Engineering Multifunctional Magnetic Nanoparticles for Theranostics and Beyond

Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) have become quite popular in biotechnology and biomedicine due to their unique physicochemical properties that enable simultaneous diagnostic and therapeutic applications. Their dual functionality has garnered significant attention, particularly in theragnostic approaches involving magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetic hyperthermia (MHT). We achieved significant enhancements in MR imaging and thermal efficiency by carefully adjusting the synthesis parameters of iron oxide MNPs prepared with additional metal ions, such as Mn and Zn. Utilizing the heat- responsive gene delivery potential of these nanoparticles, we developed cancer-specific treatment approaches via the external heat-control of gene expression. Moreover, our findings indicated that polydopamine-coated MNPs exhibit selective affinity for cell types and trigger reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated cytotoxicity in neuroblastoma cells. We observed both localized and systemic therapeutic responses in tumor-bearing rat models following the targeted delivery of immunostimulatory nucleic acids via MNPs. These results underscore the potential of MNPs in modulating immune responses for effective cancer therapy. Additionally, we demonstrated that surface-functionalized MNPs enhance protein immobilization efficiency and secretion levels in microorganism-based recombinant protein production platforms. Our combined results have been presented in this work that provides an in-depth understanding of the surface modification techniques, synthesis approaches, and several biological applies of MNPs. It discusses the revolutionary effect of these nanoparticles as active therapeutic entities able to direct challenging biological processes as well as delivery vehicles or imaging agents. This study consequently emphasizes the important roles MNPs could play in developing the future scene of nanomedicine and nanobiotechnology.