Folate-polydiacetylene-liposome for tumor targeted drug delivery and fluorescent tracing

•Folic acid is modified with dodecylamine and embedded in bilayer by alkane chain.•Folate-PDA-liposome with targeted delivery and fluorescence tracing was prepared.•Simulated drug delivery was performed in cancer cells and normal cells in vitro.•Internalization of FPLs in cells was presented by fluorescence cell imaging.

A novel folate-polydiacetylene-liposome (FP-PL) with both targeted drug delivery and fluorescence tracing was prepared by thin film rehydration method. The simulated drug delivery was performed in Bcap-37 breast cancer cells and Hs578Bst normal cells in vitro. The internalization and distribution of FP-PLs in the cells were presented by fluorescence cell imaging. The results show that the FP-PLs possess low cytotoxicity, good biocompatibility and better targeting efficiency in comparison to polydiacetylene-liposomes (P-PLs).

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