Biotin-modified oligochitosan-F127 micelles for honokiol’s encapsulation

In the study, biotin-modified oligochitosan-F127 conjugate (F127-CS-BIO) was synthesized as a carrier to prepare honokiol-loaded micelles via dialysis method. The encapsulation efficiency and drug loading were 70.79 ± 2.70% and 9.70 ± 0.57%, respectively. The mean particle size and zeta potentials were 210.9 ± 4.65 nm and 12.9 ± 7.22 mV, respectively. In vitro release studies showed that the release of honokiol from the micelles was slow and steady. MTT evaluation and cellular uptake results demonstrated that F127-CS-BIO was more easily absorbed by tumor cells and resulted in low IC 50 value of honokiol due to biotin’s targeting guidance when compared with biotin-unmodified F127-CS. In conclusion, F127-CS-BIO polymer was expected as an effective nanocarrier to encapsulate chemotherapeutic drugs. Graphical abstract