Reducing agent-free synthesis of curcumin-loaded albumin nanoparticles by self-assembly at room temperature

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to prepare curcumin-loaded bovine serum albumin nanoparticles (CCM-BSA-NPs) by reducing agent-free self-assembly at room temperature. A 24 factorial design approach was used to investigate the CCM-BSA-NP preparation process at different pH values, temperatures, dithiothreitol amounts, and CCM/BSA mass ratios. Increasing the ionic strength enabled preparation of CCM-BSA-NPs at 25 degrees C without reducing agent. CCM-BSA-NPs prepared under the optimized conditions at 25 degrees C showed a particle size of 110 +/- 6 nm, yield of 88.5%, and drug loading of 7.1%. The CCM-BSA-NPs showed strong antioxidant activity and neuroprotective effects in glutamate-induced mouse hippocampal neuronal HT22 cells. This study suggests that ionic strength can be a key parameter affecting the preparation of albumin-based NPs. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.