Justyna A. Czaplewska

Poly(2-oxazoline) glycopolymers with tunable LCST behavior

A series of thermo-responsive glyco-poly(2-oxazoline)s based on 2-ethyl-2-oxazoline and 2-(dec-9-enyl)-2-oxazoline were prepared. To study the effect of the sugar content on the solution behavior in water, two sets of copolymers with constant monomer-to-initiator ratios of 20 and 50 and varying amounts of the hydrophobic alkene functionalized monomer were synthesized. The glycopolymers were obtained by the photoaddition of 2,3,4,6-tetra-O-acetyl-1-thio-β-D-glycopyranose onto the double bonds followed by deacetylation of the saccharide residues. Turbidimetry measurements of the respective glycopolymers revealed a decreasing cloud point temperature with increasing amount of sugar moieties, proposed to be caused by hydrogen bonding between the sugars and the polymer amide groups, which is enabled by the flexibility of the long decyl spacer. Due to the linear relationship between cloud point temperatures and the sugar content, the cloud points can be easily tailored for specific applications.

Understanding and tuning the self-assembly of polyether-based triblock terpolymers in aqueous solution

The synthesis and self-assembly of well-defined poly(ethylene oxide)-block-poly(allyl glycidyl ether)-block-poly(tert-butyl glycidyl ether) (PEO-b-PAGE-b-PtBGE) triblock terpolymers with varying block lengths of PAGE and PtBGE are reported. The materials were synthesized using sequential living anionic ring-opening polymerization (AROP). The middle block, PAGE, was further modified by post-polymerization addition of 2,3,4,6-tetra-O-acetyl-1-thio-β-D-galactopyranose via thiol–ene chemistry, resulting in PEO-b-PAGEGal-b-PtBGE. Self-assembly of the terpolymers in aqueous media resulted in the predominant formation of core–shell–corona architectures and the aggregates featured a PtBGE core, a PAGE shell, and a PEO corona. The structures were investigated using dynamic light scattering (DLS) and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM) measurements. In addition, the presence of a PEO corona rendered the formed micellar structures thermo-responsive, as demonstrated using turbidimetry. Depending on the ratio of hydrophilic to hydrophobic segments and on the thermal history of the samples, several micellar morphologies could be identified, including spheres of different size, worm-like structures, and vesicles. More important, both reversible and irreversible structural rearrangements could be identified during the heating–cooling cycles.

Syntheses, Characterization, and Antitumor Activities of Platinum(II) and Palladium(II) Complexes with Sugar-Conjugated Triazole Ligands

Four platinum(II) and palladium(II) complexes with sugar‐conjugated bipyridine‐type triazole ligands, [PtIICl2(AcGlc‐pyta)] (3), [PdIICl2(AcGlc‐pyta)] (4), [PtIICl2(Glc‐pyta)] (5), and [PdIICl2(Glc‐pyta)] (6), were prepared and characterized by mass spectrometry, elemental analysis, 1H‐ and 13C‐NMR, IR as well as UV/VIS spectroscopy, where AcGlc‐pyta and Glc‐pyta denote 2‐[4‐(pyridin‐2‐yl)‐1H‐1,2,3‐triazol‐1‐yl]ethyl 2,3,4,6‐tetra‐O‐acetyl‐β‐D‐glucopyranoside (1) and 2‐[4‐(pyridin‐2‐yl)‐1H‐1,2,3‐triazol‐1‐yl]ethyl β‐D‐glucopyranoside (2), respectively. The solid‐state structure of complex 6 was determined by single‐crystal X‐ray‐diffraction analysis. These complexes exhibited in vitro cytotoxicity against human cervix tumor cells (HeLa) though weaker than that of cisplatin.

Small but powerful: co-assembly of polyether-based triblock terpolymers into sub-30 nm micelles and synergistic effects on cellular interactions.

We introduce a versatile ABC triblock terpoly- mer platform based on poly(ethylene oxide)-block-poly(allyl glycidyl ether)-block-poly(tert-butyl glycidyl ether) (PEO-b-PAGE-b-PtBGE) and subsequent functionalization of the PAGE segment with thiogalactose (hydroxyl), cysteamine (amino), and 2-mercaptopropionic acid (carboxy) by thiol-ene chemistry. These materials are used to prepare core-shell-corona micelles with a PtBGE core, a PAGE shell, and a PEO corona and sizes below 30 nm in aqueous media. We investigate the influence of different functional groups on micelle formation and cellular uptake. Moreover, co-assembly of differently functionalized materials allows to create micelles with a mixed shell and adjustable charge and, in that way, important characteristics such as cell uptake or cytotoxicity can be controlled. Furthermore, we demonstrate that even the uptake mechanism depends on the substitution pattern of the underlying triblock terpolymer.

Spatial separation of the processing and MHC class I loading compartments for cross-presentation of the tumor-associated antigen HER2/neu by human dendritic cells

Cross-presentation is the process by which professional antigen presenting cells (APCs) (B cells, dendritic cells (DCs) and macrophages) present endocytosed antigens (Ags) via MHC-I to CD8+ T cells. This process is crucial for induction of adaptive immune responses against tumors and infected cells. The pathways and cellular compartments involved in cross-presentation are unresolved and controversial. Among the cells with cross-presenting capacity, DCs are the most efficient, which was proposed to depend on prevention of endosomal acidification to block degradation of the epitopes. Contrary to this view, we show in this report that some cargoes induce strong endosomal acidification following uptake by human DCs, while others not. Moreover, processing of the tumor-associated antigen HER2/neu delivered in nanoparticles (NP) for cross-presentation of the epitope HER2/neu369–377 on HLA-A2 depended on endosomal acidification and cathepsin activity as well as proteasomes, and newly synthesized HLA class I. However, the HLA-A*0201/HER2/neu369–377 complexes were not found in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) nor in endolysosomes but in hitherto not described vesicles. The data thus indicate spatial separation of antigen processing and loading of MHC-I for cross-presentation: antigen processing occurs in the uptake compartment and the cytosol whereas MHC-I loading with peptide takes place in a distinct subcellular compartment. The findings further elucidate the cellular pathways involved in the cross-presentation of a full-length, clinically relevant tumor-associated antigen by human DCs, and the impact of the vaccine formulation on antigen processing and CD8+ T cell induction.

Impact of PEG and PEG-b-PAGE modified PLGA on nanoparticle formation, protein loading and release

The effect of modifying the well-established pharmaceutical polymer PLGA by different PEG-containing block-copolymers on the preparation of ovalbumin (OVA) loaded PLGA nanoparticles (NPs) was studied. The used polymers contained poly(d,l-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA), polyethylene glycol (PEG) and poly(allyl glycidyl ether) (PAGE) as building blocks. The double emulsion technique yielded spherical NPs in the size range from 170 to 220 nm (PDI<0.15) for all the differently modified polymers, allowing to directly compare protein loading of and release. PEGylation is usually believed to increase the hydrophilic character of produced particles, favoring encapsulation of hydrophilic substances. However, in this study simple PEGylation of PLGA had only a slight effect on protein release. In contrast, incorporating a PAGE block between the PEG and PLGA units, also eventually enabling active targeting introducing a reactive group, led to a significantly higher loading (+25%) and release rate (+100%), compared to PLGA and PEG-b-PLGA NPs.

Antigen delivery via hydrophilic PEG-b-PAGE-b-PLGA nanoparticles boosts vaccination induced T cell immunity.

Here, we evaluate the use of hydrophilic PEG-b-PAGE-b-PLGA (PPP) for the preparation of antigen loaded nanoparticles (NPs) as a platform for prophylactic vaccination. To investigate the suitability of PPP-NPs for antigen delivery, we used the double emulsion evaporation technique to prepare NPs of different sizes, antigen-loading efficiencies and -release kinetics for the model antigen Ovalbumin (OVA). Prior to applying the PPP-NPs in biological in vitro or in vivo models, all materials were tested for absence of cytotoxicity and endotoxins. While the uptake of NPs in antigen presenting cells was size but not polymer dependent, the efficiency of cross presentation of NP-associated antigen on MHC I molecules for CD8 T cell activation depended on the polymer type. T cell activation by antigen-presenting cells was significantly increased in vitro if antigen was delivered via PPP NPs compared to PLGA NPs or soluble OVA, although antigen content was the same in all tested formulations. Subcutaneous application of PPP-OVA-NPs even without adjuvants led to generation of potent CD8 T cell-mediated OVA-specific cytotoxicity in vivo that was more pronounced than after application of OVA alone or PLGA-OVA-NPs. Our data suggest that PPP-NPs can serve as platform for antigen-delivery in future vaccination formulations. Although PPP-NPs already bear intrinsic adjuvant-function, the complementation with TLR ligands loaded inside NPs may further strengthen the immune response to a point, where it might be possible to use it as a therapeutic vaccine to break immune tolerance in chronic disease states.

d-Fructose-Decorated Poly(ethylene imine) for Human Breast Cancer Cell Targeting

The high affinity of GLUT5 transporter for d-fructose in breast cancer cells has been discussed intensely. In this contribution, high molar mass linear poly(ethylene imine) (LPEI) is functionalized with d-fructose moieties to combine the selectivity for the GLUT5 transporter with the delivery potential of PEI for genetic material. The four-step synthesis of a thiol-group bearing d-fructose enables the decoration of a cationic polymer backbone with d-fructose via thiol-ene photoaddition. The functionalization of LPEI is confirmed by 2D NMR techniques, elemental analysis, and size exclusion chromatography. Importantly, a d-fructose decoration of 16% renders the polymers water-soluble and eliminates the cytotoxicity of PEI in noncancer L929 cells, accompanied by a reduced unspecific cellular uptake of the genetic material. In contrast, the cytotoxicity as well as the cell specific uptake is increased for triple negative MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. Therefore, the introduction of d-fructose shows superior potential for cell targeting, which can be assumed to be GLUT5 dependent.

Synthesis of d-fructose conjugated ligands via C6 and C1 and their corresponding [Ru(bpy)2(L)]Cl2 complexes

A pyridyl triazole (pyta) modified sucrose ligand was prepared in a seven step synthesis using d-glucose as the protection group for d-fructose and starting from commercially available sucrose. After complexation with Ru(bpy)2Cl2 precursor, the sucrose-conjugated Ru complex of the general formula [Ru(bpy)2(L)]Cl2 was formed. Acidic cleavage of the d-glucose unit led to the first d-fructose conjugated metal complex viad-fructose C6 in literature. Additionally, pyta-modified d-fructose via C1 and the corresponding Ru complex were synthesized. All compounds were analyzed by Rf values, specific rotation, NMR, IR, UV/Vis and fluorescence spectroscopy, mass spectrometry and elemental analysis.

Thermodynamic compatibility of actives encapsulated into PEG‐PLA nanoparticles: In Silico predictions and experimental verification

Achieving optimal solubility of active substances in polymeric carriers is of fundamental importance for a number of industrial applications, including targeted drug delivery within the growing field of nanomedicine. However, its experimental optimization using a trial‐and‐error approach is cumbersome and time‐consuming. Here, an approach based on molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and the Flory–Huggins theory is proposed for rapid prediction of thermodynamic compatibility between active species and copolymers comprising hydrophilic and hydrophobic segments. In contrast to similar methods, our approach offers high computational efficiency by employing MD simulations that avoid explicit consideration of the actual copolymer chains. The accuracy of the method is demonstrated for compatibility predictions between pyrene and nile red as model dyes as well as indomethacin as model drug and copolymers containing blocks of poly(ethylene glycol) and poly(lactic acid) in different ratios. The results of the simulations are directly verified by comparison with the observed encapsulation efficiency of nanoparticles prepared by nanoprecipitation.