title: Molecularly Imprinted Biodegradable Nanoparticles.
abstract: Biodegradable polymer nanoparticles are promising carriers for targeted drug delivery in nanomedicine applications. Molecu- lar imprinting is a potential strategy to target polymer nanoparticles through binding of endogenous ligands that may promote recognition and active transport into specific cells and tissues. However, the lock-and-key mechanism of molecular imprinting requires relatively rigid cross-linked structures, unlike those of many biodegradable polymers. To date, no fully biodegradable molecularly imprinted particles have been reported in the literature. This paper reports the synthesis of a novel molecularly- imprinted nanocarrier, based on poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) and acrylic acid, that combines biodegradability and molec- ular recognition properties. A novel three-arm biodegradable cross-linker was synthesized by ring-opening polymerization of glycolide and lactide initiated by glycerol. The resulting macromer was functionalized by introduction of end-functions through reaction with acryloyl chloride. Macromer and acrylic acid were used for the synthesis of narrowly-dispersed nanoparticles by radical polymerization in diluted conditions in the presence of biotin as template molecule. The binding capacity of the imprinted nanoparticles towards biotin and biotinylated bovine serum albumin was twentyfold that of non-imprinted nanoparti- cles. Degradation rates and functional performances were assessed in in vitro tests and cell cultures, demonstrating effective biotin-mediated cell internalization.
authors.affiliation: Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Center for Micro Bio-Robotics @SSSA, viale Rinaldo Piaggio,34, 56025, Pontedera, Italy.
authors.forename: Mariacristina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gagliardi
authors.affiliation: Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems @UNITN, Corso Bettini 31, 38068 Rovereto, Italy.|University of Pisa, Department of Biology, Unit of Cellular and Developmental Biology, S.S.12 Abetone e Brennero 4, 56127, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Alice
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bertero
authors.affiliation: Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems @UNITN, Corso Bettini 31, 38068 Rovereto, Italy.
authors.forename: Angelo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bifone
mesh_terms: D000179:Acrylates / Q000737:chemistry; D000818:Animals; D063566:Biodegradable Plastics / Q000737:chemistry*; D001711:Biotransformation; D002417:Cattle; D004337:Drug Carriers / Q000737:chemistry*; D006367:HeLa Cells; D006801:Humans; D019344:Lactic Acid / Q000737:chemistry; D054802:Molecular Imprinting / Q000379:methods*; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry*; D011100:Polyglycolic Acid / Q000737:chemistry; D000077182:Polylactic Acid-Polyglycolic Acid Copolymer; D011485:Protein Binding; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine
chemical_list: D000179:Acrylates; D063566:Biodegradable Plastics; D004337:Drug Carriers; D000077182:Polylactic Acid-Polyglycolic Acid Copolymer; D011100:Polyglycolic Acid; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine; D019344:Lactic Acid; C036658:acrylic acid