A novel nanocarrier of magnetic Fe(3)O(4)-graphene nanocomposites (MGNs) was proposed as an effective drug delivery system for cancer treatment. The nanocarrier was synthesized by covalently attaching modified Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles onto water-soluble graphene sheets via the formation of an amide bond with the aid of 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethyaminopropyl) carbodiimide. The obtained MGNs exhibited excellent dispersibility and stability in aqueous solution and they also exhibited superparamagnetic properties with a saturation magnetization of 23.096 emu g(-1). An efficient loading of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) on MGNs as high as 0.35 mg mg(-1) was obtained. Furthermore, the in vitro drug release of 5-FU was examined in pH 6.9 and pH 4.0 buffers at 37 °C, and showed strong pH dependence. Transmission electron microscope observations revealed that MGNs can be internalized efficiently by HepG2 cells. More importantly, the cytotoxicity evaluation shows that the resulting MGNs exhibit excellent biocompatibility. The as-prepared nanocarrier system combined the advantages of the superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles and water-soluble graphene sheets, which will find many potential applications in biomedicine and biomaterials.

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Cellular toxicity test is a key step in assessing the graphene toxicity for its biomedical applications. In this study, we investigated the cytotoxicity of graphene with 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2Htetrazolium bromide (MTT) and tetrazolium-8-[2-(2-methoxy-4-nitrophenyl)-3-(4-nitrophenyl)-5-(2,4disulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium] monosodium salt (CCK-8) assay on HepG2 cell line and Chang liver cell line. The cell viability data obtained by using MTT and CCK-8 assay showed inconsistent. Graphene induced adsorption, optical interferences, as well as electron transfer can prevent to appropriate evaluate graphene toxicity. Our findings demonstrated the importance of careful interpreting of obtained data from classical in vitro assays on assessment of graphene cytotoxicity. www.rsc.org/advances 53240 | RSC Adv., 2015, 5, 53240-53244 This journal is

Owning to their advantages of superior inherent porosity, high chemical stability, light-weight, and molecularly tunable optoelectronic properties, conjugated microporous polymers (CMPs) have been received increasing attention and research interest as...