Solubilization of a dendrimer into a microemulsion

Ido Nir, Abraham Aserin, Dima Libster*, Nissim Garti

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

16 Scopus citations

Abstract

The present work investigates, for the first time, a system comprising a dendrimer incorporated into the water core of water-in-oil (W/O) microemulsion (ME). A second generation (G-2) poly(propyleneimine) dendrimer (PPI) was solubilized into W/O ME composed of AOT (sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl)sulfosuccinate) , heptane, and water. Such a model system possessing the benefits of both dendrimers and ME, can potentially offer superior control of drug administration. The localization of PPI within the system, its specific interactions with the components of the carrier, and its effect on the ME structure was explored by SAXS, DSC, ATR-FTIR, and electrical conductivity measurements. Considerable water binding by PPI, accompanied by partial dehydration of AOT polar heads, was detected by ATR-FTIR and DSC analysis, suggesting that PPI acted as a "water pump". In addition, SAXS measurements showed periodicity increase and disordering of the droplets. Hence, localization of PPI within the core and interfacial regions of the droplets was assumed. Direct electrostatic interactions between PPI and the sulfonate group were not noticed, since the dendrimer molecules were mostly not protonated in the current basic environment at pH 12. However, slight hydrogen bonding between PPI and the S=O groups allowed the dendrimer to behave as a "spacer" between sodium and sulfonate ions. This affected the electrical conductivity behavior of the system, revealing that PPI favored the percolation process. Most likely, PPI decreased the rigidity of the interfacial layer, facilitating the diffusion of sodium ions through the channels. The characterized model system can be advantageously utilized to design specific delivery vehicles, allowing administration of dendrimers as a therapeutic agent from host MEs.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)16723-16730
Number of pages8
JournalJournal of Physical Chemistry B
Volume114
Issue number50
DOIs
StatePublished - 23 Dec 2010

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