Highly Enhanced Loading Quality of Curcumin onto Carboxylated Folate Graphene Oxide

Abstract

This research focuses on loading of curcumin (Cur) anticancer drug onto nanocarriers, based on graphene oxide (GO), and improvement of loading efficiency. Surface of synthesized GO was modified by citric acid (CA) and functionalized by folic acid (FA) as a targeting agent. The functionalized GO by CA (CGO) and FA (GO-FA) were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR). Furthermore FA was conjugated to the composite of CGO to prepare stabilized and targeted GO. The CGO-FA composite was characterized by FTIR and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis. Thereafter, Cur as hydrophobic drug was loaded onto GO, CGO, GO-FA, and CGO-FA. Loaded Cur onto GO was characterized by SEM, FTIR and UV-Vis spectrophotometry. To increase the loading efficiency of Cur, the effects of water and ethanol as solvents and the weight ratios of initial Cur to GO (Cur/GO) were evaluated on the loading efficiency by response surface methodology. Comparing the loaded drug efficiencies onto different carriers demonstrated maximum loading onto CGO compared with the other carriers at optimal conditions. The optimized condition was concluded at 25.6% water in solution and 1.66 ratio of Cur/GO to achieve 112.5% loading efficiency and 13.5 ratio of loading efficiency/weight of initial Cur, respectively.