Silica nanoparticle-crosslinked thermosensitive hybrid hydrogels as potential drug-release carriers

Abstract

Thermosensitive hybrid hydrogels were prepared by chemical crosslinking using poly [N-isopropylacrylamide-co-(3methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane)] (pNS) copolymer chains as the backbone and silica nanoparticles (SiP) as crosslinkers. The preparation of these hybrid hydrogels involved mixing a reactive side chain-branched copolymer (pNS) solution with a SiP suspension at 25 1C. During the mixing of these components, caffeine was added as a model drug to form a thermo-responsive drug delivery system. The as-prepared caffeine-loaded hydrogels do not require any further processing. The effects of temperature on the equilibrium swelling ratios and on the release of caffeine from these hybrid hydrogels at different temperatures and with different hydrogel compositions were thoroughly investigated. We found that this novel system provides controllable drug loading and a positive drug-release pattern. More than 90% of the loaded drugs were released at both high and low temperatures, with a faster release rate at higher temperatures.

Microspherical hydrogel particles based on silica nanoparticle-webbed polymer networks

“…Swelling/deswelling kinetics as well as elastic properties are remarkably enhanced by the hybrid networks in NC gels through the interactions between the polymer chains and nanoparticles [15]. Recently, we reported hybrid polymer hydrogels containing inorganic nanoparticles as cross-linker [16][17][18]. These hybrid hydrogels were prepared by mixing an aqueous solution of copolymer with reactive alkoxysilyl side chains with an aqueous suspension of inorganic nanoparticles.…”

Recent advances in clay mineral-containing nanocomposite hydrogels

“…8,9 In contrast, the chemically cross-linked hydrogels are permanent networks formed through covalent bonds, enabling volume phase transitions (VPT) 10 when exposed to external physical or chemical stimuli, including temperature, 11,12 light, electric field, 13 ionic strength, 14 pH, 15 enzyme, 16 and biomolecules. As a result of these characteristics, hydrogels can be used as superabsorbents, 17,18 packaging materials, 19 soft lenses, 20 microfluidic devices, 21 catalyst supports, 22,23 biomedical materials, 24,25 and bioactuators 26 ( Fig. 1a).…”

Hydrogel: Diversity of Structures and Applications in Food Science

“…[78] Moreover, molecular synthesis, copolymerization, and the blending of synthetic polymers can be used to create a variety of hydrogels containing both synthetic and biomolecule moieties, such as topological hydrogels, [79][80][81] nanocomposite hydrogels, [82][83][84][85] double-network hydrogels, [86][87][88][89][90] and hybrid hydrogels, and these hydrogels may exhibit more comprehensive performances (not just a simple sum of the properties of the two gel materials). [91][92][93][94][95][96] In general, there are four core concerns involved in hydrogel science, [97] including the polymer source, structure fabrication, gel function, and gel applications. Then, "structure fabrication" can be divided into structure types and crosslinking approaches.…”