A functionalized graphene oxide-iron oxide nanocomposite for magnetically targeted drug delivery, photothermal therapy, and magnetic resonance imaging

Two-dimensional graphene and its composite nanomaterials offer interesting physical/chemical properties and have been extensively explored in a wide range of fields in recent years. In this work, we synthesize a multi-functional superparamagnetic graphene oxide-iron oxide hybrid nanocomposite (GO-IONP), which is then functionalized by a biocompatible polyethylene glycol (PEG) polymer to acquire high stability in physiological solutions. A chemotherapy drug, doxorubicin (DOX), was loaded onto GO-IONP-PEG, forming a GO-IONP-PEG-DOX complex, which enables magnetically targeted drug delivery. GO-IONP-PEG also exhibits strong optical absorbance from the visible to the near-infrared (NIR) region, and can be utilized…