Effect of a surface stabilizer on the formation of polyoxalate nanoparticles and their release profiles

• The effects of surface stabilizers on the morphologies of nanoparticles were investigated.
• The surface stabilizers greatly influenced the particle sizes and surface properties of polyoxalate nanoparticles.
• The size, surface and release properties of POX-NPs can be effectively controlled by varying the preparation conditions.
• PVP and PVA potentially can be used as surface stabilizers in the formulation of biodegradable polyoxalate.

Biodegradable polyoxalate nanoparticles coated with polymeric surface stabilizer were successfully fabricated using an emulsion method. A series of biocompatible polymers such as Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) were used as surface stabilizers. The effects of surface stabilizers on the morphologies of nanoparticles were investigated. Polymeric stabilizers at various concentrations were used to study the formation of polyoxalate nanoparticles (POX-NPs). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and zeta potential were employed to characterize the resulting POX-NPs. The results demonstrated that surface stabilizers greatly influenced the particle sizes and surface properties of POX-NPs. PVP and PVA potentially can be used as surface stabilizers in the formulation of biodegradable polyoxalate. The size, surface and release properties of POX-NPs can be effectively controlled by varying the preparation conditions.