Thiabendazole (TBZ) is an
anthelmintic drug currently studied for anticancer purposes. However, due to its low solubility, its biomedical application has been limited. Using mesoporous
silica nanoparticles (MSNPs), such as Mobil Composition of Matter Number 41 (MCM-41), as a
drug carrier, is a promising approach to improve the solubility of low water-soluble drugs. In the present work, we aim to develop TBZ-loaded
MCM-41 (TBZ MCM-41) nanoparticles to improve the solubility and the therapeutic efficacy of TBZ against
prostate cancer PC-3 cells. TBZ
MCM-41 nanoparticles were synthesized with a size of 215.9 ± 0.07 nm, a spherical shape, a hexagonal array of channels, and a
drug loading capacity of 19.1%. The
biological effects of the nanoformulation on PC-3 cells were then evaluated using a 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5
diphenyl tetrazolium
bromide (MTT), IncuCyte live-cell imaging system, cell migration, and
reactive oxygen species (ROS) assays. The results demonstrated that TBZ was released from
MCM-41 nanoparticles in a controlled manner at pH values of 1.2 and 6.8. The cell viability measurements revealed that the TBZ
MCM-41 nanoparticles caused a considerable 2.8-fold increase in the cytotoxicity of TBZ (IC50 127.3 and 46 μM for TBZ and TBZ MCM-41 nanoparticles, respectively). The results of the proliferation assay were in agreement with those of the cell viability measurements, where the
MCM-41 increased the cytotoxicity of TBZ in a concentration-dependent manner. Also, the TBZ
MCM-41 nanoparticles were found to enhance the potency of the
drug and inhibit PC-3 cell migration. In addition, the ROS assay confirmed that TBZ
MCM-41 nanoparticles were approximately 15% more potent than TBZ to produce ROS. Overall, the results demonstrated that
MCM-41 nanoparticles are a promising carrier to improve the therapeutic efficacy of TBZ against PC-3 cells and suggest evaluating the efficacy of the formulation in vivo.