Vacuum-Synthesized, pH-Responsive Barley-Based Microgels for Targeted Doxorubicin Delivery: Formulation and Cytotoxicity Evaluation

An effective way to treat cancer is by designing environment-sensitive drug-loading-delivery platforms for anticancer drugs. The use of biocompatible polymer is an emerging area in this field, where the polymeric matrix is designed to deliver the selected drug to a specific targeted area. Herein, we report the in-vacuum synthesis of pH-responsive microgels, derived from whole-grain barley and 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid by means of free radical polymerization. The characterization of microgels was performed employing different characterization techniques, including swelling behaviour studies. The microgel showed superabsorbent behaviour with a maximum %swelling of 16,239% at 45°C and 14,449% at 37°C, within 210 min. As the swelling of the microgel was pH-responsive, it was further evaluated for controlled delivery of doxorubicin (DOX), an anticancer drug. The microgel showed appreciable loading efficiency for doxorubicin (92.23%). In vitro, release studies at varied pH also revealed the pH-sensitive release pattern of the microgel with a maximum release of 93.5% at pH 5.5 at 37°C. The kinetic study revealed that the DOX discharge from the microgel follows the First-order kinetic model. The cytotoxic studies on the doxorubicin-loaded microgels were performed on the lung cancer cell line (A549) using the NRU assay. The results showcase the synthesized microgel as an ideal matrix for the site-specific delivery of DOX.