J Mater Sci: Mater Med (2015) 26:127

DOI 10.1007/s10856-015-5466-7

BIOMATERIALS SYNTHESIS AND CHARACTERIZATION

Superparamagnetic MFe2O4 (M 5 Ni, Co, Zn, Mn) nanoparticles:

synthesis, characterization, induction heating and cell viability
studies for cancer hyperthermia applications
Sandip Sabale Vidhya Jadhav Vishwajeet Khot
Xiaoli Zhu Meiling Xin Hongxia Chen

Received: 10 October 2014 / Accepted: 25 January 2015 / Published online: 18 February 2015
Springer Science+Business Media New York 2015

Abstract Superparamagnetic nanoferrites are prepared

by simple and one step refluxing in polyol synthesis. The
ferrite nanoparticles prepared by this method exhibit particle sizes below 10 nm and high degree of crystallinity.
These ferrite nanoparticles are compared by means of their
magnetic properties, induction heating and cell viability
studies for its application in magnetic fluid hyperthermia.
Out of all studied nanoparticles in present work, only
ZnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 MNPs are able to produce threshold
hyperthermia temperature. This rise in temperature is discussed in detail in view of their magneto-structural properties. Therefore ZnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 MNPs with
improved stability, magnetic induction heating and cell
viability are suitable candidates for magnetic hyperthermia.

1 Introduction
After decades of intense study, the superparamagnetic
nanoparticles have been explored for various biomedical
applications, including magnetic resonance imaging [1, 2],
drug targeting [3] magnetic separation [46] and hyperthermia [79]. In hyperthermia, an AC magnetic field is
S. Sabale (&)  X. Zhu  M. Xin  H. Chen
Laboratory of Biosensing Technology, School of Life Sciences,
Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444,
Peoples Republic of China
e-mail: srsabale@gmail.com
S. Sabale  V. Jadhav
P.G. Department of Chemistry, Jaysingpur College,
Jaysingpur 416101, MH, India
V. Khot
Center for Interdisciplinary Research, D. Y. Patil University,
Kolhapur 416006, MH, India

used to induce a temperature increase. This magnetic

heating of superparamagnetic nanoparticles originates from
two relaxation processes, namely Neel and Brownian relaxations [6, 7, 10]. Neel relaxations is the reorientation of
the magnetic moment within the particles in which an
anisotropy barrier is crossed, thereby causing increase in
temperature. Brownian relaxation is the reorientation of the
magnetic particle itself in a fluid, resulting in friction between the particle and the fluid. In spite of extensive research is carried out in synthesis and large scale production
of superparamagnetic nanoparticles for application in
magnetic particle hyperthermia; only limited number of
magnetic nanoparticles are commercially available [11,
12]. Magnetic iron oxide (magnetite) nanoparticles such as
Fe3O4 due to their proven biocompatibility as well as high
saturation magnetization have been explored extensively
for various biomedical applications [13, 14]. Indeed, they
are stable in water and are able to form aqueous colloids.
They are also assumed to be biocompatible within certain
threshold limits. Their magnetic properties can be tuned
through their chemical composition by doping M2? ion like
Zn2?, Co2?, Ni2?, Mn2?, Mg2? etc. and cation distribution. The substitution of a large part of Fe2? cations by
nonmagnetic M2? in A sites (general chemical formula of
ferrite is written as AB2O4) greatly reduces the resultant
magnetization according to the canted ferrimagnetic Yafet
Kittel-like model [15]. However, if M2? ions are simultaneously located in A and B sites, the cation is weakened
and the magnetization reduction is limited, still leading to
suitable saturation magnetization values as well as biocompatibility [16, 17]. Hence M2? ion substituted ferrite
synthesis and studies on its properties are planned in this
work.
In recent years, synthesis of MFe2O4 (M = Zn, Ni, Mn
and Co) nanoparticles of desired size and magnetic

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127 Page 2 of 9

properties has become the topic of investigation of many

researchers. Different synthetic techniques such as coprecipitation [18], microemulsion [19], ultrasound irradiation
[20], laser pyrolysis techniques [21], thermal decomposition [22], solvothermal [23, 24] etc. have been developed
for producing particles smaller than 20 nm. These methods
can control the particle size and shape, which are important
parameters in the chemical and physical properties of
nanoparticles. However, the nanoparticles prepared by
most of the methods stated above are organic-soluble,
which will limit their use in the biomedical fields, especially for in vivo applications [25]. Therefore, it is desirable to synthesize water-soluble magnetic nanoparticles,
which will realize their potential in biological applications.
The synthesis of water dispersible magnetic nanoparticles
with desirable magnetic properties is the main objective of
current study.
In this paper, we have investigated the magnetic hyperthermia properties of polyol synthesized MFe2O4
(M = Zn, Ni, Mn, Co) water dispersible nanoparticles
using diethylene glycol as refluxing solvent. These
nanoparticles have been thoroughly characterized for
structural, morphological, magnetic and induction heating
studies. The obtained values of temperature rise and
specific absorption rate (SAR) were discussed in correlation with the MNPs concentration for possible application
in cancer hyperthermia as well as adjuvant to conventional
chemotherapy and radiation therapy. The literature survey
reveals that there are no any reports on the synthesis of
ZnFe2O4, NiFe2O4, MnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 MNPs in diethylene glycol medium by reflux method and there induction heating studies for cancer hyperthermia
applications.

2 Experimental
2.1 Polyol synthesis of superparamagnetic MFe2O4
(M = Zn, Ni, Mn, Co) nanoparticles
MFe2O4 (M = Zn, Ni, Mn, Co) superparamagnetic
nanoparticles were prepared by the simple polyol method.
The reagents, ferric chloride (FeCl3), manganese chloride
(MnCl24H2O), nickel chloride NiCl26H2O,zinc chloride
(ZnCl2), cobalt chloride (CoCl26H2O), diethylene glycol,
ethanol, ethyl acetate and sodium acetate were used are of
analytical grade and are used without further purification.
The mixture of 5.0 mmol ferric chloride and 2.5 mmol of
zinc chloride, nickel chloride, manganese chloride and
cobalt chloride were mixed in 60 mL diethylene glycol to
obtain ZnFe2O4, NiFe2O4, MnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 respectively. The mixture was stirred to dissolve the salts.
About 3.6 g sodium acetate was added to clear solution and

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J Mater Sci: Mater Med (2015) 26:127

stirred until it dissolves. The whole clear solution was refluxed at controlled temperature of 210 C for 3 h. The
obtained solution was cooled at room temperature and kept
to settle the particles under magnetic field. The supernatant
was drained off and the MNPs were repeatedly washed
with anhydrous ethanol/ethyl acetate mixture (1:2 v/v) to
remove excess diethylene glycol and then air dried at room
temperature to obtain black sample powders.
2.2 Characterization of obtained nanoparticles
The structural and phase identification were carried out
from X-ray diffraction patterns using Rigaku Miniflex 600
X-ray deffractometer equipped with a crystal monochromator employing copper radiation (CuKa) of wavelength
at 40 kV, 25 mA over the 2h range 10100.
1.5418 A
The spectral studies were carried out using FTIR, Alpha
ATR Bruker (Eco ATR 5004000 cm-1) for structural
elucidations. Transmission electron microscopy (JEOL3010 at an operating voltage of 300 kV) was used to observe the morphology and size of the prepared MNPs. The
magnetic properties like saturation magnetization, coercivity and remnance magnetization were recorded from M
H curves obtained using alternating gradient magnetometer
(AGM), Micromeg Tm 2900; Princeton measurement
corporation at room temperature.
2.3 Induction heating studies
Induction heating studies of superparamagnetic MFe2O4
nanoparticles were performed to find the ability of magnetic nanoparticles for cancer hyperthermia treatment. The
studies were carried out in plastic microcentrifuge tube
(1.5 mL) using the instrument (Easy Heat 8310, Ambrell,
UK) with 6 cm diameter coil (4 turns). To maintain the
ambient temperature of the coil, water circulation in coil
was provided. Sample (1020 mg) suspended in 1 mL of
distilled water was placed at the centre of the coil and the
frequency 276 kHz was applied. Samples were treated for
20 min with desired magnetic field (H) from 251.4 to
419.0 Oe. Temperature rise was measured using an alcohol
thermometer with accuracy 0.1 C.
2.4 Cell viability
For this study the TBDE Assay method was adopted to determine the toxicity of nanoparticles. Adenocarcinoma lung
cancer cell line A549 was used and the detailed toxicity
studies were done in School of Life Sciences, Shanghai
University, Shanghai. The cells were grown in RPMI-1640
medium supplemented with 10 % fetal bovine serum
(KeyGen Biotech Co. Nanjing, China) and incubated for
24 h in a 5 % CO2 incubator at 37 C. After 24 h, the old

Page 3 of 9 127

440
442

333
422

331

NiFe2O4
MnFe2O4
CoFe2O4
ZnFe2O4

Intensity (A.U.)

400

220

311

J Mater Sci: Mater Med (2015) 26:127

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

2 (Degree)

Fig. 1 XRD patterns of ZnFe2O4, NiFe2O4, MnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4

MNPs

media were replaced by fresh media. For the TBDE assay

experiment, the cells were seeded at a density of 1 9 105 cells mL-1 in a culture plate. After 24 h incubation the old
media were replaced by the media containing magnetic
nanoparticles in the range 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 1, 2 and
3 mg mL-1 of culture medium and one control (cells without nanoparticles). Then the cells were incubated for 24 and
48 h time period after which the cell images were recorded in
control and in each sample using Leica DMIRB, Inverted
Fluorescence Microscopy, Olympus CKX41, U-TV1X-2,
Japan to ensure the growth of cells. Then the nanoparticle
suspensions from each plate were carefully washed with PBS
buffer. The attached as well as unattached cells were harvested by trypsinization. Cells were stained with trypan blue
dye and counted with a hemocytometer (Bio-Rad TC10) to
determine the percentage of cell viability.

3 Results and discussion

3.1 Structural, morphological and magnetic
characterization
Diethylene glycol (DEG) plays an important role in the
formation of the spinel phase. As a good capping agent

with two hydroxyl groups, DEG can hold free metal ions
tightly in the solution. With the addition of NaAc into the
solution, CH3COO- is attracted to the vicinity of the metal
ions, assisting in the DEG-mediated conversion of metal
salts into spinel phase sample under reaction temperature
of 200 C. [26]
Phase and structure of as synthesized MNPs were elucidated by X-ray diffraction pattern (Fig. 1). XRD patterns of
ZnFe2O4, NiFe2O4, MnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 were well matched with standard JCPDS file number 82-1049, 10-0325,
38-0430 and 22-1086 of respective ferrites. The formation of
spinel phase cubic ferrite with space group fd3 m is clearly
confirmed from the XRD. Absence peaks (210) and (300)
confirms the phase purity of prepared ferrites.
The crystallite size of these as synthesized MNPs was
estimated from the full width at half-maximum (FWHM)
of strongest diffraction peak (311) using the Scherrers
formula [27],
D

0:9k
;
b cos h

where D is the crystallite size, k is wavelength of CuKa

radiation, b is FWHM and h is diffraction angle of strongest characteristic peak. From the sizes it is evidenced that,
MNPs with crystallite size less than 10 nm with high surface area were obtained by this method. Crystallite size
(DXRD), Lattice constant (a), X-ray density (DX), Surface
area (S) and Volume of cubic lattice (a3) were determined
from the XRD pattern and are given in Table 1.
Figure 2 shows the FTIR absorption bands of ZnFe2O4,
NiFe2O4, MnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 MNPs recorded at room
temperature in the 5004000 cm-1 wavenumber range. The
appearance of absorption band corresponding to the stretching
vibration of tetrahedral (v1) frequency at around *600 cm-1
confirms the formation of the spinel ferrite structure. Ferrites
can be treated as continuously bonded crystals, that is the
atoms are bonded to all nearest neighbours by equivalent
forces (ionic, covalent or van der Waals). For DEG-coated
magnetic particles, clear bands are observed at around
34003450 cm-1 and 10001030 cm-1 attributed to the
presence of OH, and CO group vibration modes. Thus, asprepared nanoparticles are successfully coated with DEG and
thereby it is dispersible in an aqueous medium.

Table 1 Crystallite size calculated from XRD (DXRD), TEM diameter (DTEM), lattice constant (a), X-ray density (DX), surface area (S), volume
(a3), coercivity (Hc), saturation magnetization (Ms) and remnant magnetization (Mr) of obtained MNPs
Sample

DXRD (nm)

DTEM (nm)

)
a (A

Dx (g/cm3)

S (m2/g)

a3 (cm3)

ZnFe2O4

8.35

10.0

8.5471

5.294

135.73

604.85 9 10-24

NiFe2O4

8.10

7.0

8.3754

5.299

139.78

587.52 9 10-24

MnFe2O4

7.13

7.0

8.4079

5.088

165.39

594.38 9 10-24

CoFe2O4

4.0

4.0

8.4557

5.154

291.04

604.57 9 10-24

Hc (Oe)

Ms (emu/g)

Mr (emu/g)

67.3

41.06

0.6249

20.04

17.49

0.0213

44.52

51.99

0.5225

48.01

0.7239

123.8

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127 Page 4 of 9

J Mater Sci: Mater Med (2015) 26:127

60

30

ZnFe 2O 4
NiFe 2O 4
MnFe 2O 4
CoFe 2O 4

Moment (emu/g)

1076

1399

2917

1565

40
3733

Transmittance (A.U.)

50

20
10
0
-10

ZnFe2O4
NiFe2O4
MnFe2O4
CoFe2O4

-20

532

-30
-40
-50

4000

3500

3000

2500

2000

1500

1000

500

-1

Wave number (cm )

-60
-10000 -7500

-5000

-2500

2500

5000

7500

10000

Applied Field (Oe)

Fig. 2 FT-IR pattern of ZnFe2O4, NiFe2O4, MnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4

MNPs

Size and shapes of ZnFe2O4, NiFe2O4, MnFe2O4 and

CoFe2O4 MNPs were observed using TEM. The TEM
images (Fig. 3ad) show that the obtained MNPs are of
quasi-spherical shape with size 10 nm (ZnFe2O4), 8 nm

Fig. 4 MH curves of ZnFe2O4, NiFe2O4, MnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4

MNPs using alternating gradient magnetometer (AGM)

(NiFe2O4, MnFe2O4) and 4 2 nm (CoFe2O4) which

closely matches with the crystallite size obtained from
XRD pattern. The selected area electron diffraction
(SEAD) pattern for these MNPs is shown in the inset of

Fig. 3 TEM images of a ZnFe2O4; b NiFe2O4; c MnFe2O4; d CoFe2O4 MNPs, the inset shows SAED pattern corresponds to XRD patterns

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Page 5 of 9 127

60

A 48

ZnFe2O4
NiFe2O4
MnFe2O4
CoFe2O4

55

44

Temperature ( C)

Temperature ( C )

50
45
170.28 sec

40

251.4 Oe
335.2 Oe
419.0 Oe

46

35

42
237 sec

40
38
36
34
32
30

30

28
0

25
0

200

400

600

800

1000

B 52
48

1000

1200

44
42

886 sec

160 sec

40
38
36
34
32
30

44
191.9 sec

Temperature ( C)

48

800

46

251.4 Oe
335.2 Oe
419.0 Oe

600

251.4 Oe
335.2 Oe
419.0 Oe

50

Temperature ( C)

Fig. 5 Temperature versus time curves of ZnFe2O4, NiFe2O4,

MnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 MNPs at 20 mg mL-1 concentration and
419.0 Oe applied magnetic (Dotted line indicates the hyperthermia
temperature region)

52

400

Time (seconds)

Time (seconds)

200

1200

28

893.0 sec

356.2 sec

26

40

0
36

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

Time (seconds)

32

Fig. 7 Temperature versus time curves of CoFe2O4 (a 10 mg mL-1,

b 20 mg mL-1 concentration) MNPs at 251.4419.0 Oe applied
magnetic field

28
24

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

800

1000

1200

Time (seconds)

B 60

251.4 Oe
335.2 Oe
419.0 Oe

56

48

Temperature ( C)

52

44
172.9 sec

40

422.7 sec

36
32
28
24
0

200

400

600

Time (seconds)

Fig. 6 Temperature versus time curves of ZnFe2O4 (a 10 mg mL-1,

b 20 mg mL-1 concentration) MNPs at 251.4419.0 Oe applied
magnetic field

Fig. 3. The SAED pattern shows bright rings correspond to

XRD pattern indicating polycrystalline nature of MNPs.
Magnetic properties of as synthesized nanoparticles
were studied using the MH curves at room temperature.
From the MH curves (Fig. 4) of ZnFe2O4, NiFe2O4,
MnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 nanoparticles; coercivity (Hc),
saturation magnetization (Ms) and remnant magnetization
(Mr) are calculated for each sample and tabulated in
Table 1. The obtained nanoparticles show very small or
negligible coercivity which is characteristic of superparamagnetism. Superparamagnetic properties of obtained
nanoparticles are useful in in vivo applications as they do
not retain magnetization before and after exposure to an
external magnetic field, reducing the probability of particle
aggregation. From Table 1 it is observed that, Ms value of
synthesized nanoparticles is smaller than the theoretical
value of bulk Fe3O4 (Ms = 92 emu/g) since Ms generally
decreases with a decrease in particle size [28]. The reason
of such decrease in magnetization as compared to bulk
values is reported in literature as a finite size effect

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J Mater Sci: Mater Med (2015) 26:127

Table 2 Specific absorption rate (SAR) values of obtained MNPs at
10 and 20 mg mL-1 concentration and 251.4, 335.2 and 419.0 Oe
applied field
Sample

ZnFe2O4
NiFe2O4
MnFe2O4
CoFe2O4

Concentration
(mg mL-1)

SAR (W/g)
(251.4 Oe)

(335.2 Oe)

(419.0 Oe)

10

14.1

42.26

28.19

20

3.56

8.9

12.5

10

20

1.8

10

20

1.8

10

14.1

21.14

35.24

20

7.12

14.24

28.5

Fig. 8 Temperature rise with MNPs for different concentrations at

different fields (a ZnFe2O4, b CoFe2O4)

including magnetic disordering and surface spin disorder as

the particle size decreases below critical diameter. Though
the magnetic properties are not as expected, but still are in
good agreement with the values reported for same materials prepared by other techniques [29].
3.2 Induction heating studies for magnetic
hyperthermia
Induction heating properties of ZnFe2O4, NiFe2O4,
MnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 MNPs were studied as a function
of applied field and MNPs concentration in order to evaluate their potential in magnetic hyperthermia therapy. For
an effective in vivo administration, it is necessary that the
nanoparticles should produce maximum temperature rise at
the lowest concentration. The actual rises in temperature
with time for four samples were measured at fixed frequency (276 kHz) using 20 mg mL-1 MNPs concentration
at 419.0 Oe applied magnetic field (Fig. 5). From Fig. 5 it
is clear that, the field 419.0 Oe is not enough to increase

123

Fig. 9 Cell viability of (a ZnFe2O4, b CoFe2O4) MNPs at different

concentrations (0.23.0 mg mL-1) for 24 and 48 h incubation period

the temperature of system to threshold hyperthermia value

(41 C) for NiFe2O4 and MnFe2O4. Only ZnFe2O4 and
CoFe2O4 nanoparticles are able to produce sufficient

J Mater Sci: Mater Med (2015) 26:127

Page 7 of 9 127

Fig. 10 IFM images of cell lines a control; b, c In medium containing 0.6 mg ZnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 MNPs after 48 h incubation period

threshold heat rise required for effective hyperthermia

therapy at this applied field. Hence further induction
heating studies were carried out only for ZnFe2O4 and
CoFe2O4 MNPs. The study was explored to 10 mg mL-1
(Fig. 6a) and 20 mg mL-1 (Fig. 6b) concentrations of
ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles at 251.4419.0 Oe applied field.
From Fig. 6 it is observed that the field of 251.4 Oe is not
sufficient for 10 mg mL-1 as well as 20 mg mL-1 concentration of ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles to increase the
threshold temperature of hyperthermia. On the other hand,
field amplitude of 335.2 and 419.0 Oe showed rise in
temperature in threshold hyperthermia range which is
shown by dotted lines in Fig. 6. CoFe2O4 nanoparticles
were explored to study the rise in temperature using
10 mg mL-1 (Fig. 7a) and 20 mg mL-1 (Fig. 7b) at 251.4,
335.2 and 419.0 Oe applied field. From the Figures it is
observed that, CoFe2O4 nanoparticles showed temperature
rise only at 419.0 Oe. The ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles shows up
to 25 C temperature rise at 335.2 Oe using 10 mg mL-1
concentration while highest temperature rise is observed at

20 mg mL-1 concentration at 419.0 Oe field (Fig. 8a).

CoFe2O4 nanoparticles showed highest temperature rise in
both tested the concentrations at 419.0 Oe (Fig. 8b).
From the results it is seen that, magneto-structural
properties of MNPs should be considered along with applied field parameter for effective hyperthermia. Heat loss
generated by MNPs in AC magnetic field is measured in
terms of SAR which can be obtained by using following
equation [30]
  
mg
dt
SAR C
;
2
dt mm
where C = specific heat capacity of suspension = 4.186 J/
(g C), (dT/dt) = initial slope of temperature versus time
graph, ms = mass of suspension, and mm = mass of the
magnetic material in suspension.
SAR values of ZnFe2O4, NiFe2O4, MnFe2O4, and
CoFe2O4 MNPs are calculated by using Eq. 2 and shown in
Table 2. From Fig. 7 and 8, it is clear that ZnFe2O4 results
in highest SAR value of 42.26 W/g for lowest MNPs

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127 Page 8 of 9

concentration of 10 mg mL-1 while CoFe2O4 result in

highest SAR value of 35.24 W/g for 20 mg mL-1 concentration. SAR values show field dependant variation and
increases with increase in applied field. This value of SAR
is highly dependent on size, composition, magnetization
and magnetocrystalline anisotropy (K) of MNPs. Among
which magnetocrystalline anisotropy is of utmost importance. In spite of interesting magnetic properties, NiFe2O4
and MnFe2O4 MNPs show low value of SAR. Such a
discrepancy in SAR values for studied MNPs may be
correlated to the magnetocrystalline anisotropy of the
samples. From the results it is clear that the enhanced SAR
values and high temperature rise characteristics of
nanoparticles can be optimized by tuning the magnetostructural properties such as magnetocrystalline anisotropy and particleparticle interactions [29].

J Mater Sci: Mater Med (2015) 26:127

than 10 nm were obtained by this method. This study reveals that, doping of transition metals in the ferrite will
affect its magnetic properties which directly alter its
threshold hyperthermia temperature. Hence by controlling
the temperature, time and doping metal it will be possible
to control and tune the size and magnetic properties of
ferrite desired for hyperthermia applications. From this
study it is also concluded that, only ZnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4
MNPs are able to produce threshold hyperthermia temperature. The cell viability of these MNPs is also appreciable for in vivo application studies.
Acknowledgments One of author (Dr. Sandip Sabale) is thankful to
Prof. Dr. Genxi Li for his valuable discussion during this research
work. Authors are also thankful to Dr. N. Basavaiah, IIGM, Mumbai,
India for magnetic measurements. Authors extend their vote of thanks
to D.S.T.-New Delhi for sanctioning funds under DST-FIST program
to Jaysingpur College, Jaysingpur.

3.3 Cell viability

Study of toxicity of nanoparticles is very important to
understand how they react in the body. The cell line testing
is less ethically ambiguous, easier to control and reproduce,
less expensive as compared to the animal studies. Exposure
to the certain cytotoxic agents can compromise the cell
membrane, which allows the cellular contents to leak out.
Viability tests based on this include the Neutral red and
Trypan blue dye extrusion assay (TBDE Assay) [31].
From the induction heating studies it is observed that
ZnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 MNPs exhibits hyperthermia
threshold temperature. Hence these two MNPs were subjected for cell viability studies to check its biocompatibility.
For this study the TBDE Assay method was adopted and the
cell viability was determined using Adenocarcinoma lung
cancer cell lines A549 with 0.23.0 mg mL-1 MNPs concentration at 24 and 48 h. Figure 9A (ZnFe2O4) and 9B
(CoFe2O4) shows the cell viability of these MNPs. Figure 10
shows the micrographs of IFM images of cell lines with and
without ZnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 MNPs. From these Figures it
is observed that, the ZnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 MNPs exhibits
good biocompatibility up to 1 mg mL-1 concentration and
24 h. Further, increase in concentration and time of incubation the percentage of cell viability decreases. Therefore
these MNPs are more suitable for the in vivo applications
owing to their lower toxicity.

4 Conclusion
Refluxing in polyol method was used to synthesize
ZnFe2O4, NiFe2O4, MnFe2O4, and CoFe2O4 MNPs. These
prepared nanoparticles are further characterized for its
application in cancer hyperthermia application. Quasi
spherical superparamagnetic nanoparticles with size less

123

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