We report on the fabrication of polyelectrolyte multilayer-coated hollow silicon dioxide micropillars as pH-responsive drug delivery systems. Silicon dioxide micropillars are based on macroporous silicon formed by electrochemical etching. Due to their hollow core capable of being loaded with chemically active agents, silicon dioxide micropillars provide additional function such as drug delivery...

Diabetic therapeutics, including insulin and glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1), are essential for diabetic patients to regulate blood glucose levels. However, conventional treatments that are based on subcutaneous injections are often associated with poor glucose control and a lack of patient compliance. In this review, we focus on the different stimuli-responsive systems to deliver therapeutics ...

Objective(s): Pharmaceutical industries are leading to improved medications that can target diseases more effectively and precisely. Researchers have intended to reformulate drugs so that they may be more safely used in human body. The more targeted a drug is, the lower its chance of triggering drug resistance, a cautionary concern surrounding the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics. The aim of t...

Chitosan coated alginate beads containing poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAM), were prepared to be used as a controlled pH/temperature sensitive drug delivery system with improved encapsulation efficiency and delayed release rate. The studied beads were characterized by differential scanning calorimetry, scanning electron microscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Water uptake a...

Objective(s): Researchers have intended to reformulate drugs so that they may be more safely used in human body. Polymer science and nanotechnology have great roles in this field. The aim of this paper is to introduce an efficient drug delivery vehicle which can perform both targeted and controlled antibiotic release using magnetic nanoparticles grafted pH-responsive polymer.<s...

Environmentally responsive, water-soluble polymers have a wide variety of uses ranging from drug delivery to viscosity modifiers. Their utility lies in the ability to use environmental perturbations to dramatically alter the material properties. Here, we describe the interfacial properties of a hydrophobically modified copolymer of N-isopropylacrylamide and glycinylacrylamide (NIPAM-N-Gly-(C18)...

Polymers are being used extensively in drug delivery due to their surface and bulk properties. They are being used in drug formulations and in drug delivery devices. These drug delivery devices may be in the form of implants for controlled drug delivery. Polymers used in colloidal drug carrier systems, consisting of small particles, show great advantage in drug delivery systems because of optim...

In the fight against cancer, controlled drug delivery systems have emerged to enhance the therapeutic efficacy and safety of anti-cancer drugs. Among these systems, mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) with a functional surface possess obvious advantages and were thus rapidly developed for cancer treatment. Many stimuli-responsive materials, such as nanoparticles, polymers, and inorganic mate...

Stimuli-responsive polymer hydrogels which are capable of responding to changes in their environment such as pH (1), osmotic strength (2), or temperature (3) have received growing attention in recent years for applications in a wide variety of areas including controlled drug delivery (4). Also, due to the size limitations imposed by the body’s natural defense mechanisms, such as the reticuloend...