Bovine serum albumin-capped ZnO nanoparticles as palbociclib drug carrier against MCF-7 cell line

The purpose of this study was to develop anticancer drug-albumin-loaded nanoparticles-based delivery system, which can efficiently deliver therapeutic drug to the breast cancer cells. The stable ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized using Eureka lemons extract as a reducing and capping agent, and coated by bovine serum albumin (BSA). These BSA-coated ZnO nanoparticles were used for the preparation of palbociclib-loaded nanoparticles (PAL@BSA-ZnO) and characterized for encapsulation efficiency, release profile, and cell cytotoxicity. The chemical interaction of PAL and BSA-ZnO-NPs was studied by UV–Vis spectrophotometry, voltammetry, Fourier-transform infrared analysis (FT-IR), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The synthesized ZnO-NPs had a pyramid shape, with an absorption peak at 368 nm. The loading efficiency of PAL was 88.37% on BSA-ZnO-NPs compared to ZnO-NPs (75.43%). The cumulative release of the PAL from the PAL@BSA-ZnO was 37.35% and 91.27% at pH 7.4 and 4.5, respectively for 34 h. The nanoparticles showed controlled and sustained release with an initial burst release. A preliminary drug release test showed that up to 28.62% and 79.14% of the loaded PAL could be delivered to neutral (pH = 7.4) and acidic (pH = 4.5) medium, respectively at 20 h, confirming the feasibility of using BSA-ZnO as a multifunctional drug carrier. The PAL-loaded BSA-ZnO showed significant cytotoxicity on MCF-7 cells. Their efficacy was time and dose‑dependent, with IC50 of 21.7 μg/mL and 13.4 μg/mL for 24 and 48 h, respectively. This drug delivery strategy implies that the BSA-ZnO nanoparticles occupy an important position in chemotherapeutic drug loading efficiency and can improve therapeutic techniques of breast cancer.