Nonspecific targeting of iron oxide nanoparticles to the liver, kidney and spleen: A novel approach to achieving specificity

Recently, there has been significant interest in developing Fe$_{3}$O$_{4}$ nanoparticles for biomedical applications including targeted~drug delivery and magnetic resonance imaging. One of the major problems in these applications is the undesirable filtration of these materials by the mononuclear phagocyte system. Preliminary magnetic resonance imaging and magnetization studies on hyaluronic acid coated nanoparticles injected intravenously into mice confirm that the nanoparticles accumulate in the liver, spleen, and kidneys. To identify whether certain specific proteins are responsible for nanoparticle accumulation in these organs, we exposed hyaluronic acid coated nanoparticles to proteins extracted from the liver, spleen, and kidneys, together with blood plasma proteins, then subsequently used gel electrophoresis and mass spectroscopy to identify the proteins binding to the nanoparticles. We find that the unwanted accumulation of nanoparticles in these organs can potentially be attributed to specific binding by a small number of proteins. By appropriately functionalizing the iron oxide nanoparticles, we expect that the nanoparticles uptake in the liver, spleen, and kidneys will be reduced.