Nanoarchitectonics of catalytic tubular nanomotors based on Cu/Fe@SBA-15 for lung cancer treatment

Fabrications of nanomotors (NMs) are at the forefront of exploring the true potential of nanotechnology. Tubular nanomotors (TNMs) have been attracting huge interest recently. NMs based on 2D-hexagonal mesoporous silica (SBA-15) have been prepared through the surfactant-assisted sol–gel method. Copper and/or iron oxide nanoparticles have been impregnated in SBA-15 to form catalytic tubular nanomotors. Characterization has been investigated by XPS, XRD, HR-TEM, SEM–EDS, and BET. The electrochemical measurements were used to confirm the motion of the nanomotors. By increasing the loading of metal oxide nanoparticles, the motion decreases; this could be observed from the current loss. The anti-cancer potential of synthesized nanomotors against two cell lines (A549 and H460) of human lung carcinoma has been tested. Among all tested NMs, high-metal oxide-loaded materials containing CuO only as well as CuO and Fe 2 O 3 are potent and significant in apoptotic cell death for lung cancer treatment. Graphical abstract