Magnetic Prussian Blue Nanoparticles for Targeted Photothermal Therapy under Magnetic Resonance Imaging Guidance

Abstract

This paper reported a core-shell nanotheranostic agent by growing Prussian blue (PB) nanoshells of 3-6 nm around superparamagnetic Fe3O4 nanocores for targeted photothermal therapy of cancer under magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) guidance. Both in vitro and in vivo experiments proved that the Fe3O4@PB core-shell nanoparticles showed significant contrast enhancement for T2-weighted MRI with the relaxivity value of 58.9 mM(-1)·s(-1). Simultaneously, the composite nanoparticles exhibited a high photothermal effect under irradiation of a near-infrared laser due to the strong absorption of PB nanoshells, which led to more than 80% death of HeLa cells with only 0.016 mg·mL(-1) of the nanoparticles with the aid of the magnetic targeting effect. Using tumor-bearing nude mice as the model, the near-infrared laser light ablated the tumor effectively in the presence of the Fe3O4@PB nanoparticles and the tumor growth inhibition was evaluated to be 87.2%. Capabilities of MRI, magnetic targeting, and photothermal therapy were thus integrated into a single agent to allow efficient MRI-guided targeted photothermal therapy. Most importantly, both PB and Fe3O4 nanoparticles were already clinically approved drugs, so the Fe3O4@PB nanoparticles as a theranostic nanomedicine would be particularly promising for clinical applications in the human body due to the reliable biosafety.

Composite iron oxide–Prussian blue nanoparticles for magnetically guided T₁-weighted magnetic resonance imaging and photothermal therapy of tumors

“…[23][24][25] This synthesis relies on the attachment of Fe(CN 6 ) 4-onto the surface of iron oxide nanoparticles at an acidic pH (refer "Materials and methods" section for details), and the subsequent growth of a GdPB shell by the reaction of Fe(CN 6 ) 4-, Fe 3+ , and Gd 3+ on the surface of the iron oxide nanoparticles. To determine the properties of the Fe 3 O 4 @GdPB nanoparticles synthesized using the presented two-step scheme ( Figure 1A), we first measured the size distributions and charges of the nanoparticles using dynamic light scattering.…”

“…21,22 Earlier reports have described the synthesis of magnetic Prussian blue nanoparticles (without gadolinium) for T2W imaging combined with photothermal therapy (PTT) of tumors and gene transfection or chemotherapy combined with PTT of tumors. [23][24][25] Building on these earlier findings, we utilize our Fe 3 O 4 @ GdPB nanoparticles for magnetically guided, T 1 -weighted (T1W) imaging and PTT of tumors. Compared with T2W images, T1W images offer several advantages including enhanced visualization of vascular structures, key for the entry of Dx and Rx agents into tumors, and are less prone to artifacts such as those present in fluid-filled structures in particular.…”

“…[23][24][25] Briefly, coprecipitation was used to synthesize Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles where a 1:2 molar ratio of Fe 2+ :Fe 3+ was added dropwise into a stirred solution of 1 M NaOH. 31 The resultant black precipitate containing Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles was thoroughly rinsed and dispersed in ultrapure water by centrifugation (at least three times at 22,000× g for 10 minutes) and resuspension (using sonication to disperse the pellet, as needed).…”

Recent advances in the development of organic photothermal nano-agents

“…Prussian blue (PB), which has been approved by FDA for the treatment of radioactive exposure in the clinic, has also been investigated as a photothermal agent by several groups including ours [73][74][75]. In our latest work [74], PEGylated PB nanocubes (PB-PEG NCs) were fabricated and i.v.…”

Facile synthesis of Prussian blue nanoparticles as pH-responsive drug carriers for combined photothermal-chemo treatment of cancer

“…For instance, several theranostic systems based on PB NPs have been developed, such as Fe 3 O 4 @PB NPs for improved magnetic resonance imaging and PTT, 31 Au@PB NPs for dual mode photoacoustic/CT imaging and PTT, 32 PB coated NaDyF 4 :x% Lu nanocomposites for multifunctional imaging-guided PTT, 33 etc. Moreover, hollow and porous PB NPs with high drug payload have been developed as anticancer drug delivery vehicles for combined photothermal-chemo treatment of cancer cells with enhanced efficiency.…”