Title
Biodegradable nanofibrous scaffolds as smart delivery vehicles for amino acids
Date Issued
10 June 2017
Access level
open access
Resource Type
journal article
Author(s)
Maione S.
Pérez-Madrigal M.M.
Díaz A.
Franco L.
Cativiela C.
Puiggalí J.
Alemán C.
Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya
Publisher(s)
John Wiley and Sons Inc.
Abstract
The encapsulation of amino acids (AAs) and their correct preservation before they are ingested are challenging tasks. Nonpolar (l-alanine and l-phenylalanine), polar (l-cysteine hydrochloride and l-asparagine), and charged (l-lysine hydrochloride and l-aspartic acid) AAs were loaded into biodegradable and nontoxic poly(tetramethylene succinate) (PE44) nanofibers (NFs) with electrospinning. The loading of AAs considerably affected the morphology, topography, thermal properties, and wettability of the PE44 NFs. Furthermore, although the AAs crystallized in a phase separated from the polymeric matrix, the distribution of such crystals changed into PE44 NFs and depended on their chemical nature. Release assays in enzyme-free solutions provided evidence that very significant amounts of AAs were retained in the NFs after 7 days, whereas assays in the lipase-containing solution (because lipase performs essential roles in the digestion) showed almost complete release after a few hours. Lipase preferentially attacked the PE44 regions responsible for the retention of AAs in the biphasic system and favored the almost immediate release of the biomolecules. The results displayed in this study, combined with the biocompatibility, biodegradability, and potential use of the PE44 NFs as edible nonnutritional elements, suggest that the loaded PE44–AA NFs could be used to supply essential and conditional AAs. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017, 134, 44883.
Volume
134
Issue
22
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Ingeniería química
Subjects
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-85012149783
Source
Journal of Applied Polymer Science
ISSN of the container
00218995
Sponsor(s)
The authors acknowledge Ministerio de Economía Indistria y Competitividad / Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (MINECO/FEDER) (contract grant numbers MAT2015-69367-R, MAT2015-69547-R, and CTQ2013-40855-R) and Gobierno de Aragón–Fondo Social Europeo (Research Group E40) for their financial support. One of the authors (C.A.) is grateful to the Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA) Academia program for its support of the research.
Sources of information:
Directorio de Producción Científica
Scopus