Synthesis and characterization of amino sulfonic acid functionalized graphene oxide as a potential carrier for quercetin

In this investigation, a new nanocomposite as a nanocarrier based on functionalized graphene oxide was synthesized by reaction of tetraethylenepentamine and chlorosulfonic acid with functional groups on the surface of GO. The synthesized nanocomposite was characterized by FT-IR, XRD TGA, FE-SEM, EDAX, TEM, and AFM analysis. To explore the potential of nanocomposites in drug delivery, the loading and releases of quercetin as an anticancer drug were investigated. The result displayed that more than 90% of the drug was loaded on the nanocarrier and the release of the drug is depending on the pH of the environment such that the releases of the drug in Gastric and intestinal conditions were up to 50% and 30%, respectively. The analysis of toxicity effect on the normal and cancer cells indicated that the nanocarrier with the drug has potential for cancer cells therapy without cytotoxic effect on normal cells in IC50 concentration.