Magnetic Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes as Efficient and Sensitive Microbeads for Drug Delivery
نویسندگان
1 Tashkent State Medical University, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
2 Tashkent State Medical University, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
3 Bukhara State Medical Institute named after Abu Ali ibn Sino, Bukhara, Uzbekistan
4 Samarkand State Medical University, Samarkand, Uzbekistan
5 Jizzakh branch of the National University of Uzbekistan, Jizzakh, Uzbekistan
6 Urganch Innovation University, Urgench, Republic of Uzbekistan
7 Central Asian Medical University, Fergana, Uzbekistan
8 Namangan State University, Namangan, Uzbekistan
9 Fergana Medical Institute of Public Health, Fergana, Uzbekistan
10 Bukhara State medical institute named after Abu Ali ibn Sino, Bukhara, Uzbekistan
11 Mamun University, Urgench, Uzbekistan
12 Urgench State Medical Institute, Urgench, Uzbekistan
13 Urgench State University, Urgench, Uzbekistan
doi
10.22052/JNS.2025.04.074چکیده
We report a magnetically actuated, carbon-based microbead platform engineered by in situ growth of ferrite nanocrystals directly onto carboxylated multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), subsequently encapsulated within a hydrogel shell to yield monodisperse, tunable microbeads (diameter ~62 μm). NiFe2O4@MWCNT- and CoFe2O4@MWCNT-derived microbeads combine high payload capacity for doxorubicin (DOX) with robust magnetic responsiveness, enabling rapid magnetophoretic localization under modest field gradients (0.15 T) and minimizing systemic exposure. Comprehensive structural and magnetic characterization confirms conformal ferrite coverage, epitaxial integration with the CNT scaffold, and superparamagnetic behavior at physiological temperatures, with residual moments of 20–25 emu g−1 suitable for magnetic steering. Doxorubicin loading exceeds 33–35 μg mg−1 (entrapment efficiency >85%), and release is strongly pH-responsive: less than 12% release at pH 7.4 over 48 h (blood conditions) versus approximately 76–78% release at pH 6.0 (tumor-like milieu), corresponding to a 6.5–6.9-fold differential. Release kinetics follow Korsmeyer–Peppas behavior (n ≈ 0.43), indicating anomalous transport dominated by polymer relaxation, enabling sustained drug liberation over 24–48 h without an initial burst. In vitro, magnetically guided DOX delivery to glioblastoma cells enhances intracellular DOX uptake (~3.8-fold) and reduces the IC50 to ~0.70 μM (vs 1.8 μM for free DOX), while non-tumor cells remain largely unaffected, yielding an improved therapeutic index (TSI > 1.2). The platform’s modularity supports integration with additional therapeutics and imaging modalities, presenting a translatable approach for image-guided, targeted chemotherapy with improved safety margins.
