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Chen XZ, Niu D, Gao HT, Du M. Deswelling Mechanisms of PNIPAM Grafted in Nanochannels: A Molecular Dynamics Simulation Study. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2024; 40:7692-7700. [PMID: 38546150 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.4c00381] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/10/2024]
Abstract
Porous thermosensitive hydrogels exhibit a more flexible strategy for freshwater capture compared to conventional hydrogels. This study employs molecular dynamics (MD) simulation to investigate the deswelling behavior of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) grafted within the nanochannel, aiming to elucidate the deswelling elimination process at various temperatures. Notably, a distinct phase separation is observed at specific temperatures above the lower solution temperature (LCST). Furthermore, this study takes the effect of heat flux into account, wherein distinct heat fluxes lead to varying levels of phase separation between water and the polymer. Specifically, the number of hydrogen bonds, volume of polymer chains, and density distribution of water molecules are statistically analyzed to reveal the mechanism of phase separation in a thermosensitive hydrogel. These findings provide insight into the accelerated deswelling kinetics of the PNIPAM polymer chain, which has guiding significance for the field of water harvesting by the enhancement of the water release capacity in thermosensitive hydrogels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xian-Zhi Chen
- Institute of Refrigeration & Cryogenics Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian 116026, P. R. China
| | - Dong Niu
- Institute of Refrigeration & Cryogenics Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian 116026, P. R. China
| | - Hong-Tao Gao
- Institute of Refrigeration & Cryogenics Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian 116026, P. R. China
| | - Mu Du
- Institute for Advanced Technology, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong 250061, P. R. China
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Marsili L, Dal Bo M, Berti F, Toffoli G. Thermoresponsive Chitosan-Grafted-Poly( N-vinylcaprolactam) Microgels via Ionotropic Gelation for Oncological Applications. Pharmaceutics 2021; 13:1654. [PMID: 34683947 PMCID: PMC8539247 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics13101654] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2021] [Revised: 09/23/2021] [Accepted: 09/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Microgels can be considered soft, porous and deformable particles with an internal gel structure swollen by a solvent and an average size between 100 and 1000 nm. Due to their biocompatibility, colloidal stability, their unique dynamicity and the permeability of their architecture, they are emerging as important candidates for drug delivery systems, sensing and biocatalysis. In clinical applications, the research on responsive microgels is aimed at the development of "smart" delivery systems that undergo a critical change in conformation and size in reaction to a change in environmental conditions (temperature, magnetic fields, pH, concentration gradient). Recent achievements in biodegradable polymer fabrication have resulted in new appealing strategies, including the combination of synthetic and natural-origin polymers with inorganic nanoparticles, as well as the possibility of controlling drug release remotely. In this review, we provide a literature review on the use of dual and multi-responsive chitosan-grafted-poly-(N-vinylcaprolactam) (CP) microgels in drug delivery and oncological applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorenzo Marsili
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Trieste, Via Licio Giorgieri 1, 34127 Trieste, Italy;
- Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Unit, CRO National Cancer Institute IRCCS, Via Franco Gallini 2, 33081 Aviano, Italy; (M.D.B.); (G.T.)
| | - Michele Dal Bo
- Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Unit, CRO National Cancer Institute IRCCS, Via Franco Gallini 2, 33081 Aviano, Italy; (M.D.B.); (G.T.)
| | - Federico Berti
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Trieste, Via Licio Giorgieri 1, 34127 Trieste, Italy;
| | - Giuseppe Toffoli
- Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Unit, CRO National Cancer Institute IRCCS, Via Franco Gallini 2, 33081 Aviano, Italy; (M.D.B.); (G.T.)
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Drozdov AD. Equilibrium Swelling of Biocompatible Thermo-Responsive Copolymer Gels. Gels 2021; 7:40. [PMID: 33916014 PMCID: PMC8167660 DOI: 10.3390/gels7020040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2021] [Revised: 03/09/2021] [Accepted: 03/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Biomedical applications of thermo-responsive (TR) hydrogels require these materials to be biocompatible, non-cytotoxic, and non-immunogenic. Due to serious concerns regarding potential toxicity of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAm), design of alternative homo- and copolymer gels with controllable swelling properties has recently become a hot topic. This study focuses on equilibrium swelling of five potential candidates to replace PNIPAm in biomedical and biotechnological applications: poly(N-vinylcaprolactam), poly(vinyl methyl ether), poly(N,N-dimethyl amino ethyl methacrylate), and two families of poly(2-oxazoline)s, and poly(oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylates). To evaluate their water uptake properties and to compare them with those of substituted acrylamide gels, a unified model is developed for equilibrium swelling of TR copolymer gels with various types of swelling diagrams. Depending on the strength of hydrophobic interactions (high, intermediate, and low), the (co)polymers under consideration are split into three groups that reveal different responses at and above the volume phase transition temperature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleksey D Drozdov
- Department of Materials and Production, Aalborg University, Fibigerstraede 16, 9220 Aalborg, Denmark
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Kasza G, Stumphauser T, Bisztrán M, Szarka G, Hegedüs I, Nagy E, Iván B. Thermoresponsive Poly( N, N-diethylacrylamide- co-glycidyl methacrylate) Copolymers and Its Catalytically Active α-Chymotrypsin Bioconjugate with Enhanced Enzyme Stability. Polymers (Basel) 2021; 13:987. [PMID: 33806995 PMCID: PMC8004754 DOI: 10.3390/polym13060987] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2021] [Revised: 03/19/2021] [Accepted: 03/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Responsive (smart, intelligent, adaptive) polymers have been widely explored for a variety of advanced applications in recent years. The thermoresponsive poly(N,N-diethylacrylamide) (PDEAAm), which has a better biocompatibility than the widely investigated poly(N,N-isopropylacrylamide), has gained increased interest in recent years. In this paper, the successful synthesis, characterization, and bioconjugation of a novel thermoresponsive copolymer, poly(N,N-diethylacrylamide-co-glycidyl methacrylate) (P(DEAAm-co-GMA)), obtained by free radical copolymerization with various comonomer contents and monomer/initiator ratios are reported. It was found that all the investigated copolymers possess LCST-type thermoresponsive behavior with small extent of hysteresis, and the critical solution temperatures (CST), i.e., the cloud and clearing points, decrease linearly with increasing GMA content of these copolymers. The P(DEAAm-co-GMA) copolymer with pendant epoxy groups was found to conjugate efficiently with α-chymotrypsin in a direct, one-step reaction, leading to enzyme-polymer nanoparticle (EPNP) with average size of 56.9 nm. This EPNP also shows reversible thermoresponsive behavior with somewhat higher critical solution temperature than that of the unreacted P(DEAAm-co-GMA). Although the catalytic activity of the enzyme-polymer nanoconjugate is lower than that of the native enzyme, the results of the enzyme activity investigations prove that the pH and thermal stability of the enzyme is significantly enhanced by conjugation the with P(DEAAm-co-GMA) copolymer.
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Affiliation(s)
- György Kasza
- Polymer Chemistry Research Group, Institute of Materials and Environment Chemistry, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok körútja 2., H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; (T.S.); (M.B.); (G.S.)
| | - Tímea Stumphauser
- Polymer Chemistry Research Group, Institute of Materials and Environment Chemistry, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok körútja 2., H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; (T.S.); (M.B.); (G.S.)
| | - Márk Bisztrán
- Polymer Chemistry Research Group, Institute of Materials and Environment Chemistry, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok körútja 2., H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; (T.S.); (M.B.); (G.S.)
| | - Györgyi Szarka
- Polymer Chemistry Research Group, Institute of Materials and Environment Chemistry, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok körútja 2., H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; (T.S.); (M.B.); (G.S.)
| | - Imre Hegedüs
- Chemical and Biochemical Procedures Laboratory, Institute of Biomolecular and Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Pannonia, Egyetem u. 10, H-8200 Veszprém, Hungary; (I.H.); (E.N.)
- Department of Biophysics and Radiation Biology, Semmelweis University, Tűzoltó u. 37–47, H-1094 Budapest, Hungary
| | - Endre Nagy
- Chemical and Biochemical Procedures Laboratory, Institute of Biomolecular and Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Pannonia, Egyetem u. 10, H-8200 Veszprém, Hungary; (I.H.); (E.N.)
| | - Béla Iván
- Polymer Chemistry Research Group, Institute of Materials and Environment Chemistry, Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Magyar tudósok körútja 2., H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; (T.S.); (M.B.); (G.S.)
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