Effects of hydrophobic modifications on the solution self-assembly of P(DMAEMA-co-QDMAEMA)-b-POEGMA random diblock copolymers

Abstract

In this work, the synthesis and the aqueous solution self-assembly behavior of novel par-tially hydrophobically modified poly(2-(dimethylamino) ethyl methacrylate)-b-poly(oligo(ethyle-lene glycol) methyl ether methacrylatetabel) pH and temperature responsive random diblock co-polymers (P(DMAEMA-co-Q6/12DMAEMA)-b-POEGMA), are reported. The chemical modifications were accomplished via quaternization with 1-iodohexane (Q6) and 1-iodododecane (Q12) and confirmed by1H-NMR spectroscopy. The successful synthesis of PDMAEMA-b-POEGMA precursor block copolymers was conducted by RAFT polymerization. The partial chemical modification of the diblocks resulted in the permanent attachment of long alkyl chains on the amine groups of the PDMAEMA block and the presence of tertiary and quaternary amines randomly distributed within the PDMAEMA block. Light scattering techniques confirmed that the increased hydrophobic char-acter results in the formation of nanoaggregates of high mass and tunable pH and temperature re-sponse. The characteristics of the aggregates are also affected by the aqueous solution preparation protocol, the nature of the quaternizing agent and the quaternization degree. The incorporation of long alkyl chains allowed the encapsulation of indomethacin within the amphiphilic diblock copolymer aggregates. Nanostructures of increased size were detected due to the encapsulation of indo-methacin into the interior of the hydrophobic domains. Drug release studies demonstrated that al-most 50% of the encapsulated drug can be released on demand by aid of ultrasonication.