Investigation of metal oxide nanoparticles for drug delivery applications

Abstract

In this Ph.D. thesis, the synthesis of rutile titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 NPs) was optimised on the basis of molarity, pH and calcination temperature. A novel approach was used to modify the magnetic properties of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 NPs) using commercially available iron supplements (Autrin and FericipXT). These NPs were further PEGylated to improve biocompatibility. Three nanoformulations were loaded with the chemotherapeutic drug, Imatinib and a pH-dependent controlled drug release behaviour was observed in the case of PEGylated NPs. In-vitro drug release profiles were found to have a maximum correlation with the Peppas-Sahlin model indicating Fickian diffusion and Case II relaxation. This study will pave the way for formulating smart drug delivery systems (SDDS) in the healthcare industry which will ameliorate the therapeutic efficacy and improve patient compliance. newline