A triple-layer design for polyethyleneimine-coated, nanostructured magnetic particles and their use in DNA binding and transfection

Nanostructured iron oxide–silica particles have been prepared using SBA-15 mesoporous silica particles as a template. Iron oxide nanoparticles were impregnated inside the mesopores of the silica particles via a wet impregnation method. The resultant material exhibited superparamagnetic properties with an unsaturated magnetic moment due to the formation of iron (III) oxide nanoparticles inside the mesopores. The surface of these iron oxide–silica particles has also been coated with polyethyleneimine (PEI) to enable attachment of DNA. The PEI-coated particles showed a high DNA binding capacity and have great potential for development as a new vehicle for gene delivery.