γ-Fe2O3/Gd2O3-chitosan magnetic nanocomposite for hyperthermia application: structural, magnetic, heating efficiency and cytotoxicity studies

Abstract

We report a facile and friendly to the environment method for the preparation of superparamagnetic γ-Fe2O3/Gd2O3-chitosan nanocomposite for magnetic hyperthermia application. The nanocomposite was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), vibrating sample magnetometer, Scanning electron microscopy and Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDAX). In addition, the heating efficiency and biocompatibility with human cells are reported. XRD patterns indicated that the most dominant crystalline phase is γ-Fe2O3with the presence of chitosan in the coated sample. FT-IR and EDAX confirmed the presence of chitosan on the surface of the nanostructure. Magnetic measurements showed the superparamagnetic behavior with decrease in saturation after coating due to diamagnetic nature of chitosan. This behavior is corroborated by the successfully fitting into Langevin function for paramagnetic materials. The specific absorption rate under an alternating magnetic field is investigated as a function of the concentration and amplitude of the applied magnetic field. A mean heating efficiency of 35 W/g is obtained for concentration of 15 mg/ml at 332 kHz and 170 Oe. It was found that the heating efficiency of the nanocomposite can be tuned by changing parameters such as concentration and amplitude of applied AC magnetic field. Cell viability assay of coated nanocomposite showed low cytotoxic effect on A549 cells line (human alveolar epithelial). In overall, the prepared nanocomposite can be used as potential candidate for magnetic hyperthermia application due to their superparamagnetic nature, heating ability and biocompatibility with human cells.