A bio-inspired fluorescent nano-injectable hydrogel as a synergistic drug delivery system

Xu, Y (Xu, Yue)^{[ 1 ]} ; Yang, MM (Yang, Mingming)^{[ 1 ]} ; Ma, QY (Ma, Qiyue)^{[ 1 ]} ; Di, X (Di, Xiang)^{[ 1 ]} ; Wu, GL (Wu, Guolin)^{[ 1 ]}

NEW JOURNAL OF CHEMISTRY, 2021, 45(6): 3079-3087

DOI: 10.1039/d0nj05719c

摘要

Synergistic drug therapy has proven to be an effective strategy for various disease states. An injectable nano-hydrogel has been successfully prepared by random copolymerization of N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM) and acrylic functionalized nucleobase (adenine) for synergistic drug delivery. Different from ordinary polymeric hydrogels, the prepared injectable hydrogel showed a special phase-separated structure, combining nano-particles and macro-hydrogels, and potentially became useful as a dual drug carrier with a sequential release of different drug species. In addition, the obtained nanogels demonstrated fluorescence characteristics in a broad concentration range, without emission quenching at high concentrations. This feature is particularly important for possible visualization and imaging purposes. The studied material may represent a suitable candidate for fluorescent biological probes and dual drug delivery systems with intelligent responsiveness.