Preparation and properties of mixed micelles made of Pluronic polymer and PEG-PE

Mixed micelles made of Pluronic P105 (P105) and poly(ethylene glycol)-phosphatidyl ethanolamine conjugate (PEG-PE) were prepared. The interaction of Pluronic and PEG-PE was studied and the interaction parameter beta and critical micelle concentration (CMC) were used to evaluate the micellar stability toward dilution. The results showed that certain mixed micelles were more stable than pure Pluronic micelles upon dilution. The mixed micelles were used to trap the poorly soluble anticancer drug camptothecin (CPT). The cytotoxicity of the CPT-loaded mixed micelles against MCF-7 cancer cell was higher than that of CPT-loaded P105 micelles and much higher than that of the free drug.     

Preparation and characterization of Pluronic/TPGS mixed micelles for solubilization of camptothecin

To increase the solubility and cytotoxicity of poorly soluble anticancer drug camptothecin (CPT), mixed micelles made of Pluronic P105 (P105) and d-alpha-tocopheryl polyethylene glycol 1,000 succinate (TPGS) were prepared. The interaction of Pluronic and TPGS was studied and critical micelle concentration (CMC) was used to evaluate the micellar stability towards dilution. Poorly soluble anticancer drug CPT was incorporated into the mixed micelles. The solubility of CPT by the mixed micelles was more than that of the free drug. The cytotoxicity of the CPT-loaded mixed micelles against MCF-7 cancer cell in vitro was remarkably higher than that of the free drug.     

Preparation of Biocompatible Graphene Oxide Composite Hydrogel to Deliver Ophthalmic Drugs

Considering that conventional hydrogels showed limited capabilities of controlling hydrophobic drug loading and releasing and graphene materials had interactions with hydrophobic drugs, we designed a graphene oxide (GO) composite hydrogel for drug delivery. But GO could not disperse well in monomer solution and agglomerated badly. Thus, water-soluble GO (GO-tripolymer) was first prepared under the stabilization of amphiphilic polymer, Pluronic F-127. The GO-tripolymer showed good solubility in PBS with the increase of polymer concentration. All GO-tripolymer solutions had the same UV absorption peaks as GO. Then, GO composite hydrogels (HNG hydrogels) were formed by the polymerization of hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), N-Vinyl pyrrolidone (NVP) and GO-tripolymer mixture. The introduction of GO-tripolymer had little effect on the gelation time and equilibrium swelling ratio of hydrogel. The freeze-drying hydrogel showed porous structure. The pore size decreased and the rough surface was detected with the increase of GO concentration. HNG hydrogel could load more puerarin and norfloxacin than conventional hydrogel (HN hydrogel). Moreover, HNG hydrogel could control puerarin and norfloxacin release more steadily than HN hydrogel. HNG exhibited low cytotoxicity.     

Synthesis and characterization of novel amphiphilic copolymer stearic acid-coupled F127 nanoparticles for nano-technology based drug delivery system

Pluronic, F127, amphiphilic block copolymers, are used for several applications, including drug delivery systems. The critical micelle concentration (CMC) of F127 is about 0.26-0.8 wt% so that the utility of F127 in nano-technology based drug delivery system is limited since the nano-sized micelles could dissociate upon dilution. Herein, stearic acid (SA) was simply coupled to F127 between the carboxyl group of SA and the hydroxyl group of F127, which formed a novel copolymer named as SA-coupled F127, with significantly lower CMC. Above the CMC 6.9 × 10(-5)wt%, SA-coupled F127 self-assembled stable nanoparticles with Zeta potential -36 mV. Doxorubicin (DOX)-loaded nanoparticles were made, with drug loading (DL) 5.7 wt% and Zeta potential -36 to -39 mV, and the nanoparticles exhibited distinct shape with the size distribution from 20 to 50 nm. DOX-loaded nanoparticles were relatively stable and exhibited DOX dependant cytotoxicity toward MCF-7 cells in vitro. These results suggest that SA-coupled F127 potentially could be applied as a nano-technology based drug delivery method.     

Mixed micelle formation with hydrophobic and hydrophilic Pluronic block copolymers: implications for controlled and targeted drug delivery

Pluronic block copolymers offer affluent phase behavioral characteristics and are extensively investigated for drug delivery applications. Hydrophobic Pluronics produce larger aggregates whereas hydrophilic Pluronics often generate small-sized micelles in aqueous milieu. To overcome the limitations and combine the advantages of different kinds of Pluronics the mixing of such two types of Pluronics is studied here, especially for hydrophobic Pluronic L81 and relatively hydrophilic Pluronic P123. Critical micelle concentration (CMC) of the developed binary mixtures was 0.032 mg/ml as evidenced from pyrene fluorescence spectroscopy and is located in between that of the individual Pluronics. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) showed very small particle sizes (～20 nm) and low polydispersity indices for most of the mixed micelles. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) demonstrated spherical shape of micelles. Based upon the ratio of hydrophobic and hydrophilic Pluronics, dispersions of varied stability were obtained. With 0.1/1.0 wt.% and 0.5/3.0 wt.% of Pluronic L81/P123, stable dispersions were obtained. Stability was assessed from turbidity measurement, size analysis and clarity of dispersion on standing. Micelles were also found to be stable in bovine serum albumin (BSA) solution. Mixed micelles showed fairly high entrapment efficiency, loading capacity and sustained release profile for aceclofenac (Acl), a model hydrophobe. Presence of salt lowered Acl solubilization in micelles. Thermodynamic parameters for Acl solubilization in mixed micelles revealed high partition coefficient values and spontaneity of drug solubilization. Thus, the developed novel mixed micelles hold promise in controlled and targeted drug delivery owing to their very small size, high entrapment efficiency and stability.     

Enhancement of cellular uptake and antitumor efficiencies of micelles with phosphorylcholine

Internalization of drug delivery micelles into cancer cells is a crucial step for antitumor therapeutics. Novel amphiphilic star-shaped copolymers with zwitterionic phosphorylcholine (PC) block, 6-arm star poly(ε-caprolactone)-b-poly(2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine) (6sPCL-b-PMPC), have been developed for encapsulation of poorly water-soluble drugs and enhancement of their cellular uptake. The star-shaped copolymers were synthesized by a combination of ring-opening polymerization (ROP) and atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). The copolymers self-assembled to form spherical micelles with low critical micelle concentration (CMC). The sizes of the micelles range from 80 to 170 nm and increase 30 ≈ 80% after paclitaxel (PTX) loading. Labeled with fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC), the micelles were confirmed by fluorescence microscopy to have been internalized efficiently by tumor cells. Direct visualization of the micelles within tumor cells by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) confirmed that the 6sPCL-b-PMPC micelles were more efficiently uptaken by tumor cells compared to PCL-b-PEG micelles. When incorporated with PTX, the 6sPCL-b-PMPC micelles show much higher cytotoxicity against Hela cells than PCL-b-PEG micelles, in response to the higher efficiency of cellular uptake.     

Drug release and biocompatibility of self‐assembled micelles prepared from poly (ɛ‐caprolactone/glycolide)‐poly (ethylene glycol) block copolymers

A series of poly(?‐caprolactone/glycolide)‐poly(ethylene glycol) (P(CL/GA)‐PEG) diblock copolymers were prepared by ring opening polymerization of a mixture of ?‐caprolactone and glycolide using mPEG as macro‐initiator and stannous octoate as catalyst. Self‐assembled micelles were prepared from the copolymers using nanoprecipitation method. The micelles were spherical in shape. The micelle size was larger for copolymers with longer PEG blocks. In contrast, the critical micelle concentration of copolymers increased with decreasing the overall hydrophobic block length. Drug loading and drug release studies were performed under in vitro conditions, using paclitaxel as a hydrophobic model drug. Higher drug loading was obtained for micelles with longer poly(ε‐caprolactone) blocks. Faster drug release was obtained for micelles of mPEG2000 initiated copolymers than those of mPEG5000 initiated ones. Higher GA content in the copolymers led to faster drug release. Moreover, drug release rate was enhanced in the presence of lipase from Pseudomonas sp., indicating that drug release is facilitated by copolymer degradation. The biocompatibility of copolymers was evaluated from hemolysis, dynamic clotting time, and plasma recalcification time tests, as well as MTT assay and agar diffusion test. Data showed that copolymer micelles present outstanding hemocompatibility and cytocompatibility, thus suggesting that P(CL/GA)‐PEG micelles are promising for prolonged release of hydrophobic drugs.     

Novel nanogels as drug delivery systems for poorly soluble anticancer drugs

Two types of novel nanogels were prepared using shell cross-linking of Pluronic F127 micelles with polyethylenimine (PEI) (F127/PEI nanogel), and penetrating network of poly(butylcyanoacrylate) (PBCA) in Pluronic F127 micelles (F127/PBCA nanogel). Poorly soluble anticancer drug, paclitaxel (PTX) and 10-hydroxycamptothecin (HCPT), were used as model drugs and incorporated into nanogels. The results obtained from FT-IR spectroscopy confirmed that the drugs were molecularly dispersed in the nanogels. DLS measurements demonstrated that the nanogel size distribution was narrow with average diameter less than 200 nm. TEM images indicated that the nanogels were spherical in shape and had smooth surfaces. The drug-loaded nanogels showed sustained release profiles compared with the free drugs as revealed by in vitro release experiments. Cytotoxicity tests showed that the cytotoxicity of drug-loaded nanogels against cancer cell in vitro was much higher than that of the free drug. The data demonstrate that these novel nanogels improved stability towards dilution, increased solubility and showed better cellular uptake by cells compared with free drug.     

Self-assembly of poly(ethylene glycol)-based block copolymers for biomedical applications

Nanostructure fabrication from block copolymers is discussed in this review paper. Particularly, novel approaches for the construction of functionalized poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) layers on surfaces were focused to attain the specific adsorption of a target protein through PEG-conjugated ligands with a minimal non-specific adsorption of other proteins. Furthermore, surface organization of block copolymer micelles with cross-linking cores was described from the standpoint of preparation of a new functional surface-coating with a unique macromolecular architecture. The micelle-attached surface and the thin hydrogel layer made by layered micelles exhibited non-fouling properties and worked as a reservoir for hydrophobic reagents. These PEG-functionalized surface in brush form or in micelle form can be used in diverse fields of medicine and biology to construct high-performance medical devices including scaffolds for tissue engineering and matrices for drug delivery systems.     

Thermo and pH Dual-Responsive Micelles of N-phthaloylchitosan-g-Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) and Poly(acrylic acid-co-tert-butyl acrylate) for Drug Delivery

A novel amphiphilic copolymer N-phthaloylchitosan graft poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) and poly(acrylic acid-co-tert-butyl acrylate) (PHCS-g-PNIPAAm&P(AA-co-tBA)) was synthesized. The graft copolymer could form micelles in aqueous medium, and the critical micelle concentration (CMC) of the copolymer was 7.5 × 10^{? 3}mg/mL. The lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of the micelles was measured to be 30°C. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) image showed that the micelles exhibited a regular spherical shape, and the mean diameter of the micelles was 94.1 ± 0.8 nm as determined by dynamic light scattering (DLS). The potential usefulness of the micelles as drug delivery systems was investigated using anti-inflammation drug prednisone acetate as the model. The drug loading capacity of the micelles was measured to be 22.86 wt%, and the DLS results showed that the mean diameter of the drug-loaded micelles was 133.3 ± 2.4 nm. In vitro drug release studies indicated that the micelles exhibited thermo and pH dual-responsive release profiles.     

Synthesis and Characterization of Cyclodextrin-containing Hydrogel for Ophthalmic Drugs Delivery

Hydrogel contact lenses are ideal drug carriers for ophthalmic drugs delivery. However, some drawbacks of traditional hydrogel restricted their application in the drug delivery field. Herein, we introduced chitosan and β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) into traditional hydrogel in order to improve the properties and control drug release. β-CD functionized and crosslinkable chitosan derivative (CCH) was synthesized and introduced into HEMA/NVP monomers to form HNC tripolymer hydrogel. The introduction of CCH accelerated the polymerization of monomers. Other properties such as equilibrium swelling ratio and oxygen transmissibility of HNC hydrogel were superior to that of HN hydrogel. The capacity of HNC hydrogel to resist the protein absorption was also superior to that of HN hydrogel. Hydrogels exhibited different capacity of drug loading and releasing for different drug.     

Block ionomer complex micelles with cross-linked cores for drug delivery

Soft polymeric nanomaterials were synthesized by template-assisted method involving condensation of the poly(ethylene oxide)-b-polycarboxylate anions by metal ions into core-shell block ionomer complex micelles followed by chemical cross-linking of the polyion chains in the micelle cores. The resulting materials represent nanogels and are capable of swelling in a pH-dependent manner. The structural determinants that guide the self-assembly of the initial micelle templates and the swelling behavior of the cross-linked micelles include the block ionomer structure, the chemical nature of metal ions, the structure of the cross-links and the degree of cross-linking. The application of these materials for loading and release of a drug, cisplatin, is evaluated. These cross-linked block ionomer micelles have promise for delivery of pharmaceutical agents. The text was submitted by the authors in English. This work was supported by the grants from U.S.A. National Institute of Health CA116590 (T.B.), National Science Foundation DMR-0513699 (A.V.K. and T.B.) and Department of Defense USAMRMC 06108004 (A.V.K.).     

Injectable Graphene Oxide/Graphene Composite Supramolecular Hydrogel for Delivery of Anti-Cancer Drugs

Injectable hydrogels have attracted a lot of attention in drug delivery, however, their capacity to deliver water-insoluble or hydrophobic anti-cancer drugs is limited. Here, we developed injectable graphene oxide/graphene composite supramolecular hydrogels to deliver anti-cancer drugs. Pluronic F-127 was used to stabilize graphene oxide (GO) and reduced graphene oxide (RGO) in solution, which was mixed with α-cyclodextrin (α-CD) solution to form hydrogels. Native hydrogel was used as control. GO or RGO slightly shortened gelation time. The storage and loss moduli of the hydrogels were tracked by dynamic force measurement. The storage modulus of GO or RGO composite hydrogels was larger than that of the native hydrogel. Hydrogels were unstable in solution and eroded gradually. GO or RGO in Pluronic F-127 solution could potentially improve the solubility of the water-insoluble anti-cancer drug camptothecin (CPT), especially with large drug-loaded CPT amount. Drug release behaviors from solutions and hydrogels were characterized. The nanocomponents (GO or RGO) were able to bind more drug molecules either for CPT or for doxorubicin hydrochloride (DXR) in solution. Therefore, GO or RGO composite hydrogel could potentially enable better controlled and gentler drug release (for both CPT and DXR) than native hydrogel.     

芘在Pluronic两亲嵌段共聚物胶团中的增溶

用稳态荧光法研究芘（Py）在Pluronic两亲嵌段共聚物胶团水溶液中的增溶,结果表明共聚物分子中的PPO实际含量越大,越有利于Py的增溶。加入无机盐KCl导致生成了表面较少水化的较大胶团,并且由于KCl解离产生的离子使溶剂极性增加,这些因素促进了Py的增溶。     

Drug Self‐Delivery Systems Based on Hyperbranched Polyprodrugs towards Tumor Therapy

Amphiphilic hyperbranched polyprodrugs (DOX‐S‐S‐PEG) with drug repeat units in hydrophobic core linked by disulfide bonds were developed as drug self‐delivery systems for cancer therapy. The hydroxyl groups and the amine group in doxorubicin (DOX) were linked by 3,3′‐dithiodipropanoic acid as hydrophobic hyperbranched cores, then amino‐terminated polyethylene glycol monomethyl ether (mPEG‐NH₂) as hydrophilic shell was linked to hydrophobic cores to form amphiphilic and glutathione (GSH)‐responsive micelle of hyperbranched polyprodrugs. The amphiphilic micelles can be disrupted under GSH (1 mg mL^?1) circumstance. Cell viability of A549 cells and 293T cells was evaluated by CCK‐8 and Muse Annexin V & Dead Cell Kit. The disrupted polyprodrugs maintained drug activity for killing tumor cells. Meanwhile, the undisrupted polyprodrugs possessed low cytotoxicity to normal cells. The cell uptake experiments showed that the micelles of DOX‐S‐S‐PEG were taken up by A549 cells and distributed to cell nuclei. Thus, the drug self‐delivery systems with drug repeat units in hydrophobic cores linked by disulfide bonds showed significant special advantages: 1) facile one‐pot synthesis; 2) completely without toxic or non‐degradable polymers; 3) DOX itself functions as fluorescent labeled molecule and self‐delivery carrier; 4) drug with inactive form in hyperbranched cores and low cytotoxicity to normal cells. These advantages make them excellent drug self‐delivery systems for potential high efficient cancer therapy.     

Synthesis of linear and star‐like poly(ε‐caprolactone)‐b‐poly{γ‐2‐[2‐(2‐methoxy‐ethoxy)ethoxy]ethoxy‐ε‐caprolactone} amphiphilic block copolymers using zinc undecylenate

Linear and star‐like amphiphilic diblock copolymers were synthesized by the ring‐opening polymerization of ε‐caprolactone and γ‐2‐[2‐(2‐methoxyethoxy)ethoxy]ethoxy‐ε‐caprolactone monomers using zinc undecylenate as a catalyst. These polymers have potential applications as micellar drug delivery vehicles, therefore the properties of the linear and 4‐arm star‐like structures were examined in terms of their molecular weight, viscosity, thermodynamic stability, size, morphology, and drug loading capacity. Both the star‐like and linear block copolymers showed good thermodynamic stability and degradability. However, the star‐like polymers were shown to have increased stability at lower concentrations with a critical micelle concentration (CMC) of 5.62 × 10^?4 g L^?1, which is less than half the concentration of linear polymer needed to form micelles. The star‐like polymeric micelles showed smaller sizes when compared with their linear counterparts and a higher drug loading capacity of doxorubicin, making them better suited for drug delivery purposes. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 3601–3608     

Development of disulfide core-crosslinked pluronic nanoparticles as an effective anticancer-drug-delivery system

Thiolated Pluronic (Plu‐SH) nanoparticles are developed as potential articulate, target‐specific anticancer‐drug carriers for intracellular drug release triggered by the difference in redox potential in tumor cells. The cores of the micelles are formed by the disulfide bonds of the functionalized Pluronic F127, when dissolved in an aqueous solution. The nanoparticles are 95.6 ± 18.6 nm in size, and 235.6 ± 63.7 nm after encapsulation of the hydrophobic drug molecules. The drug‐loaded micelles show effective stability in blood‐plasma conditions and the kinetics of micelle stability and drug release are shown. Paclitaxel‐loaded micelles display approximately 39% cell viability in A549 cells.

     

Self-assembly and characterization of paclitaxel-loaded N-octyl-O-sulfate chitosan micellar system

N-octyl-O-sulfate chitosan micellar system loaded paclitaxel was prepared by using dialysis method. The critical micelle concentration (CMC) of the modified chitosan was found to be 0.45 mg/ml. Compared with the amount of N-octyl-O-sulfate chitosan, the paclitaxel loading amount in the system was up to 25% (w/w), depending on both of the solvents used in dialysis and the feed weight ratio of paclitaxel to the derivative. The polymeric micelles forming and loading occurred simultaneously in the dialysis process when ethanol and water were utilized as the solvents for paclitaxel and the polymer, respectively. Paclitaxel-loaded micellar system of N-octyl-O-sulfate chitosan was characterized by DSC, WXRD and TEM. TEM photograph revealed that paclitaxel existed as the colloid particulates in ethanol before loading and in the cores of the spherical polymeric micelles after loading. The results of DSC and WXRD indicated that paclitaxel was transferred from the crystalline state to amorphous state after loading. The lyophilized powder of micellar system (25% (w/w) loading) could be reconstituted easily in aqueous media even after 2 months storage at 4 degrees C without the change of paclitaxel entrapment and micelle size. The reconstituted solution (2.1 mg paclitaxel/ml) also showed good stability. The dilution with saline may decrease the loading and physical stability based on the dilution times which was related with CMC of the polymer. In vitro tests showed that paclitaxel was slowly released from micellar solution and the release lasted up to 220 h by means of the dialysis method.     

核交联的含磺酸甜菜碱pH敏感胶束的制备与表征

制备了一种在疏水段带有侧基叠氮官能团的两亲性pH敏感的聚合物——聚己内酯-聚(甲基丙烯酸二乙氨基乙酯-磺酸甜菜碱)((PCL-ACL)-PDEAS);同时合成了两端带有炔基中间带有二硫键的交联剂,用红外、核磁表征了目标分子.通过两亲性高分子自组装形成胶束,并通过点击化学反应获得了核交联的胶束.通过动态光散射测定粒径,胶束酸碱滴定表征胶束的pH敏感性,还原条件下释放药物的速度,对比了非交联胶束和交联胶束的性质.结果表明,交联胶束在正常生理条件下的释放速度比未交联胶束更慢;而在有DTT的存在条件下,交联胶束由于二硫键断裂,释放速率明显加快.因此,核交联载药胶束有可能响应肿瘤的微环境实现靶向释放.     

Effect of hydrophobicity inside PEO-PPO-PEO block copolymer micelles on the stabilization of gold nanoparticles: experiments

In this paper we present the effect of poly(ethylene oxide)-poly(propylene oxide)-poly(ethylene oxide) block copolymer micelles and their hydrophobicity on the stabilization of gold nanoparticles. Gold nanoparticles were prepared by a method developed by Sakai et al. (Sakai, T.; Alexandridis, P. Langmuir 2004, 20, 8426). An absorption centered at 300-400 nm in time-dependent UV spectra provided evidence that the very first step of the synthesis was to form primary gold clusters. Then the gold clusters grew in size and were stabilized by block copolymer micelles. The stabilization capacities of the micelles were modulated by tuning the block copolymer concentration and composition and by adding salts. With good stabilization, gold particles were spherical and uniform in size with a diameter of 5-10 nm. Otherwise they were aggregates with irregular shapes such as triangular, hexagonal, and rodlike. The presence of a small amount of NaF significantly increased the stabilization capacity of the micelles and consequently modified the quality of the gold particles. Using FTIR and 1H NMR spectroscopy, micellization of the block copolymers and hydrophobicity of the micelles were proven very important for the stabilization. A higher hydrophobicity of the micelle cores was expected to favor the entrapment of primary gold clusters and the stabilization of gold nanoparticles.