Multifunctional nanoparticle system provides both diagnostic, therapeutic applications

Functional nanoparticles are being increasingly explored for their diverse applications in medical diagnostics and therapeutics. These particles can deliver drugs, enhance therapies, and provide diagnostic information in a deeply targeted fashion, making them especially valuable for cancer screenings and treatments.

Vinícius-Araújo et al. developed a nanoparticle carrier system consisting of zinc-manganese ferrite and rare earth-doped fluoride nanoparticles encapsulated in a red blood cell membrane. Their nanocarrier system possesses both heat transfer and luminescent properties, making it useful for several applications.

“The goal was to create a single platform that could provide heat delivery and real-time temperature monitoring through luminescent nanothermometry,” said author Andris Bakuzis. “By integrating these functions, the effectiveness of pre-clinical treatments is potentially increased.”

The luminescent properties of the fluoride nanoparticles can be used to detect cancer through selective binding to cancer cells, and their thermal sensitivity allows for temperature sensing and monitoring heat delivery from treatments. Meanwhile, the ferrite nanoparticles can deliver heat through magnetic hyperthermia or photothermal therapy. The red blood cell membrane encapsulating them can aid in targeting cancer cells and reducing immune responses.

The authors plan to continue to develop their carrier system to expand its functionality and increase its performance.

“Our next steps include optimizing the encapsulation of the zinc-manganese ferrite nanoparticles in comparison to the rare-earth doped fluorides to enhance the efficiency in both heat delivery and luminescent thermometry, adjusting the amount of rare earth ions to enhance the functionalities, and exploring the system for several imaging modalities, such as MRI, photoacoustic imaging, or magnetic particle imaging,” said Bakuzis.

Source: “Erythrocyte membrane-camouflaged magnetic and up/downconverting nanoparticles for photothermal therapy and luminescent nanothermometry,” by Marcus Vinícius-Araújo, Lucas Ribeiro de Sousa, Ricardo Costa de Santana, Sebastião Antonio Mendanha, and Andris Figueiroa Bakuzis, Applied Physics Letters (2024). The article can be accessed at https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0211889 .