Abstract
A novel series of peptide based hybrid polymers designed to undergo enzymatic degradation is presented, via macrosubstitution of a polyphosphazene backbone with the tetrapeptide Gly-Phe-Leu-Gly. Further co-substitution of the hybrid polymers with hydrophilic polyalkylene oxide Jeffamine M-1000 leads to water soluble and biodegradable hybrid polymers. Detailed degradation studies, via 31P NMR spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering and field flow fractionation show the polymers degrade via a combination of enzymatic, as well as hydrolytic pathways. The peptide sequence was chosen due to its known property to undergo lysosomal degradation; hence, these degradable, water soluble polymers could be of significant interest for the use as polymer therapeutics. In this context, we investigated conjugation of the immune response modifier imiquimod to the polymers via the tetrapeptide and report the self-assembly behavior of the conjugate, as well as its enzymatically triggered drug release behavior.
Highlights
Polypeptides have gained importance for biomedical applications during the last decades due to their unique physical, chemical and biological properties [1,2]
Poly(dichloro)phosphazene [Cl2 P=N]n with approximately 50 repeat units was synthesized via the room temperature, living cationic polymerization of trichlorophosphoranimine [23,25]
With two tetrapeptide groups per repeat unit, the resulting hybrid polymer consists mostly of peptide (95 wt %), and the chemical and solution characteristics are peptide dominated for the hybrid polymer
Summary
Polypeptides have gained importance for biomedical applications during the last decades due to their unique physical, chemical and biological properties [1,2]. Peptide–polymer conjugates make up an interesting new class of polymeric materials combining the advantages of both peptides and synthetic polymers to generate hybrid materials with novel properties that cannot be realized with one of the components alone [2,3,4,5,6]. They take advantage of the flexibility of polymer synthesis and diverse peptide functionality and properties. Peptide functionalization or grafting of synthetic polymers improves for example, Polymers 2016, 8, 161; doi:10.3390/polym8040161 www.mdpi.com/journal/polymers
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
