Pectin-conjugated magnetic graphene oxide nanohybrid as a novel drug carrier for paclitaxel delivery

Recent studies have shown that graphene oxide (GO) drug carrier functionalized with biocompatible natural polymers lead to higher loading efficacy and better stability with diminished cellular toxicity. Pectin (PEC) is one of the polysaccharide natural polymers, which has the potential to be used for drug delivery. In this work, we have successfully developed a novel PEC-conjugated magnetic GO nanocarrier for effective delivery of paclitaxel. The structure, surface morphology and thermal stability of the nanohybrid were investigated using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and zeta-sizer. Moreover, drug loading and release performance were studied by UV-vis absorption spectra. The cytotoxicity test was also performed by MTT test using L-929 fibroblast normal cell and MCF-7 cancer lines. The prepared nanocarrier showed an improved stability with enhanced drug loading capacity. Additionally, pH-responsive release analysis of the nanohybrid illustrated higher drug release at endosomal pH of cancer cell than that of normal physiological environment. Besides, cytotoxicity test demonstrated the synthesized nanohybrid is biocompatible, having very high relative cell viability. Bearing in mind these findings, the designed multifunctional nanohybrid drug carrier will be a good candidate for cancer drug delivery.