2D structured graphene nanosheets decorated by monodispersed superparamagnetic Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles for differentiation of mouse cells

In the present study, the reduced graphene oxide (RGO) decorated by monodispersed superparamagnetic Fe₃O₄ (RGO-IO) nanocomposite was prepared and confirmed with various spectroscopic and microscopic techniques. The elemental spectral mapping depicts the composition of carbon, oxygen and iron in confirmed the successful formulation and homogenous distribution. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis of nanocomposite confirms the existence of elements such as C, O and Fe. The Raman spectroscopy analysis showed the characteristic peak for RGO i.e. D-band and G-band and A_{1 g} phonon and E_g phonon peaks for IO is indicating the formation of RGO-IO. Moreover, the HR-TEM microscopic analysis evidently revealed the 2D structured RGO nanosheets are well decorated by a large quantity of IO nanoparticles. The in vitro cytotoxic activity of nanocomposite showed less toxicity and increased the cellular growth of mouse C2C12 and 3T3-L1 cells at higher concentration. The treatment of nanocomposite increases the ROS generation due to the excellent electrochemical performance and induces the formation of myotubes and mature adipocytes. The nanocomposite upregulates the expression of molecular marker proteins responsible for the myogenesis and adipogenesis was confirmed. Together, the synthesized RGO-IO nanocomposites provide surplus support for the use of nanomaterials in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.