Poly(ε-Caprolactone)-Poly(Ethylene Glycol) Tri-Block Copolymer as Quercetin Delivery System for Human Colorectal Carcinoma Cells: Synthesis, Characterization and In Vitro Study

Nancy Ferrentino, Maria Preziosa Romano, Silvia Zappavigna, Marianna Abate, Vitale Del Vecchio, Dario Romano, Chiara Germinario, Celestino Grifa, Rosanna Filosa, Daniela Pappalardo

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

7 Scopus citations

Abstract

Quercetin is a hydrophobic molecule with short blood circulation times and instability. The development of a nano-delivery system formulation of quercetin may increase its bioavailability, resulting in greater tumor suppressing effects. Triblock ABA type polycaprolactone-polyethylenglycol- polycaprolactone (PCL-PEG-PCL) copolymers have been synthetized using ring-opening polymerization of caprolactone from PEG diol. The copolymers were characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), diffusion-ordered NMR spectroscopy (DOSY), and gel permeation chromatography (GPC). The triblock copolymers self-assembled in water forming micelles consisting of a core of biodegradable polycaprolactone (PCL) and a corona of polyethylenglycol (PEG). The core-shell PCL-PEG-PCL nanoparticles were able to incorporate quercetin into the core. They were characterized by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and NMR. The cellular uptake efficiency of human colorectal carcinoma cells was quantitatively determined by flow cytometry using nanoparticles loaded with Nile Red as hydrophobic model drug. The cytotoxic effect of quercetin-loaded nanoparticles was evaluated on HCT 116 cells, showing promising results.
Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1179
JournalPolymers
Volume15
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 26 2023

Bibliographical note

KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2023-03-02
Acknowledgements: The authors gratefully acknowledged the FAR Università del Sannio and the PON “Ricerca e Innovazione” 2014–2020, azione 4, dottorati su tematiche dell’innovazione.

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Chemistry
  • Polymers and Plastics

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Poly(ε-Caprolactone)-Poly(Ethylene Glycol) Tri-Block Copolymer as Quercetin Delivery System for Human Colorectal Carcinoma Cells: Synthesis, Characterization and In Vitro Study'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this