Comparison of ionic polymers in the targeted drug delivery applications as the coating materials on the Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles

The objective of the study was to obtain multifunctional core shell nanostructures of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄) coated with various ionic biopolymers that can optimize toxicity to healthy cells, colloidal instabilities and drug loading capacities. These nanostructures can also allow drug delivery to tumor tissue because of their magnetic properties, accumulation and drug release at tumor site could be controlled by means of an external magnetic field. The impact of the biopolymers with different ionic properties to final core shell structures were investigated and compared in terms of their colloidal properties, cytotoxicities, drug adsorption and drug delivery capacities. Besides, the effect of the surface charges on the healthy cells and cancer cells is very important factor affecting toxicity and drug delivery. The results showed that the drug delivery agents coated with cationic biopolymers with cationic surface properties significantly reduced cancer cell viability compared to the anionic and nonionic polymer coatings even though their drug loading capacities were found to be the lowest.