Multifunctional Nanomaterials Graphite-Coated Magnetic Nanoparticles as Multimodal Imaging Probes and Cooperative Therapeutic Agents for Tumor Cells

An effective therapeutic approach against cancer typically requires the combination of several modalities, such as chemotherapy, radiation, and hyperthermia. In this regard, the development of multifunctional nanomaterial-based systems with combined therapeutic and molecular imaging capabilities has shown great potential but has not been fully explored. In particular, magnetic nanomaterials have been at the forefront of cancer research as noninvasive imaging probes as well as multifunctional therapeutics. [ 1 ] For example, magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) with appropriate surface modifi cations have been successfully applied to deliver therapeutic biomolecules, such as anticancer drugs, antibodies, and siRNAs, to target tumor cells or tissues. [ 2 ] Moreover, the unique physical and chemical properties of these magnetic nanostructures have enabled their wide applications in cancer imaging and therapy, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and hyperthermia. [ 3 ] Promising advances have been made in synthesizing multifunctional MNPs from various materials, including metals, [ 4 ] metal oxides, [ 5 ] metal alloys, [ 6 ] and metal– graphitic-shell nanomaterials, [ 7 ] with different properties. However, current studies are mostly focused on the synthesis and characterization of materials with limited demonstration of their biomedical applications, like molecular imaging and therapy. As a result, research efforts towards developing MNP-based multimodal therapeutics to control the tumor microenvironment are highly limited and have not been fully explored. Therefore, in order to address the challenges