Covalent bridging of surface functionalized Fe3O4 and YPO4:Eu nanostructures for simultaneous imaging and therapyElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Cell culture procedure, photograph of an induction coil, TEM images, normalized absorbance vs. time plot, magnetization plots, emission and excitation spectra, fluorescence image and protein-particle interaction (Fig. S1-S8, Table S1). See DOI: 10.1039/c5dt01522g

• Main Authors: Barick, K. C, Sharma, Anusha, Shetake, Neena G, Ningthoujam, R. S, Vatsa, R. K, Babu, P. D, Pandey, B. N, Hassan, P. A
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1477-9226; 1477-9234
• DOI: 10.1039/c5dt01522g

Magnetic luminescent hybrid nanostructures (MLHN) have received a great deal of attention due to their potential biomedical applications such as thermal therapy, magnetic resonance imaging, drug delivery and intracellular imaging. We report the development of bifunctional Fe 3 O 4 decorated YPO 4 :Eu hybrid nanostructures by covalent bridging of carboxyl PEGylated Fe 3 O 4 and amine functionalized YPO 4 :Eu particles. The surface functionalization of individual nanoparticulates as well as their successful conjugation was evident from Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering (DLS), zeta-potential and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis reveals the formation of highly crystalline hybrid nanostructures. TEM micrographs clearly show the binding/anchoring of 10 nm Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles onto the surface of 100-150 nm rice grain shaped YPO 4 :Eu nanostructures. These MLHN show good colloidal stability, magnetic field responsivity and self-heating capacity under an external AC magnetic field. The induction heating studies confirmed localized heating of MLHN under an AC magnetic field with a high specific absorption rate. Photoluminescence spectroscopy and fluorescence microscopy results show optical imaging capability of MLHN. Furthermore, successful internalization of these MLHN in the cells and their cellular imaging ability are confirmed from confocal microscopy imaging. Specifically, the hybrid nanostructure provides an excellent platform to integrate luminescent and magnetic materials into one single entity that can be used as a potential tool for hyperthermia treatment of cancer and cellular imaging. Development of Fe 3 O 4 decorated YPO 4 :Eu magnetic luminescent hybrid nanostructures (MLHN) for hyperthermia therapy and cellular imaging.