Synthesis of Pluronic F127-coated Magnesium/Calcium (Mg1-xCaxFe2O4) magnetic nanoparticles for biomedical applications

Abstract Magnetic nanoparticles are promising materials for biomedical applications such as hyperthermia treatment. In this study, the synthesis of Mg1-xCaxFe2O4, x=0.0-0.9 nanoparticles, and coating with Pluronic F127 was carried out and evaluated as possible candidates for magnetic hyperthermia applications. The nanoparticles were synthesized by the thermal decomposition method using metallic salts of Fe, Mg, and Ca in the form of acetylacetonates. The crystalline structure and the magnetic properties of the samples due to the substitution of Mg2+ by Ca2+ in the synthesized samples were evaluated. The samples possess an inverse spinel structure, and the lattice parameter increased as the substitution of Ca2+ ions took place. Vibration sample magnetometry (VSM) was used to evaluate the magnetic properties and to quantify the saturation magnetization (Ms), the remnant magnetization (Mr), and the coercive field (Hc) of the samples. The morphology was quasi-spherical, and their average size was less than 10 nm as determined by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The heating ability of selected Pluronic F-127 coated ferrites indicate that the nanoparticles can increase the medium temperature up to 42°C in a time of 7 min. Hemolysis values were less than 2.5% for all evaluated samples, indicating no cytotoxic effect on the red blood cells. The presented results allow indicating that the nanoparticles of Mg0.9Ca0.1Fe2O4 are candidates for their potential use as thermoseeds for magnetic hyperthermia treatment.