Paclitaxel loading on PEG coated magnetic nano particles (MNP)

Cancer is a genetic disease that activates oncogenes while suppressing tumor suppressors. These genetic errors ultimately lead to uncontrolled cell proliferation, division, invasion, and metastasis, which are the main causes of death in cancer patients. Cancer ranks second among the leading causes of death worldwide, following cardiovascular diseases, making it a focus of research. One of the cancer treatment methods, chemotherapy, literally means drug therapy, and depending on the type of cancer, either a single chemotherapy drug or a combination of different chemotherapy drugs is used. Since most anticancer drugs lack selectivity towards cancer cells, they also harm normal cells along with cancer cells. Therefore, applying the minimum drug dose to the patient and ensuring that the maximum portion of this dose is delivered to the cancerous area is important for increasing treatment success and minimizing side effects caused by chemotherapy. To overcome this issue, research has intensified on drug targeting systems, one of which is magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs). Although MNPs are not toxic, they need to be coated with a biocompatible material, such as polyethylene glycol (PEG), to prolong circulation time in the body and ensure maximum drug delivery to the cancerous area. In this thesis, Fe3O4 synthesis was initially performed at a size of 18.17 nm. It was then coated with the biocompatible polymer PEG, and a chemotherapeutic drug, PTX, was attached to this structure. Characterization tests for all stages were conducted.