Synthesis of Biocompatible Nanoporous ZIF-8-Gum Arabic as a New Carrier for the Targeted Delivery of Curcumin.

The synthesis of biocompatible nanoporous zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) was performed in the presence of gum arabic (GA), curcumin (CCM), and folic acid (FA) as a template for the biomineralization process, a natural anticancer component, and a targeting agent, respectively. The synthesis of ZIF-8-GA-CCM-FA was completed in a single step at room temperature in aqueous media with a minimum amount of ethanol at a linker/metal molar ratio of 10. FA was dissolved by the alkaline medium produced by a 2-methyl imidazolium (HmIm) linker without using any toxic organic solvent or additional conjugation agents.