LAUSR

Hollow nanoparticles (HNPs) have been widely regarded as controlled drug carriers owing to their advantages, such as high drug-loading efficiency and superior control over drug delivery and release. In this study, a facile and efficient strategy has been exploited for preparation of hollow starch nanoparticles (HSNPs) via a sacrificial hard-template process using gelled starch as the shell. These nanocapsules have been characterized through various techniques, including transmission electron microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray diffraction, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The HSNPs have diameters ranging from 30nm to 300nm, with shell thickness of 5-10nm. X-ray diffraction analysis has revealed that HSNPs exhibit B+V type diffraction peaks with a relative crystallinity of 34.2%. Doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX·HCl) was readily encased in the nanocarriers with a high loading efficiency (97.56%) and a high loading content (37.12%). In addition, no cytotoxicity for normal liver cells was found in HSNPs. However, DOX·HCl-loaded HSNPs exhibited clear cytotoxicity for liver hepatocellular cells. Thus, the hollow starch nanoparticles form a highly promising platform for cancer therapy.