Innovative Gold/Cobalt Ferrite Nanocomposite: Physicochemical and Cytotoxicity Properties

Abstract

The combination of plasmonic material and magnetic metal oxide nanoparticles is widely used in multifunctional nanosystems. Here we propose a method for the fabrication of a gold/cobalt ferrite nanocomposite for biomedical applications. The composite includes gold cores of ~10 nm in diameter coated with arginine, which are surrounded by small cobalt ferrite nanoparticles with diameters of ~5 nm covered with dihydrocaffeic acid. The structure and elemental composition, morphology and dimensions, magnetic and optical properties, and biocompatibility of new nanocomposite were studied. The magnetic properties of the composite are mostly determined by the superparamagnetic state of cobalt ferrite nanoparticles, and optical properties are influenced by the localized plasmon resonance in gold nanoparticles. The cytotoxicity of gold/cobalt ferrite nanocomposite was tested using T-lymphoblastic leukemia and peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Studied composite has selective citotoxic effect on cancerous cells while it has no cytotoxic effect on healtly cells. The results suggest that this material can be explored in the future for combined photothermal treatment and magnetic theranostic.

Gold/cobalt ferrite nanocomposite as a potential agent for photothermal therapy

“…The developed composite CFO/AU nanoparticles can mediate not only light but also ac magnetic fields in tumor hyperthermia. Magnetic properties of CFONPs and their gold composites were investigated previously [36]. The measured magnetization loops had small coercive force (<1 mT) and remanence magnetization, which is consistent with superparamagnetic properties due to small size of CFO NPs.…”

“…Given the composition, it is unlikely that there is any chemical bonding between AuNPs that would cause them to directly attract each other. Further information on the chemical composition and structural properties of the CNPs can be found in the authors' previous publication [36].…”

“…The inset provides an enlarged view of the spectra with an offset. The original spectra have been extracted from a previously published study by the authors [36].…”

“…This study presents a comprehensive investigation involving optical modeling, photothermal studies, and biocompatibility assessment of composite nanoparticle (CNP) systems comprised of AuNPs surrounded by cobalt ferrite nanoparticles (CFONPs) (Figure 1) [36, 37]. CFONPs were covered with dihydrocaffeic acid (DHCA) and the CNPs were covered with arginine to induce the electrostatic coupling in the system.…”

“…CFONPs were covered with dihydrocaffeic acid (DHCA) and the CNPs were covered with arginine to induce the electrostatic coupling in the system. The magnetic properties of these particles were investigated previously [36]. The hysteresis loops are characterized by small values of coercivity and remanence magnetization which means that most CFONPs are superparamagnetic.…”