Poly(amino acid)-based nanogel by horseradish peroxidase catalyzed crosslinking in an inverse miniemulsion

• Published in: Colloid and polymer science 2018-06, Vol.296 (6), p.995-1003
• Main Authors: Petr, Šálek, Jana, Dvořáková, Peter, Černoch, Ewa, Pavlova, Vladimír, Proks
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Characterization and Evaluation of Materials; Chemistry; Chemistry and Materials Science; Complex Fluids and Microfluidics; Crosslinking; Cyclohexane; Food Science; Hydrogen peroxide; Morphology; Nanoparticles; Nanotechnology and Microengineering; Original Contribution; Peroxidase; Photon correlation spectroscopy; Physical Chemistry; Polymer Sciences; Polymers; Prepolymers; Soft and Granular Matter; Transmission electron microscopy
• ISSN: 0303-402X; 1435-1536
• DOI: 10.1007/s00396-018-4318-7

We present an investigation of horseradish peroxidase (HRP)/H 2 O 2 -mediated crosslinking in an inverse miniemulsion for the successful preparation of a stable colloidal nanogel from a poly(amino acid)-based polymer precursor. The precursor was obtained by the aminolysis of polysuccinimide with aminoethan-2-ol and tyramine, resulting in a poly(α,β- N -(2-hydroxyethyl)-D,L-aspartamide- co - N- (2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)ethyl)-D,L-aspartamide) polymer (PHEA-Tyr). Various concentrations of the PHEA-Tyr in aqueous solution with HRP were emulsified in the presence of cyclohexane and SPAN 80. The addition of a hydrogen peroxide solution induced crosslinking between the polymer chains via the phenol groups (Tyr) and targeted nanogel formation. The hydrodynamic radii ( R h 0 ), mean size documented by hydrodynamic radius ( R h ), and morphology of the nanoparticles were investigated by dynamic light scattering (DLS) measurements, nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA), and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM). It was found out that nanoparticle radius, morphology, and architecture of the nanogel could be regulated by the initial concentration of the precursor.