Anticancer Activity of 5-Fluorouracil-Loaded Nanoemulsions Containing Fe3O4/Au Core-Shell Nanoparticles

• Published in: Journal of molecular structure Vol. 1245; p. 131075
• Main Authors: Izadiyan, Zahra, Shameli, Kamyar, Teow, Sin-Yeang, Yusefi, Mostafa, Kia, Pooneh, Rasouli, Elisa, Tareq, Mohammad Ali
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 05.12.2021
• Subjects: 5-Fluorouracil; Colorectal cancer; Core-shell; Fe3O4/Au nanoparticles; Juglans regia; Nanoemulsion; Fe3O4/Au nanoparticles; 5-Fluorouracil; Core-shell; Nanoemulsion; Colorectal cancer; Juglans regia
• ISSN: 0022-2860; 1872-8014
• DOI: 10.1016/j.molstruc.2021.131075

Nanoemulsions (NEs) as multi-compartmentalized systems are extensively considered as versatile drug delivery systems, due to their multifunctional and tuneable physicochemical properties. Here, water-in-oil-in-water (WOW) NEs were formulated using Juglans regia-based Fe3O4/Au-core-shell nanoparticles to encapsulate 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) for potential colorectal cancer treatment. Response surface methodology, FTIR, TGA, TEM, DLS, VSM, UV-vis spectroscopy, and viscosity measurements were used to characterize the fabricated samples. The analysis confirmed the successful synthesis of Au, Fe3O4, and Fe3O4/Au core-shell nanoparticles with the Juglans regia (J. regia) extract as a green stabilizer and also reducing agent. The NE displayed a spherical-shape and TEM size of~30 nm. It also exhibited good colloidal stability and multifunctional features related to its components. TGA data indicated that 5-FU increased thermal stability after its loading into the nanoemulsion as a drug carrier. 5-FU release from the NE carrier presented a time-delayed behavior and higher release dosage in media at pH 4 compared to pH 7 within 48 h. When tested against colorectal-derived cell lines, 0.78 µg/mL of 5-FU-loaded Fe3O4/Au core-shell NEs showed potent anticancer activity against HCT116 cancerous cells, while exhibiting low toxicity towards CCD112 normal cells. In conclusion, the synthesized 5-FU-loaded NEs can be potently used as an anticancer drug carrier model, owing to its nano-scale size and other functionalities, which should be further studied.