Electrospinning pH-responsive block copolymer nanofibers

Electrospinng of a fibrous triblock copolymer consisting of poly(methyl methacrylate-block-poly[2-(diethylamino) ethyl methacrylate]-block-poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA-b-PDEA-b-PMMA) has been discussed. A mixed co-solvent system of tetrahydrofuran (THF) and dimethylformamide (DMF) was used to electrospin fibrous PMMA-b-PDEA-b-PMMA and its influence on surface morphology and diameter of the electrospun fiber was also investigated in an attempt to control the fiber diameter. The concentration range between 20 and 40 wt % was found suitable for electrospinning of PMMA-b-PDEA-b-PMMA in a THF/DMF system. It was also observed that the average fiber diameter decreased as the content of DMF was increased. A significant decrease in fiber diameter was observed when moving from a THF solution to a THF/DMF system at a ratio of 70:30.

New oil modified acrylic polymer for pH sensitive drug release:experimental results and statistical analysis

We report results of an experimental study, complemented by detailed statistical analysis of the experimental data, on the development of a more effective control method of drug delivery using a pH sensitive acrylic polymer. New copolymers based on acrylic acid and fatty acid are constructed from dodecyl castor oil and a tercopolymer based on methyl methacrylate, acrylic acid and acryl amide were prepared using this new approach. Water swelling characteristics of fatty acid, acrylic acid copolymer and tercopolymer respectively in acid and alkali solutions have been studied by a step-change method. The antibiotic drug cephalosporin and paracetamol have also been incorporated into the polymer blend through dissolution with the release of the antibiotic drug being evaluated in bacterial stain media and buffer solution. Our results show that the rate of release of paracetamol getss affected by the pH factor and also by the nature of polymer blend. Our experimental data have later been statistically analyzed to quantify the precise nature of polymer decay rates on the pH density of the relevant polymer solvents. The time evolution of the polymer decay rates indicate a marked transition from a linear to a strictly non-linear regime depending on the whether the chosen sample is a general copolymer (linear) or a tercopolymer (non-linear). Non-linear data extrapolation techniques have been used to make probabilistic predictions about the variation in weight percentages of retained polymers at all future times, thereby quantifying the degree of efficacy of the new method of drug delivery.