Functionalization of single and multi-walled carbon nanotubes with polypropylene glycol decorated pyrrole for the development of doxorubicin nano-conveyors for cancer drug delivery

A recently reported functionalization of single and multi-walled carbon nanotubes, based on a cycloaddition reaction between carbon nanotubes and a pyrrole derived compound, was exploited for the formation of a doxorubicin (DOX) stacked drug delivery system. The obtained supramolecular nano-conveyors were characterized by wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. The supramolecular interactions were studied by molecular dynamics simulations and by monitoring the emission and the absorption spectra of DOX. Biological studies revealed that two of the synthesized nano-vectors are effectively able to get the drug into the studied cell lines and also to enhance the cell mortality of DOX at a much lower effective dose. This work reports the facile functionalization of carbon nanotubes exploiting the “pyrrole methodology” for the development of novel technological carbon-based drug delivery systems.