ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Chitosan-functionalized Fe₃O₄@SiO₂ nanoparticles as a potential drug delivery system

Ngoc Yen Nguyen, Huynh Vu Thanh Luong, Duy Toan Pham, Thi Bich Quyen Tran, and Huynh Giao Dang

Applied Chemical Engineering Lab, College of Engineering, Can Tho University, Can Tho, Vietnam

E-mail: lhvthanh@ctu.edu.vn

Received: 14 November 2021  Accepted: 18 March 2022

Abstract:

This study developed and characterized the chitosan-functionalized Fe₃O₄@SiO₂ nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄@SiO₂@CS NP) as a drug delivery system. Fe₃O₄ NP were first synthesized by co-precipitation method, followed by coating with SiO₂, and functionalized with chitosan via glutaraldehyde crosslinking bridges. The newly synthesized Fe₃O₄@SiO₂@CS NP possessed an octagonal shape with a diameter of ~ 20 nm. In the FT-IR spectrum, the Fe₃O₄@SiO₂@CS NP demonstrated the appearances of C–O, N–H, and C–H peaks, indicating the presence of chitosan in their structures. The Fe₃O₄@SiO₂@CS NP could preserve the Fe₃O₄ magnetic property with a magnetization value of 52.43 emu/g, a magnetization remanence of almost 0 emu/g, and minimal residual coercivity. Utilizing curcumin as a drug model, the Fe₃O₄@SiO₂@CS NP could adsorb the drug rapidly, to more than 71% within 20 min, with an adsorption capacity of 6.54 mg/g and an adsorption energy of 0.2029 kJ/mol (following the Dubinin–Radushkevich model). The curcumin adsorption process was in good agreement with the pseudo-second-order kinetics (R² = 0.9975). Interestingly, in the simulated body fluid, the curcumin-loaded Fe₃O₄@SiO₂@CS NP could retain the curcumin release, with no detectable drug release, in the first hour, followed by a burst release within the next hour. This confirms the contribution of CS in the system. Conclusively, the Fe₃O₄@SiO₂@CS NP could be further developed to potentially become a controlled-release drug delivery system.

Keywords: Chitosan; Magnetic nanoparticles; Fe3O4; Curcumin; Drug delivery

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.1007/s11696-022-02189-x

Chemical Papers 76 (7) 4561–4570 (2022)