Synthesis and self-assembly of Amphiphillic Polymers Based on Itaconic Acid Comprising Cholesterol for pH-responsive Drug Release

pH-Sensitive micelles are usually made from amphiphilic copolymers which can dissolve molecularly in water in a certain pH range and aggregate spontaneously upon anappropriate change in the pH value [1]. Itaconic acid (IA) copolymers are ionized and hydrophilic at high pH, and nonionized and hydrophobic at low pH. IA copolymers have widely used in pH-responsive amphiphilic copolymers and microspheres [2]. Cholesterol derivatives are broadly definedas hydrophobic or amphiphilic, based on the chemical subunits that are present in the molecule [3]. The aim of thiswork is to develop a novel drug carrier with pH-responsibility. Hydrophobically modified monoomethyl itaconate polymers bearing cholesterol side chains (PMMI-Chol-C6) were firstsynthesized. Then, pH-responsive micelles were prepared by obtained PMMI-Chol-C6 and studied by DLS in combination with TEM