Heating Tumors to Death using Functionalized Fe_3O_4 Magnetic Nanoparticles

摘要

Application of Magnetic Nanoparticles (MN) has emerged as a potential mode of hyperthermia, a modality for cancer therapy, in which temperature of a tumor is increased beyond physiological temperature up to 40-43 °C. We have prepared Fe_3O_4 magnetic nanoparticles (Fe_3O_4-MN), which were surface-functionalized with polyethylene glycol (Fe_3O_4-PEG-MN) and oleic acid (Fe_3O_4-OA-MN) to make them water and lipid soluble, respectively; as well as to control their size. The particle sizes for Fe_3O_4-MN, Fe_3O_4-OA-MN and Fe_3O_4-PEG-MN were found to be 12,6 and 8 nm, respectively. Under induction heating conditions, these MN preparations could achieve hyperthermic temperature. Interestingly, Fe_3O_4-OA-MN showed higher cytotoxicity in human breast cancer cells as compared to Fe_3O_4-MN and Fe_3O_4-PEG-MN, which was further enhanced when MN treated cells were subjected to induction heating.