Magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles@lecithin/poly (l-lactic acid) microspheres for targeted drug release in cancer therapy

Abstract

The use of targeted chemotherapy is a promising solution to mitigate the side effects and dosage of drugs. This research focuses on the development of magnetic microspheres (MMS) based drug carriers for targeted chemotherapy, formulated with iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄ NPs) and poly (l-lactic acid) (PLA) loaded with the antibiotic drug Ciprofloxacin (CIF). In this study, Fe₃O₄ NPs were synthesized using pomegranate peel extract as a natural reducing and stabilizing agent. The double emulsification method (W₁/O/W₂) was employed to produce Fe₃O₄@LEC-CIF-PLA-MMS, which were characterized using various spectral and microscopic techniques. The drug encapsulation efficiency for Fe₃O₄@LEC-CIF-PLA-MMS was found to be 80.7 %. The in vitro drug release of CIF from Fe₃O₄@LEC-CIF-PLA-MMS induced by H₂O₂ and GSH- stimuli was found to be 87.55 % and 82.32 %, respectively in acidic pH 4.5. Notably, the magnetically triggered drug release behaviour of Fe₃O₄@LEC-CIF-PLA-MMS (93.56 %) was assessed in acidic pH environment upon exposure to low-frequency alternating magnetic field (LF-AMF). Fe₃O₄@LEC-CIF-PLA-MMS demonstrated significantly enhanced in vitro cytotoxicity (IC₅₀ = 0.8 ± 0.03 μg/mL) against the HeLa-S3 cancer cell lines. Nevertheless, these research findings highlight the potential of Fe₃O₄@LEC-CIF-PLA-MMS for further development as a chemotherapeutic agent and hold promise for the future of targeted cancer treatment.

Keywords: Cytotoxicity; Magnetic microspheres; Poly (l-lactic acid); Targeted drug delivery; pH responsiveness.