Nanocapsules by Miniemulsion Polymerization with Biodegradable Surfactant and Hydrophobe

Abstract

Abstract Nanocapsules (NCs) are promising candidates for the controlled and targeted delivery of therapeutics in a variety of biomedical applications. In this work we report the formation of NCs by miniemulsion polymerization with renewable, biodegradable, and biocompatible surfactant (lecithin) and hydrophobe (Neobee M5). PMMA was employed as the model (and biocompatible) polymer to synthesize the NCs. Stable dispersions of NCs with sizes between 200–500 nm in diameter and high encapsulation efficiencies were achieved. The effect of the surfactant concentration and mechanical energy input on the size of the parent miniemulsion droplet, and on the resulting NCs was followed by DLS measurements. The final particle morphology was confirmed by SEM and TEM. magnified image