Complexation of cationic-neutral block polyelectrolyte with insulin and in vitro release studies

Abstract

Insulin (INS) was incorporated into complexes with the block polyelectrolyte quaternized poly[3,5-bis(dimethylaminomethylene)hydroxystyrene]-b-poly(ethylene oxide) (QNPHOSEO), which is a cationic–neutral block polyelectrolyte. Light scattering techniques are used in order to examine the size, the size distribution and the ζ-potential of the nanocarriers in aqueous and biological media, which are found to depend on the ratio of the components and the physicochemical parameters during and after complex preparation. Circular dichroism and infrared spectroscopy, employed to investigate the structure of the complexed INS, show no alteration of protein structure after complexation. In vitro release profiles of the entrapped protein are found to depend on the ratio of the components and the solution conditions used during preparation of the complexes.