygen Species Yield near Gold Nanoparticles Under Ultrahigh-Dose-Rate Electron Beams: A Monte Carlo Study

Ultrahigh dose rate (UHDR) radiotherapy, also known as FLASH radiotherapy (FLASH-RT), has shown potential for increasing tumor control while sparing normal tissue. In parallel, gold nanoparticles (GNPs) have been extensively explored as radiosensitizers due to their high atomic number and ability to enhance the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) through water radiolysis. In this study, we investigate the synergistic effects of UHDR electron beams and GNP-mediated radiosensitization using Monte Carlo (MC) simulations based on the Geant4-DNA code. A spherical water phantom with embedded GNPs of varying sizes (5–100 nm) was irradiated using pulsed electron beams (100 keV and 1 MeV) at dose rates of 60, 100, and 150 Gy/s. The chemical yield of ROS near the GNPs was quantified and compared to an equivalent water nanoparticle model, and the yield enhancement factor (YEF) was used to evaluate radiosensitization. Results demonstrated that YEF increased with smaller GNP sizes and at lower UHDR, particularly for 1 MeV electrons. A maximum YEF of 1.25 was observed at 30 nm from the GNP surface for 5 nm particles at 60 Gy/s. The elevated ROS concentration near GNPs under FLASH conditions is expected to intensify DNA damage, especially double-strand breaks, due to increased hydroxyl radical interactions within nanometric distances of critical biomolecular targets. These findings highlight the significance of nanoparticle size and beam parameters in optimizing ROS production for FLASH-RT. The results provide a computational basis for future experimental investigations into the combined use of GNPs and UHDR beams in nanoparticle-enhanced radiotherapy.