pH-Responsive Cytotoxicity of a Magnetic Iron-Based Nanocomposite in Normal and Cancer Cell Models

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6239-668-5_19How to use a DOI?

Keywords

pH-responsive nanocomposite; magnetic nanoparticles; cytotoxicity

Abstract

pH-responsive nanocarriers with magnetic cores represent a promising approach for targeted drug delivery. Nevertheless, their potential cytotoxicity remains a concern. This study re-evaluates published data on the magnetic nanocomposite IONPs@CtAC-MR, composed of iron oxide nanoparticles, activated carbon, and the flavonoid morin, to assess its pH responsiveness and cytotoxicity. The analysis focused on its effects in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and two tumor cell lines: glioblastoma (T98-G) and colorectal adenocarcinoma (HT-29).Viability was assessed via MTT assay after 24 and 48 h of exposure to the nanocomposite at concentrations of 50, 100, and 200 µg/mL, under both physiological (pH 7.4) and acidic (pH 5.4) conditions.

HUVEC cells retained high viability (~89%) at neutral pH across all concentrations and time points but showed a decrease (~69%) under acidic conditions, independent of dose or exposure duration, suggesting sensitivity to pH-induced stress. T98-G cells proliferated at pH 7.4 (133%, 24 h, 50 µg/mL), with viability increasing at higher doses and longer exposure. Under the same conditions, acidic pH reduced viability to 51%, but it recovered to 142% at 200 µg/mL after 48 h. HT-29 cells also showed high viability under neutral pH (~137%, 24 h, 50 µg/mL) with a weak influence of concentration. However, in acidic conditions, viability declined (77%) and remained stable regardless of concentration or duration.

The relative contribution of the examined factors to cell viability can be ranked as follows: cell line > pH > concentration > time.

The nanocomposite exhibited favorable biocompatibility and selective cytotoxicity, supporting its potential as a pH-responsive drug delivery platform.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - A. Asanova
AU  - A. Eftekhari
AU  - M. F. Baran
AU  - A. Baran
AU  - M. Sultanova
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/14
TI  - pH-Responsive Cytotoxicity of a Magnetic Iron-Based Nanocomposite in Normal and Cancer Cell Models
BT  - Proceedings of the International Conference on Current Problems in Engineering and Applied Sciences (ICCPEAS 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 175
EP  - 183
SN  - 2352-5401
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-668-5_19
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-668-5_19
ID  - Asanova2026
ER  -