Micelles of poly[oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylate] as delivery vehicles for zinc phthalocyanine photosensitizers

Abstract Drug-loaded polymeric micelles have proven to be highly effective carrier systems for the efficient delivery of hydrophobic photosensitizers (PSs) in photodynamic therapy (PDT). This study introduces the micellization potential of poly(oligoethylene glycol methyl ether methacrylate) (pOEGMA) as a novel approach, utilizing the hydrophobic methacrylate segments of pOEGMA to interact with highly hydrophobic zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc), thereby forming a potential micellar drug carrier system. The ZnPc molecule was synthesized from phthalonitrile derivatives and its fluorescence, photodegradation, and singlet oxygen quantum yields were determined in various solvents. In solvents such as tetrahydrofuran, dimethyl sulfoxide, and N,N-dimethylformamide, the ZnPc compound exhibited the requisite photophysical and photochemical properties for PDT applications. The pOEGMA homopolymer was synthesized via reversible addition-fragmentation chain-transfer polymerization, while ZnPc-loaded pOEGMA micelles were prepared using the nanoprecipitation method. Characterization of the pOEGMA, ZnPc, and micelles was conducted using FTIR, 1 H-NMR, dynamic light scattering, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometries, gel permeation chromatography, and transmission electron microscopy. The critical micelle concentration was determined to be 0.027 mg ml −1 using fluorescence spectrometry. The drug loading and encapsulation efficiencies of the ZnPc-loaded micelles were calculated to be 0.67% and 0.47%, respectively. Additionally, the release performance of ZnPc from pOEGMA micelles was monitored over a period of nearly 10 d, while the lyophilized micelles exhibited stability for 3 months. Lastly, the ZnPc-loaded micelles were more biocompatible than ZnPc on L929 cell line. The results suggest that the pOEGMA homopolymer possesses the capability to micellize through its methacrylate segments when interacting with highly hydrophobic molecules, presenting a promising avenue for enhancing the delivery efficiency of hydrophobic PSs in PDT. Moreover, it was also deciphered that obtained formulations were highly biocompatible according to cytotoxicity results and could be safely employed as drug delivery systems in further applications.