Preparation and evaluation of chitosan/β-cyclodextrin magnetic nanoparticles as a photodegradable and hydrophobic drug delivery carrier

Glycyrrhetinic acid-cyclodextrin grafted pullulan nanoparticles loaded doxorubicin as a liver targeted delivery carrier

In this work, glycyrrhetinic acid (GA)-β-cyclodextrin grafted pullulan (GCDPu) was synthesized and used to form nanoparticles for liver-specific drug delivery. GCDPu was characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H NMR). The self-aggregated nanoparticles (GCDPu NPs) with a spherical dimension of about 200 nm were prepared and analyzed by dynamic light scattering (DLS), zeta potential, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Doxorubicin (DOX) was selected as an anti-cancer model drug, and the drug-loaded GCDPu NPs were prepared by the emulsion solvent evaporation method. Moreover, the drug encapsulation efficiency (LE%) and loading content (LC%) were determined. Slow DOX release from DOX/GCDPu NPs was confirmed. GCDPu NPs were cytocompatible with Bel-7404 cells and showed high cellular uptake according to the MTT assay, confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM) and flow cytometry (FCM) results. Compared with free DOX, DOX/GCDPu NPs have exhibited a longer half-life time (t_1/2) and a larger area-under-the-curve (AUC). GCDPu NPs significantly increased DOX contents in the liver and decreased in heart and kidney. Furthermore, DOX/GCDPu NPs exhibited a better anticancer therapeutic effect on tumor-bearing mice. These findings suggest that GCDPu can serve a liver-specific drug delivery system.

Optimization of the Synthesis of Copper Ferrite Nanoparticles by a Polymer-Assisted Sol-Gel Method

Magnetic ferrites are used in a wide range of technological applications, such as biomedicine, electronics, or energy. They also present interesting magnetic properties, especially for high-frequency applications. These materials have been prepared by a large variety of methods, from basic solid-state reaction to advanced wet chemical methods. However, most of these approaches are complex and have low production rates. In this work, a deep analysis of an easy polymer-assisted sol-gel synthesis of copper ferrite (CuFe₂O₄) nanoparticles is done. A multivariate analysis, by means of the design of experiments approach, is carried out to account for two variables at a time. Moreover, a wide experimental domain is explored, and the impact of each variable on the chemical composition and magnetic properties is determined. This work results in an optimization of the synthesis method to obtain high-purity nanoparticles (∼96%).