Transferrin-conjugated curcumin-loaded superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles induce augmented cellular uptake and apoptosis in K562 cells.

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles are currently used for precise drug delivery and as an image contrast agent. In the present study, the potentiality of curcumin-loaded magnetic nanoparticles (Cur-MNPs) for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) was investigated. For active therapy, transferrin (Tf) ligand was further conjugated to Cur-MNPs, which demonstrated enhanced uptake compared to Cur-MNPs in p210bcr/abl-positive cell line (K562). Cur-MNPs demonstrated greater and sustained anti-proliferative activity in a dose- and time-dependent manner; however, with the advent of a magnetic field the anti-proliferative activity of Cur-MNPs as well as Tf-Cur-MNPs was enhanced due to higher cellular uptake with enhanced cytotoxicity activity. Down-regulation of Bcr-Abl protein activates intrinsic apoptotic pathways for promoting anti-leukemic responses. Our in vitro results advocate potential clinical applications of Cur-MNPs by activating multiple signaling pathways for provoking the anti-leukemic activity.