ABSTRACT
Swellable polymeric nanosystems have emerged as promising materials in drug release technologies. Such systems have shown potential in releasing antibiotic drugs and to do so controllably. In the present investigation poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) nanoparticles were synthesized by suspension polymerization of 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate and characterized by various techniques such as Fourier transform-infrared spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy, particle size analysis, and surface charge measurements. The synthesized nanoparticles were swellable in water and showed promise to function as a swelling controlled-release system. The release kinetics of drug-loaded particles was studied in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) using ciprofloxacin as a model antibacterial drug. The chemical stability of the pure and released drug was also assessed in PBS (pH 7.4), acidic (pH 1.8), and alkaline (pH 8.6) solutions. The in vitro blood compatibility of nanoparticles was also investigated in terms of hemolysis tests. The drug-loaded nanoparticles were also examined for their antibacterial and blood-compatible behaviors. FROM THE CLINICAL EDITOR: Swellable polymeric nanosystems have emerged as promising materials in drug release technologies. In this paper, the release kinetics, antimicrobial properties and in vitro "blood compatibility" is reported for a specific swellable polymeric nanosystem.
Subject(s)
Ciprofloxacin/pharmacology , Drug Carriers/chemistry , Methacrylates/chemistry , Nanostructures/chemistry , Nanotechnology/methods , Anti-Bacterial Agents/pharmacology , Body Fluids/drug effects , Cross-Linking Reagents/pharmacology , Diffusion , Drug Stability , Evaluation Studies as Topic , Humans , Hydrogen-Ion Concentration/drug effects , Materials Testing , Microbial Sensitivity Tests , Microscopy, Electron, Scanning , Models, Chemical , Particle Size , Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared , Surface Properties/drug effects , TemperatureABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Many anticancer agents have poor water solubility and therefore the development of novel delivery systems for such molecules has received significant attention. Nanocarriers show great potential in delivering therapeutic agents into the targeted organs or cells and have recently emerged as a promising approach to cancer treatments. The aim of this study was to prepare and use poly-2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (PHEMA) nanoparticles for the controlled release of the anticancer drug doxorubicin. RESULTS: PHEMA nanoparticles have been synthesized and characterized using FTIR and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), particle size analysis and surface charge measurements. We also studied the effects of various parameters such as percent loading of drugs, chemical architecture of the nanocarriers, pH, temperature and nature of the release media on the release profiles of the drug. The chemical stability of doxorubicin in PBS was assessed at a range of pH. CONCLUSION: Suspension polymerization of 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) results in the formation of swellable nanoparticles of defined composition. PHEMA nanoparticles can potentially be used for the controlled release of the anticancer drug doxorubicin.
ABSTRACT
Nanomaterials are at the leading edge of the rapidly developing field of nanotechnology. The use of nanoparticles as drug delivery vehicles for anticancer therapeutics has great potential to revolutionize the future of cancer therapy. The present paper concerns both the optimizations of anticancer drug loading and its release from polymeric nanoparticles. The major aim of this study was to design poly (HEMA) nanoparticles as swelling controlled drug release system for anticancer drug. The prepared nanoparticles were characterized by Infra-Red (IR) Spectra, Particle size Analysis, and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The nanoparticles were loaded with widely used anticancer drug, 5-Fluorouracil, and controlled release of drug was investigated to observe the effects of various parameters such as percent loading of the drug, chemical architecture of the nanocarriers, pH, temperature, and nature of release media on the release profiles. The chemical stability of 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) was also tested in phosphate buffer saline (PBS) (pH = 7.4) and release was studied in various simulated biological fluids. The prepared nanoparticles could provide a possible pathway for controlled and targeted delivery of anticancer drug, thus causing lower side effects and higher efficacy.
