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Abstract
The aim of this study was to design and synthesize amphiphilic supramolecular structures consisting of curcumin and diosgenin-terminated poly (ethylene glycol). Diosgenin, a natural plant extract, has proven to possess significant biological activities such as anti-tumor, anti-diabetes, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, and effect on improving memory in Alzheimer’s disease. While curcumin, the main compound of the spice turmeric, is one of the natural products that exhibits a wide range of pharmacological activities. But poor water solubility and low bioavailability of these materials have limited their clinical applications. Herein, novel amphiphilic conjugate poly (ethylene glycol) diosgenin-curcumin with improved solubility and bioavailability were developed. Cytotoxicity/anticancer effects on human fibroblast cells and human breast cancer cells are investigated with prospective potential applications in cancer therapeutics. The synthesized polymeric conjugate demonstrated non-toxic to L929 (fibroblast) cell lines but highly toxic to MCF-7 breast cancer cell lines.
Graphical Abstract
Acknowledgements
One of the authors (Sevinc Ilkar Erdagi) wishes to thank the TUBITAK (The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey) for 2211-D fellowship program provided in completing this work.