Applications of Fe3O4 magnetic-fluorescent nanoparticles in modern biomedical engineering

Abstract Cancer is one of the most serious diseases that people want to cure at present. For cancer therapy, drug delivery manner plays an important role in the anticancer efficacy of medicinally active molecules. An ideal drug carrier should combine a variety of functions, such as protection to keep the carrier stable and avoid nonspecific cell uptake, tumor-targeting ability to accumulate at tumor sites, ligand-mediated cell adhesion for efficient cellular entry, and effective drug encapsulation to permit the drug release inside tumoral cells only. Fe3O4 magnetic-fluorescent nanoparticles have been widely investigated in the field of biomedicine, for which the direct imaging, accurate diagnosis, targeted drug delivery, and high efficacy with low toxicity are among the key issues that attract substantial research interest. This chapter summarizes the research progress of Fe3O4-based magnetic-fluorescent nanoparticles, including three main combination modes: luminescent quantum dots, organic fluorescent materials, and lanthanide rare earth ion–doped compounds. The preparation methods, composite way, and performance characterization of the magnetic-fluorescent nanocomposites are all introduced. In the end, the chapter not only summarizes the application of magnetic-fluorescent nanocomposites in the field of modern biomedicine but also looks forward to the future.