Curcumin-Loaded by Fe3O4/GO and Fe3O4/ZnO/GO Nanocomposites for Drug Delivery Applications: Synthesis, Characterization and Anticancer Assessment

In this article, Fe 3 O 4 /GO and Fe 3 O 4 /ZnO/GO nanocomposites (NPs) synthesized by thermal treatment at 823 K, and their drug delivery properties for curcumin (CUR) as an anticancer drug were investigated. The structural, morphological, and magnetic properties of these Nps were studied. The results of XRD, FTIR and EDX analyses indicated the synthesis of pure and crystalline structures of GO, Fe 3 O 4 /GO and Fe 3 O 4 /ZnO/GO NPs. Moreover, the mean size of spherical shape in Fe 3 O 4 /GO and Fe 3 O 4 /ZnO/GO nanoparticles was 42.36 and 53.21 nm, respectively. Based on the results of release and loading at different pHs, the drug is well loaded on the NPs and released at the tumor site. Based on these studies, the drug loading percentage on Fe 3 O 4 /GO is higher than Fe 3 O 4 /ZnO/GO. Also, the results showed that 41.65% of the drug is released from Fe 3 O 4 /GO and 23.43% from Fe 3 O 4 /ZnO/GO in the first ten hours after being in the cancer cell site. The Hemolysis test of prepared NPs and the cytotoxicity of NCs and CUR-loaded on NCs against U87 cancer cells and fibroblast human cells were investigated using the MTT assay. The toxic effect of Fe 3 O 4 /GO and of Fe 3 O 4 /ZnO/GO was more in U87 cancer cells compared to normal fibroblast cells. The results of anticancer activity of Nano-carriers on brain cancer cell lines revealed that CUR-loaded nanocrystals (NCs) have significant cytotoxicity activity on U87. Therefore, these NCs are capable of acting as drug delivery systems for anti-cancer drugs like CUR. Graphical Abstract