Multifunctional Fe5 C2 nanoparticles: a targeted theranostic platform for magnetic resonance imaging and photoacoustic tomography-guided photothermal therapy.

Fe5 C2 NPs exhibit a high contrast in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), superior photoacoustic tomography improvements, and efficient photothermal therapy (PTT) due to their unique core/shell structure, with a magnetic core and carbon shell. By conjugating a new class of affinity proteins (ZHER2:342), they can target to tumor cells with low cytotoxicity, and kill them through laser irritation. It is also possible to ablate tumors under guidance by MRI and PTT without noticeable side effects.