Abstracts of "Institute for Research and Medical Consultations (IRMC) - Summer Research Program for Undergraduate Students – 2019" presented at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia, on October 6, 2019

Abstract

Background: Doxorubicin is an antineoplastic commonly used in chemotherapy. Its major side effect is the cumulative resultant cardiomyopathy. Polycaprolactone (PCL) is a compatible, degradable, core-shell polymer. PCL nanoparticles <600 nm have shown the ability to accumulate in solid tumors in comparison to healthy tissues, possibly because of their defective vasculature. Objectives: The aim of this study is to prepare PCL nanoparticles loaded with doxorubicin and study the effect of encapsulation on the drug’s efficacy, solubility and anticancer activity against MCF-7 cells. Materials and methods: The single emulsion method was used to prepare PCL nanoparticles; doxorubicin was incorporated during the synthesis. Nanoparticles were characterized by SEM to determine the size and morphology and by FTIR to confirm encapsulation. UV spectrophotometer was used for study the drug release. ELISA microplate reader was used to study the anticancer activity against MCF-7 (American Type Culture Collection, USA) cell line at different concentrations. Results: SEM showed uniform microspheres with a size 3 µm. FTIR showed defined bands for PCL and doxorubicin at 3400, 3000, 1650, 1450 and 1100 cm−1. Drug release was slow because of the insolubility of PCL in PBS. MTT assay showed a 49% decrease in cell viability at 100 µM. Conclusion: Polycaprolactone nanoparticles are potentially useful carriers for doxorubicin. The single emulsion method was not effective for nano-size particle preparation and different methods could be used to obtain a smaller particle size. PCL may be copolymerized with a hydrophilic polymer to increase the drug release rate.