Vol.:(0123456789)
Topics in Current Chemistry (2020) 378:40
https://doi.org/10.1007/s41061-020-00302-w
1 3
REVIEW
Magnetic Nanoparticles as MRI Contrast Agents
Ashish Avasthi
1
· Carlos Caro
1
· Esther Pozo‑Torres
2
· Manuel Pernia Leal
2
·
María Luisa García‑Martín
1,3
Received: 31 December 2019 / Accepted: 18 March 2020 / Published online: 7 May 2020
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
Abstract
Iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) have emerged as a promising alternative to conventional contrast agents (CAs) for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). They have
been extensively investigated as CAs due to their high biocompatibility and excellent magnetic properties. Furthermore, the ease of functionalization of their surfaces
with different types of ligands (antibodies, peptides, sugars, etc.) opens up the possibility of carrying out molecular MRI. Thus, IONPs functionalized with epithelial
growth factor receptor antibodies, short peptides, like RGD, or aptamers, among
others, have been proposed for the diagnosis of various types of cancer, including
breast, stomach, colon, kidney, liver or brain cancer. In addition to cancer diagnosis,
different types of IONPs have been developed for other applications, such as the
detection of brain inflammation or the early diagnosis of thrombosis. This review
addresses key aspects in the development of IONPs for MRI applications, namely,
synthesis of the inorganic core, functionalization processes to make IONPs biocompatible and also to target them to specific tissues or cells, and finally in vivo studies
in animal models, with special emphasis on tumor models.
Keywords Magnetic nanoparticles · Iron oxide nanoparticles · Magnetic resonance
imaging · Cancer · Diagnosis
* Manuel Pernia Leal
mpernia@us.es
* María Luisa García-Martín
mlgarcia@bionand.es
1
BIONAND - Centro Andaluz de Nanomedicina y Biotecnología, Junta de AndalucíaUniversidad de Málaga, C/Severo Ochoa, 35, 29590 Málaga, Spain
2
Departamento de Química Orgánica y Farmacéutica, Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad de
Sevilla, 41012 Seville, Spain
3
Networking Research Center on Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine, CIBER-BBN,
Málaga, Spain
49
Reprinted from the journal
Chapter 3 was originally published as Avasthi, A., Caro, C., Pozo‑Torres, E., Leal, M. P. & García‑Martín
M. L. Topics in Current Chemistry (2020) 378: 40. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41061-020-00302- w.
Topics in Current Chemistry (2020) 378:40
https://doi.org/10.1007/s41061-020-00302-w
1 3
REVIEW
Magnetic Nanoparticles as MRI Contrast Agents
Ashish Avasthi
1
· Carlos Caro
1
· Esther Pozo‑Torres
2
· Manuel Pernia Leal
2
·
María Luisa García‑Martín
1,3
Received: 31 December 2019 / Accepted: 18 March 2020 / Published online: 7 May 2020
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
Abstract
Iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) have emerged as a promising alternative to conventional contrast agents (CAs) for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). They have
been extensively investigated as CAs due to their high biocompatibility and excellent magnetic properties. Furthermore, the ease of functionalization of their surfaces
with different types of ligands (antibodies, peptides, sugars, etc.) opens up the possibility of carrying out molecular MRI. Thus, IONPs functionalized with epithelial
growth factor receptor antibodies, short peptides, like RGD, or aptamers, among
others, have been proposed for the diagnosis of various types of cancer, including
breast, stomach, colon, kidney, liver or brain cancer. In addition to cancer diagnosis,
different types of IONPs have been developed for other applications, such as the
detection of brain inflammation or the early diagnosis of thrombosis. This review
addresses key aspects in the development of IONPs for MRI applications, namely,
synthesis of the inorganic core, functionalization processes to make IONPs biocompatible and also to target them to specific tissues or cells, and finally in vivo studies
in animal models, with special emphasis on tumor models.
Keywords Magnetic nanoparticles · Iron oxide nanoparticles · Magnetic resonance
imaging · Cancer · Diagnosis
* Manuel Pernia Leal
mpernia@us.es
* María Luisa García-Martín
mlgarcia@bionand.es
1
BIONAND - Centro Andaluz de Nanomedicina y Biotecnología, Junta de AndalucíaUniversidad de Málaga, C/Severo Ochoa, 35, 29590 Málaga, Spain
2
Departamento de Química Orgánica y Farmacéutica, Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad de
Sevilla, 41012 Seville, Spain
3
Networking Research Center on Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine, CIBER-BBN,
Málaga, Spain
49
Reprinted from the journal
Chapter 3 was originally published as Avasthi, A., Caro, C., Pozo‑Torres, E., Leal, M. P. & García‑Martín
M. L. Topics in Current Chemistry (2020) 378: 40. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41061-020-00302- w.