Semisynthetic Ferritin-based Nanoparticles with High Magnetic Anisotropy for Spatial Magnetic Manipulation and Inductive Heating

The human iron storage protein ferritin represents an appealing template to realise a semisynthetic magnetic nanoparticle (MNP) for spatial manipulation or inductive heating applications on a nanoscale. Ferritin consists of a protein cage of well-defined size (12 nm), which is genetically modifiable, biocompatible, and into which a magnetic core is synthesised. Here, we probe the magnetic response and hence the MNP’s suitability for (bio-)nanotechnological or nanomedical applications, when the core is doped with 7 % cobalt or 7 % zinc, in comparison to the undoped iron oxide MNP. The samples exhibit almost identical core and hydrodynamic sizes, along with their tunable magnetic core characteristics as verified by structural and magnetic characterisation. Cobalt doping significantly increased the MNP’s anisotropy and hence the heating power in comparison to the other magnetic cores with potential application as a mild heat mediator. Spatial magnetic manipulation was tested with MNPs inside droplets, the cell cytoplasm, or the cell nucleus, where the MNP surface conjugation with mEGFP and poly(ethylene glycol) gave rise to excellent intracellular stability and traceability within the complex biological environment. A magnetic stimulus (smaller than fN forces) results in the quick and reversible redistribution of the MNPs. The obtained data suggest that semisynthetic ferritin MNPs are highly versatile nanoagents and promising candidates for theranostic or (bio-)nanotechnological applications.