International Journal of
Advanced Multidisciplinary Application

Volume 3, Issue 5

• Author(s)Priya S., Venkatesh R., Deepa S. , Arun K.
• AffiliationPriya S., Venkatesh R., Deepa S. , Arun K. Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Shri Venkateshwara College of Pharmacy, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, India Department of Biotechnology, Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation, Vaddeswaram, Andhra Pradesh, India
• Page No.39-45
• Volume, Issue & YearVolume 3, Issue 5, May 2026
• Published On2026/05/05
• JournalInternational Journal of Advanced Multidisciplinary Application (IJAMA)
• ISSN No.3048-9350
• DOIhttps://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20078017

Abstract

Curcumin (diferuloylmethane), a hydrophobic polyphenol derived from the rhizome of Curcuma longa, exhibits well-documented anti-tumour, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant bioactivities across multiple cancer cell lines, including MCF-7 human breast adenocarcinoma. However, its therapeutic translation is severely impeded by poor aqueous solubility (< 1 µg/mL at physiological pH), rapid metabolic degradation, and systemic bioavailability below 1% following oral administration — collectively limiting its achievable tumour-site concentration to sub-therapeutic levels. Nanoparticulate encapsulation within biodegradable polymer matrices offers a rational strategy to overcome these limitations by protecting the hydrophobic payload from premature degradation, improving colloidal dispersion, and enabling surface functionalisation for receptor-mediated tumour targeting. This study reports the formulation, physicochemical characterisation, and in-vitro evaluation of six PLGA-based nanoparticle (NP) formulations incorporating curcumin at varying chitosan (CS) coating levels (5%, 10%, 15% w/w) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) conjugation, with a ternary formulation (F6) combining 10%CS and PEG surface modification. Nanoparticles were prepared by nanoprecipitation method with characterisation encompassing drug encapsulation efficiency (EE%), dynamic light scattering (DLS) particle size and zeta potential, polydispersity index (PDI), in-vitro drug release at pH 7.4 and pH 5.0 (simulating tumour microenvironment), FTIR spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) structural analysis, MTT cell viability assay against MCF-7 cells, and colloidal stability study over 90 days. The ternary F6 formulation achieved the highest encapsulation efficiency (84.1%), smallest mean particle size (168 nm), most negative zeta potential (-34.8 mV), and lowest IC50 against MCF-7 cells (62.6 µg/mL versus 88.4 µg/mL for plain PLGA NPs and 42.8 µg/mL for free curcumin at 24h). In-vitro release studies confirmed sustained release over 24 hours with pH-responsive enhanced release at pH 5.0, simulating tumour microenvironment conditions. Haemolysis assay confirmed biocompatibility at therapeutic concentrations (haemolysis below 5% at 1 mg/mL). The F6 ternary formulation is recommended as an optimised platform for further in-vivo evaluation in breast cancer xenograft models.

Keywords: PLGA nanoparticles, curcumin, chitosan, PEG conjugation, breast cancer, drug delivery, MCF-7, encapsulation efficiency, in-vitro release, nanotechnology

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