High-quality, 25 nm octahedral-shaped Fe3O4 magnetite nanocrystals are epitaxially grown on 9 nm Au seed nanoparticles using a modified wet-chemical synthesis. These Fe3O4-Au Janus nanoparticles exhibit bulk-like magnetic properties. Due to their high magnetization and octahedral shape, the hybrids show superior in vitro and in vivo T2 relaxivity for magnetic resonance imaging as compared to other types of Fe3O4-Au hybrids and commercial contrast agents. The nanoparticles provide two functional surfaces for theranostic applications. For the first time, Fe3O4-Au hybrids are conjugated with two fluorescent dyes or the combination of drug and dye allowing the simultaneous tracking of the nanoparticle vehicle and the drug cargo in vitro and in vivo. The delivery to tumors and payload release are demonstrated in real time by intravital microscopy. Replacing the dyes by cell-specific molecules and drugs makes the Fe3O4-Au hybrids a unique all-in-one platform for theranostics.

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Size-selected Fe3O4–Au hybrid nanoparticles with diameters of 6–44 nm (Fe3O4) and 3–11 nm (Au) were prepared by high temperature, wet chemical synthesis. High-quality Fe3O4 nanocrystals with bulk-like magnetic behavior were obtained as confirmed by the presence of the Verwey transition. The 25 nm diameter Fe3O4–Au hybrid nanomaterial sample (in aqueous and agarose phantom systems) showed the best characteristics for application as contrast agents in magnetic resonance imaging and for local heating using magnetic particle hyperthermia. Due to the octahedral shape and the large saturation magnetization of the magnetite particles, we obtained an extraordinarily high r 2-relaxivity of 495 mM−1·s−1 along with a specific loss power of 617 W·gFe −1 and 327 W·gFe −1 for hyperthermia in aqueous and agarose systems, respectively. The functional in vitro hyperthermia test for the 4T1 mouse breast cancer cell line demonstrated 80% and 100% cell death for immediate exposure and after precultivation of the cells for 6 h with 25 nm Fe3O4–Au hybrid nanomaterials, respectively. This confirms that the improved magnetic properties of the bifunctional particles present a next step in magnetic-particle-based theranostics.

Magnetic nanomaterials show significant promise as contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We have developed a new highly efficient one-step procedure for the synthesis of magnetically-functionalised hollow carbon nanofibres, where (i) the carbon nanofibres act as both a template and a support for the nucleation and growth of magnetite nanoparticles and (ii) the structural (size, dispersity and morphology) and functional (magnetisation and coercivity) properties of the magnetic nanoparticles formed on nanofibres are strictly controlled by the mass ratio of the magnetite precursor to the nanofibres and the solvent employed during synthesis. We have shown that our magnetitenanofibre materials are effectively solubilised in water resulting in a stable suspension that has been employed as a "negative" MRI contrast agent with an excellent transverse relaxivity (r 2 ) of (268 ± 13) mM/s, surpassing current commercial materials and state-of-the-art magnetic nanoscale platforms in performance for MRI contrast at high magnetic fields. The 2 preparation and evaluation of this unique hybrid nanomaterial represents a critical step towards the realisation of a highly efficient "smart" MRI theranostic agent -a material that allows for the combined diagnosis (with MRI), treatment (with magnetic targeting) and follow-up of a disease (with MRI) -currently in high demand for various clinical applications, including personalised nanomedicine.

Herein, we report a novel one-step solvothermal synthesis of magnetite nanoclusters (MNCs). In this report, we discuss the synthesis, structure, and properties of MNCs and contrast enhancement in T-weighted MR images using magnetite nanoclusters. The effect of different organic acids, used as surfactants, on the size and shape of MNCs was investigated. The structure and properties of samples were determined by magnetic measurements, TGA, TEM, HRTEM, XRD, FTIR, and MRI. Magnetic measurements show that obtained MNCs have relatively high saturation magnetization values (65.1-81.5 emu/g) and dependence of the coercive force on the average size of MNCs was established. MNCs were transferred into an aqueous medium by Pluronic F-127, and T-relaxivity values were determined. T-Weighted MR phantom images clearly demonstrated that such magnetite nanoclusters can be used as contrast agents for MRI.

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