Investigation on properties of re-dispersible cationic hydrogel nanoparticles

P(DMAEMA-g-EG) cationic hydrogel nanoparticles (CHNPs) were prepared by distillation-dispersion copolymerization of poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate (MPEGMA) and N,N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) using acetonitrile (AN) as dispersion medium. The results of FTIR spectra indicate that the composition of P(DMAEMA-g-EG) CHNPs is consistent with the designed structure. The TEM image shows that P(DMAEMA-g-EG) CHNPs are of spherical morphology before and after swelling. The investigations on the properties of P(DMAEMA-g-EG) CHNPs indicate that P(DMAEMA-g-EG) CHNPs have pH-, ionic strength- and thermo-sensitive characters. This type of P(DMAEMA-g-EG) CHNP is very promising as environment-sensitive drug carriers. (c) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.