Citrate stabilized fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles as a carrier for targeted delivery of melittin in cancer treatment

Melittin (MEL) is a kind of cytolytic peptide that isolated from bee venom. Cytolytic peptides are promising drugs for cancer treatment because cancer cells are less likely to develop resistance to a membrane-perturbing agent. However, their nonspecific cytotoxicity has limited their therapeutic applications. In this study, we use citric acid stabilized Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles (CA-MNP) as potential magnetic carriers for target delivery of melittin to tumor sites. The morphology and surface functionalization of these magnetic nanocarriers were studied by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and Fourier transform infrared. The loading and release profile of MEL were studied by UV spectrophotometry. The results indicate that these magnetic nanocarriers have the high drug loading efficiency and the pH-dependent release behavior. The in vitro cytotoxicity of the MEL-loaded CA-MNP on the MCF-7 breast cancer cell line is similar to that of free MEL in solution at equivalent doses.

Keywords:

Melittin , Nanocarriers , Magnetic drug targeting , Cancer , MTT assay