Article

Modular Click Assembly of Degradable Capsules Using Polyrotaxanes

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Victoria 3010, Australia
ACS Nano, 2012, 6 (6), pp 4686–4693
DOI: 10.1021/nn301045z
Publication Date (Web): May 31, 2012
Copyright © 2012 American Chemical Society
*Address correspondence to fcaruso@unimelb.edu.au.

Abstract

Abstract Image

A modular approach for the formation of degradable capsules using polyrotaxanes (PRXs) is described. The PRXs consist of α-cyclodextrin (αCD) and poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), which are both biologically benign and the main degradation products of the capsules. The PRXs were equipped with three alkyne groups at their ends and could be successfully grafted to azide-functionalized silica particles (2.76 μm diameter) using azide–alkyne click chemistry. The assembled PRXs were then cross-linked using a degradable linker. The cross-linked structure was sufficiently robust to allow the formation of capsules after dissolving the template silica particles. The formation of capsules of ca. 2 μm diameter was verified by optical microscopy, TEM, and AFM imaging. The capsules were loaded with the chemotherapy drug doxorubicin (DOX) by conjugating it to the threaded αCDs via their free OH groups, while maintaining degradability of the capsules. Alkyne moieties at the surface of the cross-linked PRX architecture were available for further functionalization of the capsules, as is demonstrated by clicking on fluorescent PEG moieties. The DOX-loaded capsules were degraded within 90 min at 37 °C upon exposure to a 5 mM solution of glutathione in water.

Synthetic conditions, synthetic steps for cross-linking the capsules, synthetic steps for preparing the capsules, and NMR spectra. This material is available free of charge via the Internet at http://pubs.acs.org.

Citation data is made available by participants in Crossref's Cited-by Linking service. For a more comprehensive list of citations to this article, users are encouraged to perform a search inSciFinder.

Explore by:

Metrics

Article Views: 2,035 Times
Received 8 November 2011
Date accepted 22 May 2012
Published online 31 May 2012
Published in print 26 June 2012
+
Altmetric Logo Icon More Article Metrics

This website uses cookies to improve your user experience. By continuing to use the site, you are accepting our use of cookies. Read the ACS privacy policy.

CONTINUE