Thermodynamic Studies on Calixarene Nanoparticles as a Carrier and Adsorbent of Mercaptopurine Anticancer Drug in Drug Delivery Using Experimental Methods

Abstract

Calix [4] arene refers to a group of large cyclic compounds involving a sequence of phenols, which are obtained through the hydroxylation reaction process of phenol and aldehyde derivatives. Calixarenes have a rigid and three-dimensional structure. Nanoparticles can be used in drug delivery due to their ability to enter cells. The application of a carrier for drug delivery is very effective on improving their performance. In order to employ calixarene nanoparticles as the carriers of mercaptopurine drug, their ability and type of adsorption were examined on laboratory scale. In this study, by examining the temperature changes on the course of adsorption and by matching the data against Langmuir adsorption isotherm, Freundlich, and Dubin Radushkovich, the numbers of all thermodynamic constants of this process were calculated. The obtained adsorption capacities indicated that the elevation of the initial concentration leads to the enhanced adsorption capacity. Moreover, by considering the obtained thermodynamic constants, it was found that the adsorption process is exothermic, while the values of Gibbs free energy ∆G0 and the adsorption energy Ea showed that the adsorption process was spontaneous and chemical.