Production of protein nanoparticles as drug delivery vehicle and up to down optimization

  Background: Application of biodegradable particle systems is an interesting subject for using polymers in drug delivery purposes. These systems are suitable for delivery of many drugs.   Objective: The aim of this study was to produce and optimize protein nanoparticles as drug delivery vehicle.   Methods: This experimental study was performed in Babol Noshirvani University during 2011. A simple coacervation technique was applied for production of nanoparticles (NPs). NPs were purified by high speed centrifuge (48,800 g) followed by dialysis, microfiltration and ultrafiltration. Size of the fabricated NPs was measured by laser light scattering and NPs structure was analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM).   Findings: The most important factors affecting on the size of produced NPs were agitation speed, temperature, protein concentration and ethanol to bovine serum albumin (BSA) ratio. The produced NPs were in the range of 101.4 to 503 nm and were semi-spherical. Temperature was the most important factor. Brownian motion of molecule increased with increasing temperature that was effective for produced NPs size.   Conclusion: With regards to the results, Nanoparticles of about 100 nm with high purity can be produced from BSA and can be used for drug delivery purposes.