Biogenic Magnetite in Humans and New Magnetic Resonance Hazard Questions

The widespread use of magnetic resonance (MR) techniques in clinical practice, and recent discovery of biogenic ferrimagnetic substances in human tissue, open new questions regarding health hazards and MR. Current studies are restricted just to the induction of Faraday currents and consequent thermal effects, or ‘inoffensive’ interaction with static magnetic field. We outlined that magnetic energies associated with interaction of ferrimagnetic particles and MR magnetic fields can be dangerous for sensitive tissues like the human brain is. To simulate the interaction mechanism we use our. ‘Cube’ model approach, which allows more realistic calculation of the particle's magnetic moments. Biogenic magnetite nanoparticles face during MR examination three principal fields: (i) main B₀ field, (ii) gradient field, and (iii) B₁ field. Interaction energy of biogenic magnetite nanoparticle with static magnetic field B₀ exceeds the covalent bond energy 5 times for particles from 4 nm up to 150 nm. Translation energy in gradient field exceeds biochemical bond energy for particles bigger than 50 nm. Biochemical bond disruption and particle release to the tissue environment, in the presence of all MR fields, are the most critical points of this interaction. And together with relaxation processes after application of RF pulses, they make biogenic magnetite nanoparticles a potential MR health hazard issue.