1. Hydrophobically Modified Biodegradable Poly(ethylene glycol) Copolymers that Form Temperature-Responsive Nanogels
- Author
-
Yuichi Ohya, Tatsuro Ouchi, Hidetoshi Yamamoto, Koji Nagahama, and Mihoko Hashizume
- Subjects
Biocompatibility ,Polymers ,Nanogels ,Biocompatible Materials ,Hydrogel, Polyethylene Glycol Dimethacrylate ,Polyethylene Glycols ,chemistry.chemical_compound ,Drug Delivery Systems ,PEG ratio ,Polymer chemistry ,Electrochemistry ,Side chain ,Copolymer ,Nanotechnology ,Polyethyleneimine ,General Materials Science ,Particle Size ,Spectroscopy ,Drug Carriers ,Chemistry ,Temperature ,Surfaces and Interfaces ,Buffer solution ,Condensed Matter Physics ,Solutions ,Biodegradation, Environmental ,Models, Chemical ,Drug delivery ,Nanoparticles ,Gels ,Ethylene glycol ,Nanogel - Abstract
Biodegradable copolymers consisting of a hydrophilic poly[l-aspartic acid-alt-poly(ethylene glycol)] (poly(l-Asp-alt-PEG)) backbone and hydrophobic capryl units as side chains were synthesized. The amphiphilic copolymer was found to form nanosized hydrogel particles (nanogels) of approximately 15 nm in size by self-assembly at 20 degrees C in aqueous media, and the nanogel solutions displayed phase-transition in response to temperature. The transition of the nanogel solution was reversible and tunable in the range from 19 to 55 degrees C by variation of the amounts of capryl units introduced and the solution concentration. The nanogels were gradually degraded within days in a phosphate buffer solution (PBS) at 37 degrees C. Temperature-responsive biodegradable nanogel systems consisting of biocompatible PEG may have potential utility for high biocompatibility temperature-responsive nanodevices such as microreactor systems, molecular-chaperones, and drug delivery vehicles.
- Published
- 2009
- Full Text
- View/download PDF