Aldehyde-functional thermoresponsive diblock copolymer worm gels exhibit strong mucoadhesion
A series of thermoresponsive diblock copolymer worm gels is prepared via reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) aqueous dispersion polymerization of 2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate using a water-soluble methacrylic precursor bearing pendent cis-diol groups. Selective oxidation using an aqueous solution of sodium periodate affords the corresponding aldehyde-functional worm gels. The aldehyde groups are located within the steric stabilizer chains and the aldehyde content can be adjusted by varying the periodate/cis-diol molar ratio. These aldehyde-functional worm gels are evaluated in terms of their mucoadhesion performance with the aid of a fluorescence microscopy-based assay. Using porcine urinary bladder mucosa as a model substrate, we demonstrate that these worm gels offer a comparable degree of mucoadhesion to that afforded by chitosan, which is widely regarded to be a ‘gold standard’ positive control in this context. The optimum degree of aldehyde functionality is approximately 30%: lower degrees of functionalization lead to weaker mucoadhesion, whereas higher values compromise the desirable thermoresponsive behavior of these worm gels.
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About this article: Aldehyde-functional thermoresponsive diblock copolymer worm gels exhibit strong mucoadhesion – E. E. Brotherton, T. J. Neal, D. B. Kaldybekov, M. J. Smallridge, Vitaliy V. Khutoryanskiy and S. P. Armes, Chem. Sci., 2022, Advance Article , DOI: 10.1039/D2SC02074B