Preparation and characterization of superparamagnetic inorganic/polymer particles for biomedical application

Superparamagnetic -Fe2O3 nanoparticles were synthesized by coprecipitation of ferric and ferrous salts with a base. Resulting nanoparticles were coated with shells, such as poly(N,N- dimethylacrylamide) (PDMAAm), neat and functionalized silica (SiO2 and SiO2-NH2), and polyaniline (PANI). PDMAAm shell was introduced by modification of iron oxide nanoparticle surface with an initiator and N,N-dimethylacrylamide was polymerized producing -Fe2O3&PDMAAm core-shell particles. In case of SiO2-NH2 shell, tetramethyl orthosilicate was used to yield -Fe2O3&SiO2 nanoparticles, which were subsequently modified by (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane to prepare γ-Fe2O3&SiO2-NH2 particles. Oxidation of aniline hydrochloride with ammonium persulfate in an aqueous solution of poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) in the presence of iron oxides produced -Fe2O3&PANI nanoparticles. Finally, the last type of the particles was based on thionin-modified poly(carboxymethyl methacrylate) (PCMMA&Th). The particles were characterized by techniques, such as scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM and TEM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS) to determine the particle morphology and hydrodynamic diameter. The presence of the functional groups, chemical composition, and the iron content were investigated by Fourier-transform..