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This work described a folic acid conjugated delivery of chrysin-loaded bovine serum albumin nanoparticles, which could overcome the nonspecific targeting disadvantage. Chrysin (5, 7-dihydroxyflavone) is a natural flavonoid which have some significant biological effects on the processes of chemical defense. Chrysin loaded bovine serum albumin nanoparticles (Chrysin-BSA NPs) were synthesized by a simple desolvation procedure. Afterward, folic acid (FA) was conjugated to the surface of Chrysin-BSA NPs by carbodiimide chemistry (Chrysin-BSA-FA NPs). The resultant Chrysin-BSA-FA NPs showed a spherical shape, with a hydrodynamic diameter of 97.5 ± 5.8 nm (mean ± SD) nm and a ζ-potential of -11.3 mV. The in vitro drug release study of chrysin presented a sustained and controlled release pattern. Hemolysis assay and cytotoxicity study results on HFF-2 cell line show that as prepared BSA NPs are biocompatible. Both the Chrysin-BSA NPs and Chrysin-BSA-FA NPs prompted an enhanced cancer cell cytotoxic effect in contrast to chrysin solution. These data recommended that the folate-modified chrysin -loaded vehicle, which demonstrated better biocompatibility and potential superiority, could be a suitable cancer therapy in targeting tumors in the future., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

To solve the traditional radiotherapy obstacles, and also to enhance the radiation therapy efficacy various radiosensitizers have been developed. Radiosensitizers are promising agents that under X-ray irradiation enhance injury to tumor tissue by accelerating DNA damage. In this report, silver-silver sulfide nanoparticles (Ag-Ag2S NPs) were synthesized via a facile, one-pot and environmentally friendly biomineralization method. Ag-Ag2S was coated with bovine serum albumin (BSA) in situ and applied as an X-ray sensitizer to enhance the efficiency of radiotherapy. Also, folic acid (FA) was conjugated to Ag-Ag2S@BSA to impart active targeting capability to the final formulation (Ag-Ag2S@BSA-FA). Prepared NPs were characterized by transmission electron microscopes (TEM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy (UV–Vis), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) techniques. Results show that most of the NPs have well-defined uniform Janus structures. The biocompatibility of the NPs was then evaluated both in vitro and in vivo. A series of in vitro assays were performed on 4T1 cancer cells to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of the designed NPs. In addition, the radio-enhancing ability of the NPs was tested on the 4T1 breast cancer murine model. MTT, live and dead cell staining, apoptosis, ROS generation, and clonogenic in vitro assays demonstrated the efficacy of NPs as radiosensitizers in radiotherapy. In vivo results as well as H&E staining tumor tissues confirmed tumor destruction in the group that received Ag-Ag2S@BSA-FA NPs and exposed to X-ray. The results showed that prepared tumor-targeted Ag-Ag2S@BSA-FA NPs could be potential candidates as radiosensitizers for enhanced radiotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]