Iron oxide nanoparticle encapsulated; folic acid tethered dual metal organic framework-based nanocomposite for MRI and selective targeting of folate receptor expressing breast cancer cells

Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) have been used as an efficient carrier for many therapeutic agents for cancer due to their unique properties. Even though numerous discrete MOFs have been used for biomedical applications, the traditional MOF-based composites are mainly limited to the solitary MOF source and functionalities. Herein, we report a novel and facile strategy for the design and fabrication of iron oxide (IO) nanoparticle encapsulated dual MOF composite, decorated with folic acid (FA) as targeting agent and Quercetin (Q) as drug payload. Due to the presence of superparamagnetic IO nanoparticles, the composites inherently show the potential usage for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). By integrating dual MOFs (ZIF-8/ZIF-67) with the targeting agents and drug the resultant nanocomposites (IO/Z8-Z67/FA/Q) exhibited effective anticancer activities on FA receptor-positive breast cancer cell culture model (MDA-MB-231). The IO/Z8-Z67/FA/Q nanocomposite enhanced apoptosis and cytotoxicity in the MDA-MB-231 cell line (expressing folate receptors) as compared to the MCF-7 cell line (lacking the folate receptors). The uptake analysis of the nanocomposite was also carried out using flow cytometry to confirm FA targeting. Mechanistically, the folate receptor targeted IO/Z8-Z67/FA/Q nanocomposite delivery to MDA-MB-231 cells caused high ROS generation and nuclear fragmentation, leading to cell death. The results indicate that the IO/Z8-Z67/FA/Q can be a potential theranostics agent for effective cancer therapy and targeting. The proposed IO/Z8-Z67/FA composite was also used to load another anticancer drug like 5-fluorouracil (5FU) and cytotoxicity results show promising outcomes suggesting the current nanocomposite as all-purpose drug delivery carrier.