Protein transduction domain functionalized gold nanoparticles for effective delivery of potent cytotoxic agent in cancer cells

Abstract

The need for development of highly efficient drug delivery system with minimal side effects has grown tremendously in the past few years especially for diseases such as cancer. In this respect, various methodologies have been devised but the issue of efficient delivery still prevails. In order to address this problem, we have designed a facile and simple synthesis of a novel, biocompatible nanoconjugates based drug delivery system consisting of protein transduction domain (TAT) functionalized gold nanoparticles for effective delivery of highly potent anti-cancer drug doxorubicin to human cancer cell line. Here, TAT acts both as a reducing as well as capping agent. In contrast to the previously reported multi-step synthesis, doxorubicin was loaded over nanoparticles in a facile manner with high drug loading and encapsulation efficiency. At acidic pH, drug release from synthesized nanoconjugates was confirmed by recovery in fluorescence emission of DOX. In vitro cellular uptake and cytotoxicity assay proved that the synthesized chemotherapeutic system can act as a potential candidate for the treatment of cancer in future by this strategem.