| AFM | Atomic force microscopy |
| Au | Gold |
| Au−Fe3O4 | Gold iron |
| DCFDA | 5-(and -6)-Carboxy-2,7-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate |
| DHE | Dihydroethidium |
| DMF | Dimethylformamide |
| DNA | Deoxyribonucleic acid |
| DOPA | Dihydroxy-L-phenylalanine |
| ELISA | Enzymatic-linked immunosorbent assay |
| EPR | Electron paramagnetic resonance |
| Fe(CO)5 | Iron pentacarbonyl |
| Fe3O4 | Iron magnetite |
| (ɤ-Fe2O3) | Maghemite |
| HAuCl4 | Chloroauric acid |
| HEK 293T | Human embryonic kidney 293 cells |
| HER2 | Human epithelial growth factor receptor 2 |
| LDI-MS | Laser desorption and ionization mass spectrometry |
| LDH | Lactate dehydrogenase |
| MRI | Magnetic resonance imaging |
| MTT | 3-(4,5-Dimethyl-thiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide |
| NAD | Nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide |
| NHTP | Nitrosothioproline |
| NO | Nitric oxide |
| NPs | Nanoparticles |
| NIR | Near-infrared |
| PDA | Polydopamine |
| PDT | Photodynamic therapy |
| PEG | Polyethylene glycol |
| PEI | Polyethylenimine |
| PVA | Polyvinyl alcohol |
| PVP | Poly vinyl pyrrolidone |
| ROS | Reactive oxygen species |
| SERS | Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy |
| SiO2 | Silica |
| SPIONs | Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticle |
| SPR | Surface plasmon resonance |
| TEM | Transmission electron microscopy |
| TEMP | Tetramethylpiperidine |
| UV | Ultraviolet |
| VDW | Van der Waals |