Reduced graphene oxide (rGO) sheets were first modified with 2-hydroxypropyltrimethyl ammonium chloride chitosan (HACC), and these modified rGO sheets (named HACC-rGO) were used as reinforcement materials and introduced to the walls of chitosan (CS) microcapsules. All of the monodisperse microcapsules were conveniently generated by a gas-liquid microfluidic technique. The results of scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and thermogravimetric analysis all demonstrate that the HACC-rGO sheets existed and were dispersed in the capsular shell. The HACC-rGO-reinforced CS microcapsules showed better mechanical strength and better chemical stability with an a-cyclodextrin solution than the CS microcapsules without HACC-rGO. Importantly, the HACC-rGO-reinforced CS microcapsules exhibited a slower drug-release behavior and provide a method for the control of the release rate of drug-loaded microcapsules. In an in vitro cytotoxicity evaluation by a 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5diphenyl-2-H-tetrazolium bromide assay, the Schwann cells still showed good cell viability after they were treated by extracts of the CS/HACC-rGO microcapsules with concentrations ranging from 0.02 to 2000 lg/mL. Therefore, the HACC-rGO-reinforced CS microcapsules are promising for applications in the fields of drug delivery and controlled release. V C 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017, 134, 44549.
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