Medical applications of multifunctional magnetic nanoparticles

Recent advances in nanoparticle-based therapeutics and imaging systems have shown great benefits in medical applications including drug or gene delivery, separation and purification of biological entities, imaging, sensing, and monitoring of biomarkers. Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) can be coated with various polymers and functionalized with different types of targeting agents (e.g., small molecules, peptides, antibodies, or aptamers) as well as imaging agents (e.g., fluorophores and radionuclides). Once functionalized, these multimodal nanosystems (NSs) can be loaded or conjugated with therapeutic agents and used for targeted imaging and therapy of diseases such as different types of malignancies. Advances in the field of imaging modalities such as magnetic resonance imaging, positron emission tomography, and single-photon emission computed tomography have also highlighted the great benefits of multifunctional MNPs. The promising characteristics of MNPs in the sensing field make a paramount NS with high sensitivity and great potential in the area of detection and molecular markers. Based on in vivo and in vitro pieces of evidence, MNPs can be regarded as promising nanomaterials in developing multifunctional stimuli-responsive theranostics to serve as NSs for simultaneous monitoring and treatment of various diseases.