Materials Chemistry and Physics, Vol.179, 65-71, 2016
Temperature and pH dual-responsive polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane/poly[2-(dimethyl amino)-ethyl methacrylate]-b-poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) hybrid materials synthesized via RAFT polymerization and thiol-ene reaction: Potential candidates as drug delivery systems
The temperature and pH dual-responsive polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane/poly[2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate]-b-poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) hybrid materials (POSS/PDMAEMA-b-PNIPAM) were synthesized via combination of thiol-ene click chemistry and reversible addition fragmentation chain transfer polymerization. Their structures and self-assembly behaviors were characterized via H-1 NMR, TEM, UV-vis and DLS measurements. POSS/PDMAEMA-b-PNIPAM could self-assemble into thermo- and pH-sensitive micelles with the POSS heads forming as a core and the PDMAEMA-b-PNIPAM chains as a corona. In vitro drug release behavior of POSS/PDMAEMA-b-PNIPAM micelles loading camptothecin indicated that the rate of drug release could be effectively controlled by altering the temperature and pH values of the environment. As 80% of the camptothecin drug was released at pH 5.5 or temperature of 45 degrees C within 35 h, the excellent thermo- and pH-response ability of POSS/PDMAME-b-PNIPAM micelles makes them desirable candidates for controlled drug delivery systems. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.