Nanoparticles of Prussian blue ferritin: a new route for obtaining nanomaterials

The dissociation of apoferritin into subunits at pH 2 followed by its re-formation at pH 8.5 in the presence of hexacyanoferrate(III) gave rise to a solution containing hexacyanoferrate(III) trapped within the apoferritin and hexacyanoferrate(III) outside it. The addition of Fe(II) to the dialyzed solution resulted in the appearance of the characteristic Prussian blue color. The UV-vis spectrum of this solution showed a broad band centered at 710 nm, and the IR spectrum contained a broad-medium band at 2083 cm(-1). Both features are consistent with the charge-transfer band and the C[bond]N stretching mode in the Fe(II)[bond]CN[bond]Fe(III) fragment of PB. TEM images of the obtained Prussian blue solution showed discrete spherical electron dense iron particles with an average size of about 5 nm. This represents a new route for preparing metallic nanoparticles that offers control over the size and protection against aggregation. Moreover, the fact that the particles are obtained by reaction of hexacyanoferrate(III) and iron(II) building blocks opens up the possibility of obtaining not only homo- but also heterobimetallic nanoparticles.