Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Sep 15;11(9):2398.
doi: 10.3390/nano11092398.

PEG Coated Fe3O4/RGO Nano-Cube-Like Structures for Cancer Therapy via Magnetic Hyperthermia

Anoud Alkhayal  1 , Arshia Fathima  1 , Ali H Alhasan  2 , Edreese H Alsharaeh  1
Affiliations

PEG Coated Fe3O4/RGO Nano-Cube-Like Structures for Cancer Therapy via Magnetic Hyperthermia

Anoud Alkhayal et al. Nanomaterials (Basel). .

Abstract

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) have high saturation magnetization and are promising candidates for hyperthermia. They may act as magnetic heating agents when subjected to magnetic field in nano-based hyperthermia. In this work, cube-like Fe3O4 nanoparticles (labelled as cubic SPIONs) with reduced graphene oxide (RGO) nanocomposites were prepared by a microwave hydrothermal method. The shape and size of magnetic nanoparticles were controlled by varying synthesis parameters, including reaction time, pressure and microwave power. This study successfully synthesized cubic SPIONs nanocomposites with an average particle size between 24-34 nm. Poly-(ethylene) glycol (PEG) was used as a coating material on SPIONs to enhance biocompatibility. The RGO sheets provided a high surface area-to-volume ratio for SPIONs to be dispersed on their surface, and hence, they prevented aggregation of the SPIONs in the nanocomposites. Magnetically induced heating studies on the optimized nanocomposite (Fe3O4/RGO/PEG) demonstrated heating capabilities for magnetic hyperthermia application with a promising specific absorption rate (SAR) value of 58.33 W/g in acidic solution. Cytotoxicity tests were also performed to ensure low nanoparticle toxicity before incorporation into the human body. The results of the standard assay for the toxicity determination of the nanocomposites revealed over 70% cell survival after 48 h, suggesting the feasibility of using the synthesized nanocomposites for magnetic hyperthermia.

Keywords: breast cancer; cubic nanoparticles; hyperthermia; iron oxide nanoparticles; multi-functional nanocomposites; nano-magnetism.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Comparative XRD analysis for Fe3O4 nanocomposites containing RGO and PEG.
Figure 2
Figure 2
HR-TEM for (a) Fe3O4/RGO/PEG at the scale of 5 nm, (b) d-spacing of 0.25 nm for Fe3O4 nanoparticles, (c) Fe3O4/RGO/PEG at the scale of 2 nm showing clear cubic structure and (d) nanoparticles of the Fe3O4/RGO/PEG nanocomposite at the scale of 20 nm.
Figure 3
Figure 3
EDX spectrum of Fe3O4/RGO/PEG nanocomposite.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Heating profiles for 1.6 mg/mL solutions of Fe3O4/RGO (blue) and Fe3O4/RGO/PEG (red) in PBS medium at magnetic field of 200 A.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Heating profiles for 1.6 mg/mL solutions of Fe3O4/RGO (blue) and Fe3O4/RGO/PEG (red) along with the control (green) in aqueous DMSO medium at magnetic field of 200 A.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Heating profiles for 1.6 mg/mL Fe3O4/RGO (blue) and 1.6 mg/mL Fe3O4/RGO/PEG (red) in a 4.66 pH buffer at a magnetic field of 200 A.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Cytotoxicity analysis of Fe3O4 nanocomposites in HEK-2 normal cells (24 h incubation).
Figure 8
Figure 8
Cytotoxicity analysis of Fe3O4 nanocomposites in MCF-7 cells (24 h incubation).
Figure 9
Figure 9
Cytotoxicity analysis of Fe3O4 nanocomposites in HEK-2 normal cells (48 h incubation).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Nazir S., Hussain T., Ayub A., Rashid U., MacRobert A. Nanomaterials in combating cancer: Therapeutic applications and developments. Nanomed. Nanotechnol. Biol. Med. 2014;10:19–34. doi: 10.1016/j.nano.2013.07.001. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Liu G., Gao J., Ai H., Chen X. Applications and Potential Toxicity of Magnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles. Small. 2012;9:1533–1545. doi: 10.1002/smll.201201531. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Chu M., Shao Y., Peng J., Dai X., Li H., Wu Q., Shi D. Near-infrared laser light mediated cancer therapy by photothermal effect of Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles. Biomaterials. 2013;34:4078–4088. doi: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2013.01.086. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Rauch J., Kolch W., Mahmoudi M. Cell Type-Specific Activation of AKT and ERK Signaling Pathways by Small Negatively-Charged Magnetic Nanoparticles. Sci. Rep. 2012;2:868. doi: 10.1038/srep00868. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Beik J., Abed Z., Ghoreishi F., Hosseini-Nami S., Mehrzadi S., Shakeri-Zadeh A., Kamrava S. Nanotechnology in hyperthermia cancer therapy: From fundamental principles to advanced applications. J. Control. Release. 2016;235:205–221. doi: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2016.05.062. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources