We report the synthesis and characterization of an amphiphilic
polymer comprising a hydrophobic palmitoyl (Pal) group and a zwitterionic
poly(2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine) (pMPC) block, which
is capable of forming micelles as a drug carrier system for delivering
hydrophobic anticancer drugs such as doxorubicin (DOX). We hypothesize
that the sharp polarity contrast between the Pal domain and the pMPC
block would strengthen the micelles and improve the drug loading capacity,
while the pMPC shells improve the micelle stability and cellular uptake
efficiency. In this study, the Pal-pMPC polymer was characterized
and compared with a Pal-poly(ethylene glycol) (Pal-PEG) polymer in
terms of their micelle formation, cytotoxicity, and drug loading of
DOX. The DOX-loaded Pal-pMPC micelles were further evaluated for the
cellular uptake and anticancer activities in cell culture systems
including the non-multidrug-resistance HeLa cell line and the multidrug-resistance
AT3B-1 cell line. The results showed that the Pal-pMPC polymer had
a minimal toxicity. The Pal-pMPC micelles exhibited higher drug loading
capacity and enhanced cellular internalization efficiency compared
to micelles formed by the Pal-PEG polymer. It was also found that
DOX-loaded Pal-pMPC micelles exhibited a more efficient anticancer
effect than Pal-PEG micelles in multidrug-resistance cancer cells
in an environment with fetal bovine serum.
Okara (Ok), a byproduct of soybean milk and curd production, is a suitable candidate for developing biobased renewable materials. Herein, we report the synthesis and characterization of okara-poly(acrylic acid) (Ok-PAA) superabsorbent hydrogels by grafting and cross-linking PAA on fresh okara. The dried Ok-PAA hydrogel granules in different sizes were added into three types of soils, i.e., lawn sand, mixed soil, and potting mix, as a soil supplement. Overall, the hydrogel supplementation could improve the water holding and retention capacities much more significantly for sand and mixed soil than potting mix. Further, the hydrogels were evaluated for enhancing the growth of a green Asian leafy vegetable, the Brassica rapa subsp. chinensis var. parachinensis (choy sum) in the three soils. In mixed soil, the effect of the hydrogels for enhancing the vegetable growth and reducing the water leaching was particularly significant. Therefore, the Ok-PAA hydrogels are promising for agricultural and farming applications where the soil texture is similar to mixed soil.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.