Enhanced Methods to Estimate the Efficiency of Magnetic Nanoparticles in Imaging

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetic particle imaging (MPI) are powerful methods in the early diagnosis of diseases. Both imaging techniques utilize magnetic nanoparticles that have high magnetic susceptibility, strong saturation magnetization, and no coercivity. FeraSpin^TM R and its fractionated products have been studied for their imaging performances; however, a detailed magnetic characterization in their immobilized state is still lacking. This is particularly important for applications in MPI that require fixation of magnetic nanoparticles with the target cells or tissues. We examine the magnetic properties of immobilized FeraSpin^TM R, its size fractions, and Resovist^®, and use the findings to demonstrate which magnetic properties best predict performance. All samples show some degree of oxidation to hematite, and magnetic interaction between the particles, which impact negatively on image performance of the materials. MRI and MPI performance show a linear dependency on the slope of the magnetization curve, i.e., initial susceptibility, and average blocking temperature. The best performance of particles in immobilized state for MPI is found for particle sizes close to the boundary between superparamagnetic (SP) and magnetically ordered, in which only Néel relaxation is important. Initial susceptibility and bifurcation temperature are the best indicators to predict MRI and MPI performance.