5-fluorouracil (5-FU), doxorubicin (DOX), and chlorambucil (CA) are functional drugs to destroy cancer cells in individuals with different carcinoma. The slow release profile is an optimistic technique and controls the drug release over a long time. This study is based on the incorporation of the drug on the nano-sized clay into polymeric host-carrier. The polymeric material based on potato starch cellulose acetate compound copolymerized with the acrylic acid monomer (SCACA) by a free-radical mechanism. The main aim of the represented study is to increase the drug efficiency for long period stability and simultaneously modifying drug delivery technologies with nano-clay (modified sodium bentonite (MSB)). The prepared drug delivery carrier was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The evaluation of equilibrium swelling ratios (Q) for the SCACA without and with modified bentonite (0.05 and 2%) depict that greater modified clay content gave the lower Q value of the prepared polymer. The release rate was investigated in aqueous media of different pH values and measured spectrophotometrically. It was found that the release rate depends on the pH of the aqueous media in addition to the content of clay used in the polymeric modification.
The modified polymer/ nano-clay drug carrier has been also evaluated as an antiproliferative agent against human liver cancer cell line (HEPG2). The results show that, 5-FU gave the highest growth inhibition potency from 54:48% followed by CA which gave 37:46% , while DOX showed the lowest growth inhibition donated 41:29% for all days exposure . This may due to the release of 5- FU is more than CA and Dox., but all drugs have a promising results.