Preparation and characterization of carboxyl-group functionalized superparamagnetic nanoparticles and the potential for bio-applications

In this work, a method was developed to prepare monodispersed carboxyl-group functionalized magnetic nanoparticles. Nanosized maghemite (y-Fe2O3, 7.0 +/- 1.0 nm) was synthesized using thermal co-precipitation method and subsequently coated with functional groups by one-step suspension copolymerization. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy study and thermogravitmetric analyses confirmed the successful functionalization of carboxyl groups on the surface of magnetic nanocrystals. The surface chemistry makes it possible for SPRI (solid phase reversible immobilization)-based DNA purification. Thus the nanoparticles were employed to isolate plasmid DNA from bacterial cell culture and the results demonstrated its applicability in DNA preparation.