DNA as a molecular local thermal probe for the analysis of magnetic hyperthermia.

Too hot to handle: The surroundings of magnetic nanoparticles can be heated by applying a magnetic field. Polymer-coated magnetic nanoparticles were functionalized with single-stranded DNA molecules and further hybridized with DNA modified with different fluorophores. By correlating the denaturation profiles of the DNA with the local temperature, temperature gradients for the vicinity of the excited nanoparticles were determined.