Rational design of PEGylated magnetite grafted on graphene oxide with effective heating efficiency for magnetic hyperthermia application

The conceived potentials of functionalized Fe3O4 (FeNPs) make it a good candidate for magnetic hyperthermia therapy (MHT), a promising cancer therapeutic. However, decline in its performance (SAR) under alternating current magnetic field remains an intractable problem. Herein, we enhanced and optimized its SAR by rationally loading PEGylated FeNPs onto graphene oxide nanoplatform (GO) to from a superparamagnetic hybrid nanostructure (MHNS). The GO also function as an additive layer which reinforces the surfactants, improve colloidal stability, and provide surface for further derivatization thus, an avenue for multifunctionality. We delineate the effects of concentration, composition, viscosity, magnetic field strength and for the first time pH, heating media and background worming on the MHNS SAR and found that grafting PEGylated FeNPs onto GO at 4:1 loading to form MHNS improved the SAR by 1.7-fold; dispensed 2-fold heat at simulated tumor microenvironment than healthy microenvironment; timely generates high heat for prolong period; and reached 10 °C maximum temperature rise at 15 kA/m and 1.5 mg/mL. These MHNS smart-self-control attributes offer enhanced heating efficiency which is prerequisite for stable MHT performance. These findings pave the way towards developing functional MHNS for drug delivery vehicle and cancer therapy at low concentration and cellular level pH range.