Pharmacokinetic and biodistribution studies of doxorubicin-loaded single-wall carbon nanohorns in mice

Pharmacokinetic and biodistribution studies of doxorubicin-loaded carbon nanohorns (DOX@oxSWCNHs/SA) in plasma and tissues were carried out. A high-performance liquid chromatographic method was developed and validated to determine the amount of doxorubicin. Compared with free DOX, the half-life (t_1/2) of DOX@oxSWCNHs/SA was increased from 5.44 ± 1.09 to 7.38 ± 0.98 h, area under plasma concentration–time curve (AUC_0–∞) was increased from 0.63 ± 0.008 to 1.42 ± 0.12 μg/(ml h), and the clearance of DOX was declined from 634 ± 10.05 to 280 ± 24.06 ml/h. No DOX was detected in heart after intravenous injection with DOX@oxSWCNHs/SA, while higher concentrations of drug were found in other tissues. These results suggested that DOX@oxSWCNHs/SA had the potential to obtain a long retention time in blood, sustained drug release, and a low toxicity, especially low cardiotoxicity.