Synthesis of polymeric nanocapsules by radical UV-activated interface-emulsion polymerization

Abstract

A new methodology is reported that allows a better control of the synthesis of polymeric core-shell nanocapsules. These nanocapsules were made of biocompatible polymers, obtained from poly(ethylene glycol)diacrylate and poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate, and were used as carrier for curcumin as therapeutic agent. The impact of manufacturing factors (time of sonication, time of UV irradiation, and type of monomer) was investigated in relation to the average size of nanocapsules, their distribution, shape, composition, stability, and their capability to deliver curcumin. We successfully synthesized core-shell nanocapsules in various sizes, ranging from 80 nm to 300 nm, by acting either on the process conditions or on the composition of the monomer mixture. This wide range of sizes makes the method here proposed very promising for the production of nanocarriers.

Morphology Control of Liposome - RAFT Oligomer Precursors to Complex Polymer Nanostructures

“…It is interesting now to consider the overall effect of the structure of the oligomer on the precursor morphology. Comparison of experiments 9 and 11 in Table shows that changing from a low to a high F AA (and T ) changes the morphology from (nearly) all solid particles to nearly all capsules. , When we then compare these two experiments with experiments 2 and 4, which only differ by the fact that 9 and 11 involve short oligomers and 2 and 4 involve long oligomers, we see a very similar effect. Again, upon changing from a low to a high F AA (and T ), the morphology changes from nearly all solids to capsules, being the dominant morphology (61%).…”

A Clean and Simple Route to Soft, Biocompatible Nanocapsules via UV-Cross-Linkable Azido-Hyperbranched Polyglycerol

“…The crude product was then purified by precipitation dissolution three times in acetone and ethanol, respectively (HPG yield: 30%). IG 13 S1 of the Supporting Information. Synthesis details and sample calculations for HPG characterization can be found in our previous work.…”

“…The absolute molecular weight of HPG was evaluated by 1 H NMR using a Varian VXR-400 Unity Innova spectrometer (400 MHz) with a quad probe from Nalorac. Time inversion recovery and inverse-gated carbon NMR (IG 13 CNMR) analyses were performed on the same instrument to determine the necessary scan times, degree of branching (DB), and structural breakdown of HPG. All sample concentrations were 10 mg/mL.…”

“…One approach to addressing micellar stability involves cross-linking the shape through various means once self-assembled. Specific strategies include photo-cross-linking in nanoscale emulsions, − interfacial silica sol–gel formation, and bifunctional covalent cross-linking. , While these strategies do improve the environmental stability, they often suffer from poor size control, large size dispersions, and additional purification steps as precision control of the cross-linking density and emulsion particle sizes is challenging.…”

Synthesis of polymeric microcapsules by interfacial-suspension cationic photopolymerisation of divinyl ether monomer in aqueous suspension

“…7 The production of a double emulsion is difficult to achieve and the size of particles cannot precisely be controlled. For this reason, we have already developed in previous study 8 an innovative method to synthesize core-shell polymeric microcapsules that do not require the creation of a double emulsion. By inducing separation between the monomer and the initiator, adding the former in the continuous aqueous phase and the latter in the dispersed hydrophobic one, the polymerization reaction does not occur within the droplet, but at the interface between the dispersed and the continuous phase.…”