Micelle formation and drug release behavior of polypeptide graft copolymer and its mixture with polypeptide block copolymer

Self-association behavior of polypeptide graft copolymer and its mixture with polypeptide block copolymer and drug carrier capability of the formed micelles was examined. The results gained through fluorescence spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy revealed that both polypeptide graft copolymer and its mixture with polypeptide block copolymer can self-assemble to form polymeric micelles in aqueous media. The molecular structure of the graft copolymer and blending the graft with block copolymer exert marked effects on the critical micelle concentration and the shape of formed micelles. It was found that the hydrophobic inner core of the micelles formed either by graft copolymer or mixture of graft and block copolymers can act as an incorporation site for the hydrophobic drugs. The drug loading content of the graft copolymer micelles tends to be larger when the content of the polypeptide segments in the copolymer increases. The results obtained from the drug-release studies showed that the drug-release rates are dependent on the chemical nature of the graft copolymer, the composition of the graft and block copolymer mixture, and also the pH value of the release media.