Surface active polyesters based on N-substituted glutamic acid as promising materials for biomedical applications

Abstract

In the present work, N-substituted glutamic acid, polyethylene and polypropylene glycols have been used to design biocompatible copolyesters via Steglich reactions. Due to the presence of alternating hydrophilic and hydrophobic blocks in their structures, these copolyesters are able to form self-stabilized nanoparticle dispersions in aqueous media. The lipophilic core of these nanoparticles can solubilize poorly water-soluble compounds and release them into a model of lipids in a human body. Moreover, the obtained copolyesters possess no cytotoxic effects over a wide concentration range. Thus, we conclude that obtained copolyesters show significant promise for further development as drug delivery systems.