Abstract
Nanoparticles synthesized from biopolymers have received attention for their use as biological carriers in the delivery of hydrophobic drugs. Alginate, a marine biopolymer, is utilized to synthesize nanoparticles as a nanocarrier to overcome the limitations of quercetin solubility and its bioavailability. The present study aims at the synthesis of alginate nanoparticles (ALG NPs) by a simple approach for the delivery of a bioactive compound, quercetin. Quercetin entrapped alginate nanoparticles (QR-ALG NPs) with a size of 180 nm and negative zeta potential of − 21.4 mV were synthesized following a cold precipitation method. QR-ALG NPs were analyzed by UV, Fluorescence spectroscopy, AFM, SEM, XRD, and FTIR. The formulated QR-ALG NPs achieved a drug entrapment efficiency of 68% along with a shelf life of 35 days at room temperature. In vitro drug release assay showed a sustainable quercetin release up to 6 days. DPPH assay showed that QR-ALG NPs retained its antioxidant activity. MTT results demonstrated that QR-ALG NPs enhanced anticancer efficacy on the U937 cell line. This novel method to synthesize ALG NP is simple, efficient, and less laborious, could be a promising application for encapsulating drugs in nanomedicine.
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