RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To study the drug release and cytotoxicity in vitro of 5-fluorouracil (5-Fu)-loaded porous metal-organic frameworks of MIL-53. METHODS: MIL-53 was hydrothermally synthesized, and the synthetic MIL-53 was characterized by TEM, XRD, IR and TG. 5-Fu was loaded into MIL-53, and the release pattern and cytotoxicity were investigated. RESULTS: The structure of MIL-53 was confirmed. The diameter of MIL-53 was at nanometer level and MIL-53 displayed better thermo-stabilization. The highest drug loading rate was 0.431 g · g-1 MIL-53 for 5-Fu. The drug release profile of 5-Fu-loaded MIL-53 displayed a clear biphasic release pattern. Cytotoxicity test showed that MIL-53 had good biocompatility at lower concentrations. CONCLUSION: MIL-53 is a promising platform for drug delivery due to its large pore sizes for drug encapsulation and good biocompatility at lower concentrations.