Abstract:

Graphene oxide （GO） was obtained by the improved Hummers method. The GO/Fe₃O₄ composite, in which GO was combined with magnetic Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles, was prepared by co-precipitation method. The crystalline structure, microscopic morphology, magnetic properties and drug loading of the composite were analyzed. The results showed that: The GO/Fe₃O₄ composite had high crystallinity; GO doping improved the uniformity of Fe₃O₄ particles, and the grain size of GO/Fe₃O₄ composite was 13-15 nm. The GO/Fe₃O₄ composite exhibited superparamagnetic properties with a slight decrease in saturation magnetization. The drug-release properties were studied by using GO/Fe₃O₄ composite to load doxorubicin （DOX）. The average encapsulation efficiency of GO/Fe₃O₄/DOX inclusion complex was 62.24%, which was quite high. The drug release showed pH dependence. When the pH was 7.4, the cumulative release rate reached 73.3% in 75 h. The cellular uptake test showed that the GO/Fe₃O₄ carrier had certain targeting properties and could be used as a good new drug carrier.

Key words: graphene oxide, Fe₃O₄, magnetic material, co-precipitation method, doxorubicin, drug carrier