ABS	Acetate-buffered saline
AO	Acridine orange
DL	Drug loading
DLS	Dynamic light scattering
DMSO	dimethyl sulfoxide
DCC	N’,N’-dicyclohexyl carbodiimide
EE	Encapsulation efficiency
EDC	1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethyl amino propyl) carbodiimide hydrochloride
FACS	Fluorescence-activated cell sorting
FDA	Food and Drug Administration
FTIR	Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy
HPLC	High performance liquid chromatography
H&E	Hematoxylin and eosin staining
1H NMR	proton nuclear magnetic resonance
LC	loading capacity
MTT	3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide
NHS	N-hydroxy succinimide
PTX	Paclitaxel
PTX/Zein NPs	Paclitaxel loaded zein nanoparticles
PTX/Zein-FA	Paclitaxel loaded zein nanoparticles conjugated with folate
PBS	Phosphate-buffered saline
PEG	Polyethylene Glycol
PI	Propidium iodide
XRD	X-ray diffraction