Micelles of lysomyristoylphosphatidylcholine (LMPC) and mixed micelles of LMPC with anionic detergent sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) have been characterized by spin-probe-partitioning electron paramagnetic resonance (SPPEPR) and time-resolved fluorescence quenching (TRFQ) experiments. SPPEPR is a novel new method to study structure and dynamics in lipid assemblies successfully applied here for th...

Mixed micelles from copolymers in aqueous media have emerged as a valuable tool for producing functional polymer nanostructures with applications nanomedicine, including drug delivery and bioimaging. In this review, we discuss the basics of mixed copolymer micelles’ design, structure, physicochemical properties. We also focus on their utilization biomedical using examples recent literature.

A novel 4-arm poly(ethylene glycol)-block-poly(anhydride-esters) amphiphilic copolymer (4-arm PEG-b-PAE) was synthesized by esterization of 4-arm poly(ethylene glycol) and poly(anhydride-esters) which was obtained by melt polycondensation of α -, ω -acetic anhydride terminated poly(L-lactic acid). The obtained 4-arm PEG-b-PAE was characterized by (1)H-NMR and gel permeation chromatography. The ...

The effective treatment for acute kidney injury (AKI) is currently limited, and care is primarily supportive. Sialic acid (SA) is main component of Sialyl Lewisx antigen on the mammalian cell surface, which participates in E-selectin binding. Therefore, dexamethasone(DXM)-loaded E-selectin-targeting sialic acid-polyethylene glycol-dexamethasone (SA-PEG-DXM/DXM) conjugate micelles are designed f...

Polymer micelles have emerged as promising carriers for controlled release applications, however, several limitations of micelle-based drug delivery have also been reported. To address these issues, we have synthesized a functional biodegradable and cytocompatible block copolymer based on methoxypoly(ethyleneglycol)-b-poly(ε-caprolactone-co-α-azido-ε-caprolactone) (mPEG-b-poly(εCL-co-αN3εCL)) a...

Spherical micelles and nanoparticles made with degradable polymers have been of great interest for therapeutic application, but degradation-induced changes in a spherical morphology can be subtle and mechanism/kinetics appears poorly understood. Here, we report the first preparation of giant and flexible worm micelles self-assembled from degradable copolymer poly(ethylene oxide)-block-polycapro...

This paper describes the influence of counterions on the unidirectional growth of micelles formed by alkylpyridinium surfactants in aqueous solution. It is shown that the growth of spherical micelles to form wormlike micelles is strongly dependent on counterion structure. More hydrophobic counterions induce the formation of wormlike micelles at lower surfactant concentrations. Next to hydrophob...

Giant and stable worm micelles formed from poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-based diblock copolymer amphiphiles have the potential advantage compared to smaller assemblies for delivery of a large quantity of hydrophobic drugs or dyes per carrier. Here we show that worm micelles can be targeted to cells with internalization and delivery of nontoxic dyes as well as cytotoxic drugs. Constituent copolym...

Covalent stabilization of micelles and vesicles has attracted increasing attention in recent years. In particular, shell cross-linked (SCL) micelles are potentially useful nanosized vehicles for the delivery of various actives (e.g., drugs, fragrances, pesticides). The first example of SCL micelles was described by Wooley and co-workers, who oligomerized pendent styrene groups by using radical ...

Polymeric micelles are emerging as attractive drug delivery systems. Hydrophobic drugs including photosensitizers for photodynamic therapy can be covalently bound or physically entrapped in the core of the micelles and thus be systemically delivered to, for example, tumors using passive or active targeting strategies. Polymers used for photosensitizer encapsulation include pluronics, poly(ethyl...