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ABSTRACT: In this work, we report the synthesis, characterization, and possible application as drug-delivery system magnetically triggered, of hybrid microparticles formed by magnetic nanoparticles embedded within poly(ε-caprolactone). The magnetism of the microparticles permits their localization within the body using magnetic resonance imaging, and the biodegradable polymer layer allows entrapping drugs that can be released when temperature increases. The synthesis of the hybrid material was performed using "grafting from" technique of conveniently modified magnetic nanoparticles. Subsequently, the resulting hybrid nanoparticles were assembled into spherical particles of 138 ± 49 nm via precipitation technique. The produced hybrid material was evaluated as stimuli-responsive drug delivery system in which the release of the drug was triggered by magnetic induction. Furthermore, the microparticles were injected in rats and their localization within the animal was monitored using the local field inhomogeneities generated by the particles. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 2012.
Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part B Applied Biomaterials 08/2012; · 2.15 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: In this work, we describe a new methodology for the preparation of monodisperse and thermosensitive microgels with magnetic core. In order to produce such a material, hydrophobic magnetic Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles were prepared by two methods: thermal decomposition and coprecipitation. The surface of these nanoparticles was modified by addition of 3-butenoic acid, and after that these nanoparticles were dispersed in water and submitted to free radical polymerization at 70 °C in the presence of N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM) and bisacrylamide. The result of this reaction was monodisperse microgels with a magnetic core. By varying the amount of 3-butenoic acid, it was possible to obtain hybrid microgels with different magnetic core sizes and different architectures.
Langmuir 08/2011; 27(17):10484-91. · 4.19 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: In this work, we report the influence of surfactant chain length and surfactant concentration on the photoluminescence (PL) of water-soluble pi-conjugated poly(thienyl ethylene oxide butyl sulfonate) (PTE-BS). We have used alkylammomium surfactants with 8, 9, 10, and 12 carbon atoms per hydrocarbon chain. The surfactant concentration was varied from 0.125 the critical micelle concentration (CMC) up to 2 times the CMC. The results show that at premicellar concentrations all the surfactants promote the polymer aggregation inducing an increase in the interchain charge transfer by pi-pi interactions, which competes with PL emission processes. However, in the premicellar range, the polymer PL emission is sharply affected by the surfactant chain length. Thus, the PL is quenched by the surfactants with the shortest tails, whereas the surfactants with the longest ones provoke an enhancement of the PL emission. This behavior has been associated with the capacity of the surfactants with the longest hydrocarbon chains to accommodate their tails inside the polymer, obstructing the appearance of pi-pi interchain interactions during aggregation and reducing intrachain defects. By contrast, at the CMC, the surfactant chain length does not modify the PL emission, since the excess of surfactant inhibits polymer aggregation, thus enhancing the efficiency of light emissive processes.
Langmuir 12/2008; 24(23):13321-7. · 4.19 Impact Factor
