Theoretical investigation insights into the temperature triggered tegafur anticancer drug release from the surface of graphene oxide nanosheet

Abstract

In order to quantitatively account of tegafur drug interaction with graphene oxide nanosheet, various geometrical structures are examined to study the detailed effects of drug adsorption on the structural properties, interaction energy and charge transfer of the studied complexes at the microscopic level using the density functional theory study. The bond paths at the quantum theory of atoms in molecules’ bond critical points show that the considered complexes are stabilized by the O…H hydrogen bond intermolecular interactions. In addition, the molecular dynamics simulations are applied to simulate drug release in response to the temperature change in the physiological pH. The increasing the temperature of the simulation system from 310 to 315 K has the effect of decreasing the strength of intermolecular attraction and subsequently, liberation of the adsorbed drugs from the surface of the nanosheet is observed.

Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma

Keywords:

• Tegafur
• graphene oxide nanosheet
• density functional theory
• molecular dynamics simulation
• temperature

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

Support for this work by Iran National Science Foundation (INSF) (Grant No. 96001966) is highly appreciated.