Complexation with C(60) Fullerene Increases Doxorubicin Efficiency against Leukemic Cells In Vitro

Conventional anticancer chemotherapy is limited because of severe side effects as well as a quickly evolving multidrug resistance of the tumor cells. To address this problem, we have explored a C(60) fullerene-based nanosized system as a carrier for anticancer drugs for an optimized drug delivery to leukemic cells. Here, we studied the physicochemical properties and anticancer activity of C(60) fullerene noncovalent complexes with the commonly used anticancer drug doxorubicin. C(60)-Doxorubicin complexes in a ratio 1:1 and 2:1 were characterized with UV/Vis spectrometry, dynamic light scattering, and high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). The obtained analytical data indicated that the 140-nm complexes were stable and could be used for biological applications. In leukemic cell lines (CCRF-CEM, Jurkat, THP1 and Molt-16), the nanocomplexes revealed ≤ 3.5 higher cytotoxic potential in comparison with the free drug in a range of nanomolar concentrations. Also, the intracellular drug’s level evidenced C(60) fullerene considerable nanocarrier function. The results of this study indicated that C(60) fullerene-based delivery nanocomplexes had a potential value for optimization of doxorubicin efficiency against leukemic cells.