Nanoparticles of various compositions are increasingly being used in many areas of medicine. The aim of this study was to develop nanoparticles, which would possess both magnetic and conductive properties and, thus improve their suitability for a wider range of biomedical applications. Namely, it would enable both the particle manipulation and imaging using their magnetic properties and simultaneous stimulation of electro-sensitive cell types using their magnetic properties, which can be used in tissue therapy, engineering and as biosensors. Maghemite (γ-Fe2O3) particles were prepared by the co-precipitation of Fe(2+) and Fe(3+) salts with ammonium hydroxide, followed by the controlled oxidation with NaOCl. The polyaniline (PANI) shell on the γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles was obtained by the polymerization of aniline hydrochloride with ammonium peroxydisulfate in an aqueous solution of poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) at two reaction temperatures (0 and 25 °C). The resulting γ-Fe2O3&PANI particles were characterized by both the light and transmission electron microscopies, dynamic light scattering, magnetic measurements, UV-vis and energy dispersive X-ray (EDAX) spectroscopy. The size of the starting γ-Fe2O3 particles was 11 nm, that increased to 25 nm after the modification with PANI. The incubation of both the γ-Fe2O3 and γ-Fe2O3&PANI nanoparticles with the human neuroblastoma derived SH-SY5Y cells for 8 days showed neither significant decrease in the cell viability, nor detectable changes in the cell morphology. This indicates, that the particles have no detectable cytotoxicity in cell culture and represent a promising tool for further use in biomedical applications.
Keywords: Core–shell; Cytotoxicity; Maghemite; Nanoparticles; Polyaniline.
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