Augmented cytotoxicity using the physical adsorption of Poloxamer 188 on allicin-loaded gelatin nanoparticles

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this work was to study the effect of the physically adsorbed Poloxamer 188 coating polymer on the cytotoxic activity of allicin-loaded gelatin nanoparticles. METHODS: The double desolvation method was utilised to prepare the nanoparticles which were characterised for particle size (PS), polydispersity index (PDI) and zeta potential and visualised using transmission electron microscopy. The coating density of the used polymer was determined using 1H-nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NMR); 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay was used to evaluate the cytotoxicity on HepG-2 cell lines. KEY FINDINGS: The particles were spherical possessing a PS of 714 ± 25.21 nm and a PDI of 0.663 ± 0.143. These results together with the 1H-NMR results analysis confirmed the efficient coating of Poloxamer 188. The coating of particles rendered them more cytotoxic, scoring an IC50 of 6.736 µm (2-folds lower than the uncoated counter parts and 4-folds lesser than the allicin solution), and apt for cancer-targeting. Moreover, the prepared nanoparticles were stable to gamma-sterilisation and to a storage of 12 months. CONCLUSIONS: Augmented cytotoxicity on HepG-2 cell lines was obtained using the physical adsorption of an abundant and relatively cheap material, Poloxamer 188, on allicin-loaded gelatin nanoparticles.