Flash nanoprecipitation for co-delivery of diagnostic magnetic nanoparticles and anti-inflammatory drugs in polymeric nanocarriers

Chronic inflammatory diseases may benefit from nanocarrier platforms that co-deliver hydrophobic anti-inflammatory drugs and imaging agents. In this work, manganese-doped superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs; Mn 0.25 Fe 2.75 O 4 ) were synthesized by flame spray pyrolysis (FSP) and subsequently encapsulated together with the model AP-1 inhibitor T-5224 into polymeric theranostic nanocarriers produced by flash nanoprecipitation (FNP). Key formulation and process parameters governing dispersion properties, including PLA–PEG molecular weight, total solute concentration, solvent-to-antisolvent ratio, and SPION:polymer mass ratio, were systematically mapped to identify conditions yielding small, narrowly distributed dispersions. Using the optimized formulation, T-5224/SPION nanocarrier dispersions purified by magnetic separation exhibited hydrodynamic diameters