Fabrication of novel PNIPAM@GO microspheres loaded with dual drugs featuring on‐demand drug release capability

Abstract

In this research, we successfully prepared a new kind of core‐shell microspheres (PNIPAM@GO) composed of hydrophilic poly (N‐isopropyl acrylamide) (PNIPAM) nanoparticles as the core and amphiphilic graphene oxide (GO) nanosheets as the shell through hydrogen bonding and self‐assembly in organic solvent. The temperature‐sensitive behavior of the PNIPAM core made its average size decrease from 888.3 nm to 630.3 nm with temperature increasing from 25°C to 50°C. And the GO shell could give PNIPAM@GO microspheres remarkable photothermal effects in water under NIR laser irradiation (808 nm) for 20 min. Further, doxorubicin (DOX) and 5‐fluorouracil (5‐FU) were loaded into the core and the shell with loading efficiency of 81% and 11%, respectively. By turning on/off NIR irradiation, the PNIPAM@GO microspheres could respond to the heat generated from GO shell by volume shrinkage, thus on‐demand controlling the drug release. The in vitro biological assessment verified that the samples prepared here were biocompatible. The developed platform shows a potential application in chemo‐photothermal therapy of cancers in the future.

Synthesis and application of polyethyleneimine and polyethylene glycol grafted on CoFe2O4/single‐walled carbon nanotubes as a delivery platform for silibinin: Loading experiments, modeling, and in‐vitro release studies

“…In recent decades, research on chemotherapy has demonstrated that most of anti‐cancer drugs can somewhat restrain tumor growth; however, due to some limitations such as premature degradation and incapability of discriminating between malignant and normal cells, they cause unwanted side effects and non‐specific cytotoxicity 1 . Targeted drug therapy systems, including nanomaterials, have been known as plausible solutions to cope with the issues 2–4 …”

“…1 Targeted drug therapy systems, including nanomaterials, have been known as plausible solutions to cope with the issues. [2][3][4] It has been asserted that nanomaterials are capable of being passively accumulated in tumors because of their higher permeability and retention (EPR). A nanoscale drug delivery system has diverse benefits, including but not confined to: (1) a targeted delivery that lowers systemic exposure to a potentially harmful compound while increasing drug concentration at the intended spot; (2) a steady rate of drug delivery to sustain a continuous treatment dose at the delivery site; and (3) improved drug stability as a result of protection against degradation and loss of drugs.…”