Anticancer Drug-Loading Capacity of Green Synthesized Porous Magnetic Iron Nanocarrier and Cytotoxic Effects Against Human Cancer Cell Line

Porous hematite α-Fe 2 O 3 nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized using plant extract. The physicochemical characteristics of resulting porous particles were determined using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDS), High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HR-TEM), vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) and N 2 adsorption–desorption isotherms (BET) analyses. The cytotoxicity of porous magnetic α-Fe 2 O 3 (PMΑ) NPs, free anticancer drug, and anticancer drug-coated PMΑ NPs was evaluated against melanoma cell line (A375) and normal human cells using MTT and LDH leakage assays. BET results confirmed the presence of porous particles with the mean pore diameter of 18 nm. Porous NPs have spherical surface morphology and rhombohedral crystal structures. It was revealed that both free anticancer drug and anticancer drug-coated PMΑ NPs could inhibit the cell growth in a concentration-dependent manner. However, anticancer drug-loaded PMΑ NPs had better cytotoxic effects against melanoma cell line, evidenced via MTT and LDH leakage assays. Additionally, anticancer drug-loaded PMΑ NPs induced morphological alterations compatible with the occurrence of apoptotic cell death.