pH-Sensitivity and pH-dependent structural change in polymeric nanoparticles of poly(vinyl sulfadimethoxine)–deoxycholic acid conjugate

pH-Sensitive nanoparticles of poly(vinyl sulfadimethoxine) (PSDM)–deoxycholic acid (DOCA) conjugates were prepared by dialysis at pH 9.0. The average size and the critical aggregation concentration (CAC) of the nanoparticles were 340 nm and 2.5 × 10−1 g/l, respectively. The CAC decreased with decreasing pH as a result of the increase in the hydrophobic nature of the PSDM. Nanoparticle aggregation was observed at pHs ranging from 6.6 to 7.2. The photophysical characteristics of the nanoparticles were examined using a fluorescence probe technique. The microviscosity in the nanoparticle core was measured by 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH). The microviscosity changed significantly with decreasing pH from 8.0 to 6.8, indicating a decrease in the rigidity of the inner cores. One interesting feature was that the microviscosity increased sharply at pHs below 6.8. This suggests that in this pH range most of the PSDM became deionized, which caused the reconstitution of new hydrophobic domains inside the nanoparticles.