A nanotheranostic
system was developed using α-lactalbumin
along with Fe3O4 nanoparticles as an magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agent for medical imaging and doxorubicin
as the therapeutic agent. α-lactalbumin was precipitated and
cross-linked using poly(ethylene glycol) and glutaraldehyde. Besides,
polyethylenimine was applied to increase the number of amine groups
during cross-linking between α-lactalbumin and Fe3O4 nanoparticles. Interestingly, 90% of the initial protein
used for the coaggregation process was incorporated in the prepared
130 nm nanocomposites, which facilitated the 85% doxorubicin loading.
Formation of pH-sensitive imine bonds between glutaraldehyde and amine
groups on α-lactalbumin and polyethylenimine resulted in higher
release of doxorubicin at acidic pHs and consequently development
of a pH-sensitive nanocarrier. The designed nanocomposite was less
immunogenic owing to stimulating the production of less amounts of
C3a, C5a, platelet factor 4, glycoprotein IIb/IIIa, platelet-derived β-thromboglobulin,
interleukin-6, and interleukin-1β compared to the free doxorubicin.
Furthermore, 1000 μg/mL nanocomposite led to 0.2% hemolytic
activity, much less than the 5% standard limit. The void nanocarrier
induced no significant level of cytotoxicity in breast cancer and
normal cells following 96 h incubation. The doxorubicin-loaded nanocomposite
presented higher cytotoxicity, apoptosis induction, and doxorubicin
uptake in cancer cells than free doxorubicin. Conversely, lower cytotoxicity,
apoptosis induction, and doxorubicin uptake were observed in normal
cells treated with the doxorubicin-loaded nanocarrier compared to
free doxorubicin. In line with the results of in vitro experiments,
in vivo studies on tumor-bearing mice showed more suppression of tumor
growth by the doxorubicin-loaded nanocomposite compared to the free
drug. Moreover, the pharmacokinetic study revealed slow release of
doxorubicin from the nanocomposite. Besides, in vitro and in vivo
MRI studies presented a higher r
2/r
1 ratio and comparable contrast to the commercially
available DOTAREM, respectively. Our findings suggest that this new
nanocomposite is a promising nanotheranostic system with promising
potential for cancer therapy and diagnosis.