Home > NANO-RESEARCH > Vol. 5 (2012) > No. 3

Article Title
A functionalized graphene oxide-iron oxide nanocomposite for magnetically targeted drug delivery, photothermal therapy, and magnetic resonance imaging
Keywords
Graphene oxide, magnetic nanocomposite, magnetic targeting, drug delivery, photothermal therapy, magnetic resonance imaging
Abstract
Two-dimensional graphene and its composite nanomaterials offer interesting physical/chemical properties and have been extensively explored in a wide range of fields in recent years. In this work, we synthesize a multifunctional superparamagnetic graphene oxide–iron oxide hybrid nanocomposite (GO–IONP), which is then functionalized by a biocompatible polyethylene glycol (PEG) polymer to acquire high stability in physiological solutions. A chemotherapy drug, doxorubicin (DOX), was loaded onto GO–IONP–PEG, forming a GO–IONP– PEG–DOX complex, which enables magnetically targeted drug delivery. GO–IONP–PEG also exhibits strong optical absorbance from the visible to the near-infrared (NIR) region, and can be utilized for localized photothermal ablation of cancer cells guided by the magnetic field. Moreover, for the first time, in vivo magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of tumor-bearing mice is also demonstrated using GO–IONP–PEG as the T2 contrast agent. Our work suggests the promise of using multifunctional GO-based nanocomposites for applications in cancer theranostics.
Graphical Abstract
Publisher
Tsinghua University Press
Recommended Citation
Xinxing Ma,Huiquan Tao,Kai Yang,Liangzhu Feng,Liang Cheng,Xiaoze Shi,Yonggang Li,Liang Guo,Zhuang Liu, A functionalized graphene oxide-iron oxide nanocomposite for magnetically targeted drug delivery, photothermal therapy, and magnetic resonance imaging. NanoRes.2012, 5(3): 199–212