Formation mechanism of monodisperse, low molecular weight chitosan nanoparticles by ionic gelation technique

• Published in: Colloids and surfaces, B, Biointerfaces Vol. 90; pp. 21 - 27
• Main Authors: Fan, Wen, Yan, Wei, Xu, Zushun, Ni, Hong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01.02.2012
• Subjects: Acetic acid; Acetic Acid - chemistry; ambient temperature; Biocompatible Materials - chemistry; Chemistry, Pharmaceutical - methods; Chitosan; Chitosan - chemistry; colloids; cross-linking reagents; Cross-Linking Reagents - chemistry; Crosslinking; Drug carrier; Drug Carriers - chemistry; Drug Stability; Drugs; Gelation; Gels - chemistry; gene transfer; hydrodynamics; Ionic cross-linking; Ions; Low molecular weight chitosan; Low molecular weights; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; Molecular Weight; Monodisperse; Nanoparticles; Nanoparticles - chemistry; Nanoparticles - ultrastructure; Particle Size; particle size distribution; Polyphosphates - chemistry; Sodium; sodium tripolyphosphate; storage quality; Surface Properties; Temperature; zeta potential; Nanoparticles; Drug carrier; Monodisperse; Ionic cross-linking; Low molecular weight chitosan
• ISSN: 0927-7765; 1873-4367; 1873-4367
• DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfb.2011.09.042

[Display omitted] ► Monodisperse, low molecular weight chitosan nanoparticles were prepared. ► Various parameters affect the formation of nanoparticles were studied. ► Decreasing acetic acid concentration increases the monodispersity. ► Decreasing ambient temperature during reaction increases the monodispersity. Chitosan nanoparticles have been extensively studied for drug and gene delivery. In this paper, monodisperse, low molecular weight (LMW) chitosan nanoparticles were prepared by a novel method based on ionic gelation using sodium tripolyphosphate (TPP) as cross-linking agent. The objective of this study was to solve the problem of preparation of chitosan/TPP nanoparticles with high degree of monodispersity and stability, and investigate the effect of various parameters on the formation of LMW chitosan/TPP nanoparticles. It was found that the particle size distribution of the nanoparticles could be significantly narrowed by a combination of decreasing the concentration of acetic acid and reducing the ambient temperature during cross-linking process. The optimized nanoparticles exhibited a mean hydrodynamic diameter of 138 nm with a polydispersity index (PDI) of 0.026 and a zeta potential of +35 mV, the nanoparticles had good storage stability at room temperature up to at least 20 days.