A novel pH‐responsive nanoniosomal emulsion for sustained release of curcumin from a chitosan‐based nanocarrier: Emphasis on the concurrent improvement of loading, sustained release, and apoptosis induction

Abstract

Curcumin application as an anti‐cancer drug is faced with several impediments. This study has developed a platform that facilitates the sustained release of curcumin, improves loading efficiency, and anti‐cancer activity. Montmorillonite (MMT) nanoparticles were added to chitosan (CS)‐agarose (Aga) hydrogel and then loaded with curcumin (Cur) to prepare a curcumin‐loaded nanocomposite hydrogel. The loading capacity increased from 63% to 76% by adding MMT nanoparticles to a chitosan‐agarose hydrogel. Loading the fabricated nanocomposite in the nanoniosomal emulsion resulted in sustained release of curcumin under acidic conditions. Release kinetics analysis showed diffusion and erosion are the dominant release mechanisms, indicating non‐fickian (or anomalous) transport based on the Korsmeyer‐Peppas model. FTIR spectra confirmed that all nanocomposite components were present in the fabricated nanocomposite. Besides, XRD results corroborated the amorphous structure of the prepared nanocomposite. Zeta potential results corroborated the stability of the fabricated nanocarrier. Cytotoxicity of the prepared CS‐Aga‐MMT‐Cur on MCF‐7 cells was comparable with that of curcumin‐treated cells (p < 0.001). Moreover, the percentage of apoptotic cells increased due to the enhanced release profile resulting from the addition of MMT to the hydrogel and the incorporation of the fabricated nanocomposite into the nanoniosomal emulsion. To recapitulate, the current delivery platform improved loading, sustained release, and curcumin anti‐cancer effect. Hence, this platform could be a potential candidate to mitigate cancer therapy restrictions with curcumin.

Role of Iron Oxide (Fe2O3) Nanocomposites in Advanced Biomedical Applications: A State-of-the-Art Review

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In vitro Development of Controlled-Release Nanoniosomes for Improved Delivery and Anticancer Activity of Letrozole for Breast Cancer Treatment

“…9,10 Development of targeted drug delivery systems (DDSs) has received extensive attention. 12,13,14,15 The combination of medicine and nanotechnology has modified multifunctional nanocarriers that can be loaded with different drugs. [15][16][17][18] Nanoparticle-based DDSs, such as liposomes, nanotubes, [19][20][21] metallic nanoparticles, 22,23 metal-organic frameworks, 24,25 mesoporous silica nanoparticles, 26 are promising carriers for targeted delivery due to their high surface area to mass ratio and high interaction which lead them to carry drug molecules efficiently rather than free drug molecules in solution.…”

Two-Dimensional Graphitic Carbon Nitride (g-C3N4) Nanosheets and Their Derivatives for Diagnosis and Detection Applications

“…Nanotechnology has allowed advances in monitoring, diagnosis, prognosis, and proposing effective treatments [ 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 ]. In this sense, biosensors based on nanomaterials have accurate detection, efficient monitoring, and fast but reliable imaging [ 17 , 18 ].…”