Synthesis and in vitro drug release behavior of amphiphilic triblock copolymer nanoparticles based on poly (ethylene glycol) and polycaprolactone

Novel BAB type amphiphilic triblock copolymers consisting of poly (ethylene glycol) (PEG) (B) as hydrophilic segment and poly (ε-caprolactone) (PCL) (A) as hydrophobic block were prepared by coupling reaction using l-lysine methyl ester diisocyanate (LDI) as the chain extender. The triblock copolymers obtained were characterized by FT-IR, 1H NMR, GPC, and DSC. Core-shell type nanoparticles were prepared by nanoprecipitation method and below 100 nm nanoparticles were obtained due to their specific structure. Transmission electron microscopy image demonstrated that these nanoparticles were spherical in shape. Stability of the nanoparticles in biological media was evaluated. Poorly water-soluble anticancer drug 4′-demethyl-epipodophyllotoxin (DMEP) was chosen for controlled drug release because it was easily encapsulated into polymeric nanoparticles via hydrophobic interaction. In vitro release behavior of DMEP from polymeric nanoparticles was investigated, the results showed that the drug release rate can be modulated by the variation of the copolymer composition.