Fe3O4 Nanoparticles with Ursolic Methyl Ester Induce Apoptosis of Multidrug-Resistant Leukemia KA Cell: In Vitro Evaluation

Ferrous ferric oxide (Fe3O4) nanoparticles had captured immense attention in biomedical research because of their potential in functioning as an efficient drug delivery vector. In this study, our research investigated the synergistic effect of Fe3O4 with the anti-cancer drug ursolic methyl ester on the induction of apoptosis using drug-resistant human leukemia KA cells. Apoptotic staining, DNA fragmentation, and flow cytometry analysis demonstrated that compared with Fe3O4 or ursolic methyl ester seperated, the apoptosis rate increased sharply by the treatment of Fe3O4 together with ursolic methyl ester on KA cells. These results proved that the nanocomposites readily overcame the barrier of drug-resistance and provoked cell apoptosis in vitro by facilitating the interaction between ursolic methyl ester and KA cells. As is known to all, it is an inevitable tendency that new effective therapies will take the place of conventional chemotherapy and radiotherapy suffering from significant disadvantages. According to this article, we will find that Fe3O4 combined with ursolic methyl ester is possible alternative for some cancer treatments. This nanocomposite raises the possibility of modulating apoptosis in cancer cells, and of inhibiting tumor growth.