Abstract
Controlled drug release, especially stimuli-responsive drug-delivery systems, has received great attention worldwide. Compared to other triggering agents that require a physical or chemical contact, magnetic field permits a non-contact, remotely manageable control of the site and rate of the release, which is highly advantageous for clinical applications. Magnetic nanoparticles display some excellent advantages, such as magnetic-guiding, magnetic resonance image (MRI), hyperthermia and magnetic-triggered drug release upon a simple “on” and “off” magnetic switch mode. Therefore, magnetic-sensitive drug nanocarriers can be considered as a new biomedical nanoplatform for disease diagnosis and therapy. In this chapter, the physical basis of the effects of the magnetic field on magnetic nanocolloid solutions, the synthesis of magnetic nanoparticles and of nanostructures containing the magnetic nanoparticles (e.g. micelles, polymersomes, organic and inorganic networks) is described, and some relevant applications, including in vivo tests, for drug delivery in cancer, epilepsy and gene therapy, among others, are discussed.