Remotely triggered curcumin release from stimuli-responsive magneto-polymeric layer-by-layer engineered nanoplatforms

Abstract

Curcumin is a promising natural drug in cancer therapy. However, its therapeutic applicability is limited by its low solubility, short half-life, and low bioavailability. In this work curcumin is encapsulated in stimuli-responsive magneto-polymeric nanoplatforms aiming at improving its bioavailability and efficiency for delivery in biological media. MnFe2O4 magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) were synthesized via thermal decomposition, coated with sodium citrate and then functionalized with multilayers of chitosan and sodium alginate, by means of the layer-by-layer deposition technique. A mesoporous polymeric-magnetic nanoplatform was produced capable of a controlled and sustained release of curcumin under temperature, pH and alternating magnetic field (magnetic hyperthermia) stimuli. As the temperature and pH of the medium increased, an increase in the rate of curcumin release was observed in a two-stage process, following the Gallagher-Corrigan mathematical model. The use of magnetic hyperthermia resulted in a faster diffusion-based release of curcumin. Increasing the number of polymer layers assembled on top of MNPs hinders the release of the curcumin molecules from innermost regions of the multilayers. These results show that magnetic hyperthermia provides a means for the controlled heat-induced release of curcumin, which can lead to an enhanced therapeutic action for curcumin.