Polymeric Nanogels with Tailorable Degradation Behavior

The aim of this study is to design a polymeric nanogel system with tailorable degradation behavior. To this end, hydroxyethyl methacrylate-oligoglycolates-derivatized poly(hydroxypropyl methacrylamide) (pHPMAm-Gly-HEMA) and hydroxyethyl methacrylamide-oligoglycolates-derivatized poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylamide) (pHEMAm-Gly-HEMAm) are synthesized and characterized. pHEMAm-Gly-HEMAm shows faster hydrolysis rates of both carbonate and glycolate esters than the same ester groups of pHPMAm-Gly-HEMA. pHEMAm-Gly-HEMAm nanogels have tailorable degradation kinetics from 24 h to more than 4 d by varying their crosslink densities. It is shown that the release of a loaded macromolecular model drug is controlled by degradation of nanogels. The nanogels show similar cytocompatibility as PLGA nanoparticles and are therefore considered to be attractive systems for drug delivery. (Figure presented.).