Temperature- and pH-sensitive core–shell nanogels as efficient carriers of doxorubicin with potential application in lung cancer treatment

ABSTRACT

Temperature- and pH-sensitive core–shell nanogels were prepared by one-pot soapless emulsion polymerization of N-isopropylacrylamide and 2-methacryloyloxy benzoic acid with the aid of a crosslinker (core) using poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate as stabilizer (shell). The size of nanogels depended on the crosslinker used, being considerable smaller (around 100 nm) with the use of the acid-labile crosslinker 9-divinyl-2,4,8,10-tetraoxaspiro[5.5]-undecane (DVA). Doxorubicine (DOX) was loaded in nanogels with good efficiency. The empty nanogels were biocompatible for a lung cancer cell line (NCI-H1437), while the DOX-loaded, DVA-crosslinked nanogels resulted with efficient cytotoxicity for that cell line.

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

KEYWORDS:

• Lung cancer
• nanogels
• polyethyleneglycol
• soapless emulsion polymerization
• stimuli responsive materials

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Mr. Francisco Ruiz-Medina from the Center of Nanosciences and Nanotechnology of UNAM (Ensenada México) for TEM microscopies.

Additional information

Funding

This investigation was supported by the National Council of Science and Technology of Mexico, grants SEP-CONACYT (CB-2010-1-157173) and (CB-2012-1-178709).