Maria del Puerto Morales

• Doctor in Chemistry
• Senior Researcher at Materials Science Institute of Madrid

Background Severe Acute Respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and Influenza A viruses (IAVs) are among the most important causes of viral respiratory tract infections, causing similar symptoms. IAV and SARS-CoV-2 infections can provoke mild symptoms like fever, cough, sore throat, loss of taste or smell, or they may cause more severe cons...

Correction for ‘Mn-ferrite nanoparticles as promising magnetic tags for radiofrequency inductive detection and quantification in lateral flow assays’ by Vanessa Pilati et al. , Nanoscale Adv. , 2024, 6 , 4247–4258, https://doi.org/10.1039/D4NA00445K.

This work examines the translation of a well-known production method for uniform single core magnetite nanoparticles based on the oxidative precipitation of FeSO4 in aqueous media into a continuous-flow process, which implements complete control of operating parameters and products’ quality, managing to minimize the duration of the rate-controlling...

A collection of magnetic nanoparticles with average particle sizes in the range between 9 and 78 nm were prepared using several synthetic approaches that also rendered different particle morphologies (spherical,...

Flexible magnetic materials have great potential for biomedical and soft robotics applications, but they need to be mechanically robust. An extraordinary material from a mechanical point of view is spider silk. Recently, methods for producing artificial spider silk fibers in a scalable and all-aqueous-based process have been developed. If endowed w...

Correction for ‘Beyond Newton's law of cooling in evaluating magnetic hyperthermia performance: a device-independent procedure’ by Sergiu Ruta et al. , Nanoscale Adv. , 2024, https://doi.org/10.1039/d4na00383g.

Heating magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) with AC (Alternating Current) magnetic fields has received significant attention in recent years, particularly for biomedical uses. However, most studies focus on characterizing the heat release, overlooking the fact that the MNPs in the viscous cell environment constitute a dynamic magnetic colloid whose confi...

Accurate knowledge of the heating performance of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) under AC magnetic fields is critical for the development of hyperthermia-mediated applications. Usually reported in terms of the specific loss...

The development of electronics with net zero carbon emissions through more efficient and environmentally friendly materials and processes is still a challenge. Here, alternative chemical synthesis routes of metal conductive nanoparticles, based on biodegradable materials are explored, such as nickel, iron–nickel alloy and iron nanoparticles, to be...

The quest for nanomaterial-based imaging probes that can provide positive contrast in MRI is fueled by the necessity of developing novel diagnostic applications with potential for clinical translation that current gold standard probes cannot provide. Although interest in nanomaterials for positive contrast has increased in recent years, their study...

Iron oxide nanoparticles (IONP) composed of either magnetite (Fe3O4) or maghemite (γ-Fe2O3) are used in many applications from water remediation to biomedical diagnosis and treatment. We perform correlative studies on two different systems: single core Fe3O4-based NP (5-50 nm) and multi-core γ-Fe2O3 nanoflowers (40-400 nm) to get insight into the c...

The quest for nanomaterial-based imaging probes that can provide positive contrast in MRI is fueled by the necessity of developing novel diagnostic applications with potential for clinical translation that current gold standard probes cannot provide. Although interest in nanomaterials for positive contrast has increased in recent years, their study...

The effective superparamagnetic behaviour in IONF is caused by the near demagnetized state driven by the high vorticity of the core moment texture at low magnetic fields.

The quest for nanomaterial-based imaging probes that can provide positive contrast in MRI is fueled by the necessity of developing novel diagnostic applications with potential for clinical translation that current gold standard probes cannot provide. Although interest in nanomaterials for positive contrast has increased in recent years, their study...

Accurate knowledge of the heating performance of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) under AC fields is critical for the development of hyperthermia-mediated applications. Usually reported in terms of the specific loss power (SLP) obtained from the temperature variation ($\Delta{T}$) vs. time (t) curve, such estimate is subjected to a huge uncertainty. T...

Magnetic iron oxide mesocrystals have been reported to exhibit collective magnetic properties and consequently enhanced heating capabilities under alternating magnetic fields. However, there is no universal mechanism to fully explain the formation pathway that determines the particle diameter, crystal size, and shape of these mesocrystals and their...

Herein, we use two exemplary superparamagnetic iron oxide multicore nanoparticles (SPIONs) to illustrate the significant influence of slightly different physicochemical properties on the cellular and molecular processes that define SPION interplay with primary neural cells. Particularly, we have designed two different SPION structures, NFA (i.e., a...

Assembled magnetite nanoparticles with oriented attachment have been prepared to study the effect of autoassembling on their heating efficiency. Their magnetic properties have been compared with those corresponding to single-core particles, also prepared in this study. It has been found that not only particle size and shape are determinant factors...

Background: The surface coating of iron oxide magnetic nanoparticle (MNPs) drives their intracellular trafficking and degradation in endolysosomes, as well as dictating other cellular outcomes. As such, we assessed whether MNP coatings might influence their biodistribution, their accumulation in certain organs and their turnover therein, processes...

Background The surface coating of iron oxide magnetic nanoparticle (MNPs) drives their intracellular trafficking and degradation in endolysosomes, as well as dictating other cellular outcomes. As such, we assessed whether MNP coatings might influence their biodistribution, their accumulation in certain organs and their turnover therein, processes t...

The search for competitive processes and products using environmentally friendly chemistry is, nowadays, one of the greatest challenges in materials science. In this work, we explore the influence of magnetic inductive heating on the synthesis of magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles in water, either by the coprecipitation of iron(II) and iron(III) sal...

Advanced oxidation processes can counteract the hazardous effects of polluted effluents in a highly efficient way, in many cases limited by the adsorption capacity of the nanocatalyst that depends on their size, internal structure and coating. Here, magnetic iron oxide nanocatalysts consisting on single core (SC), multicore (MC) and core-shell (CS)...

Metal alloys nanoparticles, and in particular permalloy have a huge potential in nanotechnology, although its poor stability against oxidation due to environmental exposure limits its use in many technological applications, and more in life sciences. We propose a single-step microwave-assisted method to produce water suspensions of NixFe1-x nanopar...

Tuning the fundamental properties of iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) according to the required biomedical application is an unsolved challenge, as the MNPs' properties are affected by their composition, their size, the synthesis process, and so on. In this work, we studied the effect of zinc and manganese doping on the magnetic and structu...

Background Coronaviruses usually cause mild respiratory disease in humans but as seen recently, some human coronaviruses can cause more severe diseases, such as the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the global spread of which has resulted in the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Results In this study we analyzed the potenti...

The potential of magnetic nanoparticles for acting as efficient catalysts, imaging tracers or heating mediators under alternating magnetic fields grounds on their superparamagnetic behaviour. In spite of the relevance of this magnetic phenomenon, the identification of specific fingerprints to unequivocally assign superparamagnetic behaviour in n...

A crucial challenge to face in the treatment of biofilm-associated infection is the ability of bacteria to develop resistance to traditional antimicrobial therapies based on the administration of antibiotics alone. This study aims to apply magnetic hyperthermia together with controlled antibiotic delivery from a unique magnetic-responsive nanocarri...

Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) are potential theranostic tools that are biodegraded through different endocytic pathways. However, little is known about the endolysosomal network through which MNPs transit and the influence of the surface coating in this process. Here, we studied the intracellular transit of two MNPs with a similar iron oxide core s...

Nanotechnology represents a novel powerful technology with the potential to overcome some of the problems related to brain research. In particular, nanoparticles can be used as platforms for drug delivery, contrast agents for imaging diagnosis, or therapeutic probes. The small scale of these materials can be exploited to interact with individual ne...

The increasing use of magnetic nanoparticles as heating agents in biomedicine is driven by their proven utility in hyperthermia therapeutic treatments and heat-triggered drug delivery methods. The growing demand of efficient and versatile nanoheaters has prompted the creation of novel types of magnetic nanoparticle systems exploiting the magnetic i...

The use of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) to locally increase the temperature at the nanoscale under the remote application of alternating magnetic fields (magnetic particle hyperthermia, MHT) has become an important...

Elucidation of reaction mechanisms in forming nanostructures is relevant to obtain robust and affordable protocols that can lead to materials with enhanced properties and good reproducibility. Here, the formation of magnetic iron oxide monocrystalline nanoflowers in polyol solvents using N-methyldiethanolamine (NMDEA) as co-solvent has been shown t...

Magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles have been used by human mankind since ancient times and have had the capacity to adapt to the demanding technologies in each period. Ancient applications used iron oxides from nature, since iron is one of the most abundant elements on the Earth and their oxides are easy to obtain. More recently, the rapid developme...

Hyperthermia has emerged as a promising alternative to conventional cancer therapies and in fact, traditional hyperthermia is now commonly used in combination with chemotherapy or surgery during cancer treatment. Nevertheless, non-specific application of hyperthermia generates various undesirable side-effects, such that nano-magnetic hyperthermia h...

The contactless heating capacity of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) has been exploited in fields such as hyperthermia cancer therapy, catalysis, and enzymatic thermal regulation. Herein, we propose an advanced technology to generate multiple local temperatures in a single-pot reactor by exploiting the unique nanoheating features of iron oxide MNPs ex...

Industrial effluents contain a wide range of organic pollutants that present harmful effects on the environment and deprived communities with no access to clean water. As this organic matter is resistant to conventional treatments, Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs) have emerged as a suitable option to counteract these environmental challenges. En...

Advanced oxidation processes constitute a promising alternative for the treatment of wastewater containing organic pollutants. Still, the lack of cost-effective processes has hampered the widespread use of these methodologies. Iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles stand as a great alternative since they can be engineered by different reproducible and s...

Tuning the magnetic properties of nanoparticles is a strategic goal to use them in the most effective way to perform specific functions in the nanomedicine field. We report a systematic study carried out on a set of samples obtained by mixing together iron oxide nanoparticles with different shape: elongated with aspect ratio ∼5.2 and mean volume of...

A critical issue in nanomedicine is to understand the complex dynamics that dictate the interactions of nanoparticles (NPs) with their biological milieu. The most exposed part of a nanoparticle is its surface coating, which comes into contact with the biological medium and adsorbs proteins, forming what is known as a protein corona (PC). It is assu...

The scientific community has made great efforts in advancing magnetic hyperthermia for the last two decades after going through a sizeable research lapse from its establishment. All the progress made in various topics ranging from nanoparticle synthesis to biocompatibilization and in vivo testing have been seeking to push the forefront towards some...

This chapter deals with magnetic colloids with catalytic properties for the treatment of polluted waters and the efficient production of fuel alternatives. This kind of materials presents great advantages such as high surface/volume ratio, reproducibility, selectivity, ability to be magnetic harvested, functionalizable surfaces (e.g. with tunable p...

Applied nanotechnology has experienced tremendous advance over the last decade. In this study, the efficient synthesis of highly stable palladium-nanoparticles (PdNPs) biohybrids based on the application of an enzyme, which induces in situ the generation of spherical nanoparticles on the protein network, has been described. A heterogeneous material...

The search for more efficient, scalable, reproducible and standardized synthesis methods able to control particle size and crystallinity is still a challenge in nanotechnology. One-pot microwave-assisted polyol process has been optimized for the synthesis of well-defined ferrite nanoparticles. Highly uniform and crystalline γ – Fe2O3, CoFe2O4 and Z...

Lateral flow assays may be used by minimally trained personnel for fast and inexpensive bioanalyses in decentralized non-exigent environments. Their extension to a broader catalog of applications depends on improvements in their quantification and their sensitivity. We report a strategy that combines nanomagnetic tagging of the analyte of interest...

Advanced uses of smartphones are changing lifestyles, and may have a great impact in materials science in the near future. In this work, the use of these devices to develop fast, simple, and cheap methods to characterize magnetic nanoparticle suspensions is tested. A series of dilutions of a wide library of magnetic nanoparticles, composed of iron...

Continuous processes are always preferred over batch ones when reproducible and scalable industrial procedures are needed. This work illustrates the production of magnetite nanoparticles by oxidative precipitation in aqueous media, following a continuous approach that offers additional advantages. Particularly, the developed reaction setup succeeds...

We have developed a reproducible and facile one step strategy for the synthesis of doxorubicin loaded magnetoliposomes by using a thin-layer evaporation method. Liposomes of around 200 nm were made of 1,2-Dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC) and iron oxide nanoparticles (NP) with negative, positive and hydrophobic surfaces that were incor...

Solid phase extraction using magnetic nanoparticles has represented a leap forward in terms of the improvement of water quality, preventing the contamination of industrial effluents from discharge in a more efficient and affordable way. In the present work, superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (MNP) with different surface charges are tested a...

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the most powerful technique for non-invasive diagnosis of human diseases and disorders. Properly designed contrast agents can be accumulated in the damaged zone and be internalized by cells, becoming interesting cellular MRI probes for disease tracking and monitoring. However, this approach is sometimes limited b...

Medical application of nanotechnology implies the development of nanomaterials capable of being functional in different biological environments. In this sense, elongated nanoparticles (e-MNPs) with high-aspect ratio have demonstrated a more effective particle cellular internalization, which is favoured by the increased surface area. This paper make...

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles are one of the most prominent agents used in theranostic applications, with MRI imaging the main application assessed. The biomolecular interface formed on the surface of a nanoparticle in a biological medium determines its behaviour in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we have compared the formation of th...

Despite the potential of magnetic nanoparticles to mediate intracellular hyperthermia when exposed to an alternating magnetic field, several studies indicate that the intracellular heating capacity of magnetic nanoparticles depends on factors such as the cytoplasm viscosity, nanoparticle aggregation within subcellular compartments, and dipolar inte...

Technologically useful and robust graphene-based interfaces for devices require the introduction of highly selective, stable, and covalently bonded functionalities on the graphene surface, whilst essentially retaining the electronic properties of the pristine layer. This work demonstrates that highly controlled, ultrahigh vacuum covalent chemical f...

New doped inorganic nanocrystals (NC) consisting on iron oxide and other metal integrated into the structure have been synthesized in one-step by adapting the oxidant precipitation synthesis route for magnetite. Different metals have been chosen to confer extra and unique properties to the resulting magnetic heteronanostructure: Co and Gd for enhan...

Synthesizing iron oxide nanoparticles for positive contrast in magnetic resonance imaging is the most promising approach to bring this nanomaterial back to the clinical field. The success of this approach depends on several aspects: the longitudinal relaxivity values, the complexity of the synthetic protocol, and the reproducibility of the synthesi...

Technologically useful and robust graphene-based interfaces for devices require the introduction of highly selective, stable and covalently bonded functionalities on the graphene surface, whilst essentially retaining the electronic properties of the pristine layer. This work demonstrates that highly-controlled, ultra-high vacuum covalent chemical f...

Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs), and in particular iron oxide nanoparticles (mainly magnetite and maghemite), are being widely used in the form of aqueous colloids for biomedical applications. In such colloids, nanoparticles tend to form assemblies, either aggregates, if the union is permanent, or agglomerates, if it is reversible. These clustering p...

Magnetic hyperthermia has a significant potential to be a new breakthrough for cancer treatment. The simple concept of nanoparticle-induced heating by the application of an alternating magnetic field has attracted much attention, as it allows the local heating of cancer cells, which are considered more susceptible to hyperthermia than healthy cells...

Ferrimagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (magnetite or maghemite) have been the subject of an intense research, not only for fundamental research but also for their potentiality in a widespread number of practical applications. Most of these studies were focused on nanoparticles with spherical morphology but recently there is an emerging interest on...

Most iron oxide nanoparticles applications, and in special biomedical applications, require the accurate determination of iron content as the determination of particle properties from measurements in dispersions is strongly dependent on it. Inductively coupled plasma (ICP) and spectrophotometry are two typical worldwide used analytical methods for...

We present experimental intrinsic loss power (ILP) values, measured at an excitation frequency of 1 MHz and at relatively low field amplitudes of 3.4–9.9 kA/m, as a function of the mean core diameter, for selected magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs). The mean core sizes ranged from ca. 8 nm to 31 nm. Transmission electron microscopy indicated that those...

Aqueous dispersions of magnetic nanocomposites have been proposed as draw electrolytes in forward osmosis. One possible approach for the production of nanocomposites based on magnetite nanoparticles and sodium polyacrylate is the synthesis of the magnetic iron oxide by coprecipitation or oxidative precipitation in the presence of an excess of the p...

The aggregation processes of magnetic nanoparticles in biosystems are analysed comparing the magnetic properties of three systems with different spatial distribution of nanoparticles. The first one is iron oxide nanoparticles (NP) of 14 nm synthesized by coprecipitation with two coatings (DMSA and APS). The second one is liposomes with nanoparticle...

Aqueous dispersions of magnetic nanocomposites have been proposed as draw electrolytes in forward osmosis. One possible approach for the production nanocomposites based on magnetite nanoparticles and sodium polyacrylate, is the synthesis of the magnetic iron oxide by coprecipitation or oxidative precipitation in presence of an excess of the polymer...

Multicore superparamagnetic nanoparticles have been proposed as ideal tools for some biomedical applications because of their high magnetic moment per particle, high specific surface area and long term colloidal stability. Through controlled aggregation and packing of magnetic cores it is possible to obtain not only single-core but also multicore a...

Uniform iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles have been synthesized using a microwave assisted synthesis method in organic media and their colloidal, magnetic, and relaxometric properties have been analyzed after its transference to water and compared with those nanoparticles prepared by thermal decomposition in organic media. The novelty of this synth...

Figure S1. GC-MS trace (total ion chromatogram) of the methylated fatty acid composition of the solid iron oleate (A) and liquid iron oleate (B). Table S1. Fatty acid composition of synthesized iron oleates. Figure S2. X-ray diffraction pattern for liquid iron oleate. Figure S3. TEM image of solid iron oleate, where a hydrophobized hydroxide nanoma...

Magnetic nanoparticles are being developed as structural and functional materials for use in diverse areas, including biomedical applications. Here, we report the synthesis of maghemite (γ-Fe2O3) nanoparticles with distinct morphologies: single-core and multicore, including hollow spheres and nanoflowers, prepared by the polyol process. We have use...

Iron oxide nanomaterial is a typical example of magnetic resonance imaging probe for negative contrast. It has also been shown how this nanomaterial can be synthesised for positive contrast by the modification of the composition and size of the core. However, the role of the organic coating in the relaxometric properties is largely unexplored. Here...

Iron oxide nanoparticles are one of the most important materials for magnetic resonance imaging. The possibility of multifunctionalization, lack of toxicity, and variety of compositions make them ideal for many applications. Furthermore, the new generation of nanoparticles for “positive” contrast will increase even more their utility, particularly...

The assembly of magnetic cores into regular structures may notably influence the properties displayed by a magnetic colloid. Here, key synthesis parameters driving the self-assembly process capable of organizing colloidal magnetic cores into highly regular and reproducible multi-core nanoparticles are determined. In addition, a self-consistent pict...

Statement of significance: Magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles have great potential for biomedical applications. It is however imperative that these nanoreagents preserve their magnetic properties once inoculated, and that their degradation products can be eliminated. When placed in a biological milieu nanoparticles can aggregate and this can affect...

Magnetic nanoparticles constitute potential nanomedicine tools based on the possibility to obtain different responses triggered by safe remote stimulus. However, such richness can be detrimental if the different performances are not accurately differentiated (and controlled). An example of this is the reorientation of magnetic nanoparticles under t...

Magnetic nanoparticles constitute potential nanomedicine tools based on the possibility to obtain different responses triggered by safe remote stimulus. However, such richness can be detrimental if the different performances are not accurately differentiated (and controlled). An example of this is the reorientation of magnetic nanoparticles under t...

This work aims to emphasize that the magnetic response of single-domain magnetic nanoparticles (NPs) is driven by the NPs' internal structure, and the NP size dependencies of magnetic properties are overestimated. The relationship between the degree of the NPs' crystallinity and magnetic response is unambiguously demonstrated in eight samples of un...

This article reports on the characterization of four superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles stabilized with dimercaptosuccinic acid, which are suitable candidates for reference materials for magnetic properties. Particles p1 and p2 are single-core particles, while p3 and p4 are multi-core particles. Small-angle X-ray scattering analysis reveals...

A three-step aqueous approach to obtain large (>50 nm) magnetite single-core particles has been developed. The steps are a) synthesis of antiferromagnetic nanoparticles, b) particle coating and c) subsequent reduction of the core material to magnetite. By variation of precursor material and process conditions, the synthesis yielded rhombohedra, dis...

In recent years nanomedicine showed quick growth by developing nanotechnologies that give new hope for detection, prevention, and treatment in oncology. In particular, magnetic nanoparticles—specifically the iron oxides—have emerged as one of the best candidates for cancer diagnosis (MRI) and therapy (hyperthermia, drug delivery, and gene therapy)...