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Self-assembled micellar aggregates based monomethoxyl poly(ethylene glycol)-b-poly(ε-caprolactone)-b-poly(aminoethyl methacrylate) triblock copolymers as efficient gene delivery vectors

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Abstract

Amphiphilic triblock copolymers monomethoxyl poly(ethylene glycol) (mPEG)-b-poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL)-b-poly(aminoethyl methacrylate)s (PAMAs) (mPECAs) were synthesized as gene delivery vectors. They exhibited lower cytotoxicity and higher transfection efficiency in COS-7 cells in presence of serum compared to 25 kDa bPEI. The influence of mPEG and PCL segments in mPECAs was evaluated by comparing with corresponding diblock copolymers. The studies showed the incorporation of the hydrophobic PCL segment in triblock copolymers affected the binding capability to pDNA and surface charges of complexes due to the formation of micelles increasing the local charges. The presence of mPEG segment in gene vector decreased the surface charges of the complexes and increased the stability of the complexes in serum because of the steric hindrance effect. It was also found that the combination of PEG and PCL segments into one macromolecule might lead to synergistic effect for better transfection efficiency in serum.

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Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (20704032), and National Basic Research Program of China (2009CB930300).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Biomedical Polymers of Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry and Molecular Science, Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430072, People’s Republic of China

    Ming Ma, Feng Li, Xiu-hong Liu, Zhe-fan Yuan, Fu-jie Chen & Ren-xi Zhuo

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  1. Ming Ma
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  2. Feng Li
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  3. Xiu-hong Liu
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Correspondence to Feng Li.

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Ma, M., Li, F., Liu, Xh. et al. Self-assembled micellar aggregates based monomethoxyl poly(ethylene glycol)-b-poly(ε-caprolactone)-b-poly(aminoethyl methacrylate) triblock copolymers as efficient gene delivery vectors. J Mater Sci: Mater Med 21, 2817–2825 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10856-010-4140-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10856-010-4140-3

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