Multifunctional modification of Fe3O4 nanoparticles for diagnosis and treatment of diseases: A review

With the rapid improvements in nanomaterials and imaging technology, great progresses have been made in diagnosis and treatment of diseases during the past decades. Fe₃O₄ magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) with good biocompatibility and superparamagnetic property are usually used as contrast agent for diagnosis of diseases in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Currently, the combination of multiple imaging technologies has been considered as new tendency in diagnosis and treatment of diseases, which could enhance the accuracy and reliability of disease diagnosis and provide new strategies for disease treatment. Therefore, novel contrast agents used for multifunctional imaging are urgently needed. Fe₃O₄ MNPs are believed to be a potential candidate for construction of multifunctional platform in diagnosis and treatment of diseases. In recent years, there are a plethora of studies concerning the construction of multifunctional platform presented based on Fe₃O₄ MNPs. In this review, we introduce fabrication methods and modification strategies of Fe₃O₄ MNPs, expecting great improvements for diagnosis and treatment of diseases in the future.