Ureasil–Polyether–CoFe₂O₄ Nanocomposites: Coupling a Drug Delivery System and Magnetic Hyperthermia

Abstract

In this work, we evaluate the effect of the ureasil–polyether hybrid nature on the magnetic hyperthermia (MH) properties and drug delivery patterns of nanocomposites prepared by the conjugation of cobalt ferrite (CoFe2O4) superparamagnetic nanoparticles (SPN) with ureasil–poly­(propylene oxide) (UPPO) and ureasil–poly­(ethylene oxide) (UPEO). The results of small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analyses evidenced that the nanoscopic structure and thermal properties remained essentially unaffected by conjugation of the SPN with the hybrid material. The lower heat capacity of the UPPO–CoFe2O4 nanocomposite promoted a higher efficiency of MH compared to the UPEO–CoFe2O4 nanocomposite. The temperature variations achieved by UPPO–CoFe2O4 and UPEO–CoFe2O4 were 34 and 20 °C, respectively, when subjected to an alternating magnetic field (AMF) for 240 s. The drug delivery patterns of sodium diclofenac (SDCF) from UPPO and UPEO were unaffected by the conjugation with SPN or by MH.

Magnetic Hyperthermia to Promote Acrylamide Radical Polymerizations

“…CoFe 2 O 4 NPs were synthesized through a coprecipitation method. 41 Briefly, cobalt(II) Hydrogel monomer formulation was prepared by dissolving 200 mg of acrylamide, 10 mg of bis-acrylamide, and 10 mg of ammonium persulfate in deionized water (final volume of 2 mL). For the magnetic hydrogel, an aqueous suspension of CoFe 2 O 4 NPs with a concentration of 14 mg/mL was used instead of deionized water.…”

“…CoFe 2 O 4 NPs were synthesized through a coprecipitation method . Briefly, cobalt­(II) nitrate hexahydrate (2.8 g) and iron­(III) chloride hexahydrate (5.4 g) were dissolved in deionized water (300 mL).…”

Superparamagnetic cobalt ferrite nanoparticles synthesized by gamma irradiation

“…8 They have thus been used in nanomedicine in both diagnostic and therapeutic applications such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), 9 drug delivery, 10 and especially magnetic hyperthermia therapy (MHT) for cancer treatment. [11][12][13] The synthesis of cobalt ferrite CoFe 2 O 4 has been extensively explored by various methods including co-precipitation, 14,15 solgel, 16 solvothermal, 17 hydrothermal, 18 thermal decomposition, 19,20 reduction in boiling polyol, 21 or alkalide in ethers (Table S1, ESI †). 22 Over the past 40 years, radiation-induced synthesis has been extensively used to prepare metal and semiconductor nanoscale particles, [23][24][25] including metal sulfides.…”

“…8 They have thus been used in nanomedicine in both diagnostic and therapeutic applications such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), 9 drug delivery, 10 and especially magnetic hyperthermia therapy (MHT) for cancer treatment. 11–13…”

Effect of Organomontmorillonite-Cloisite® 20A Incorporation on the Structural and Drug Release Properties of Ureasil–PEO Hybrid

“…By controlling hydrolysis and condensation (sol–gel reactions) of the organosilane precursor, mechanical strength, thermal stability, and 3D insoluble networks are formed. The remarkable properties of ureasil based materials, such as rubbery, flexibility, transparency, mechanical resistance, hydrogel behavior, and insolubility in water, result from the functional groups present through the structure: urea, ether type oxygen, and silanol [ 24 , 25 , 26 ].…”