Iron Oxide Nanoparticle-Based Magnetic Resonance Method to Monitor Release Kinetics from Polymeric Particles with High Resolution

Abstract

A new method to precisely monitor rapid release kinetics from polymeric particles using super paramagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles, specifically by measuring spin–spin relaxation time (<i>T</i>₂), is reported. Previously, we have published the formulation of logic gate particles from an acid-sensitive poly-β-aminoester ketal-2 polymer. Here, a series of poly-β-aminoester ketal-2 polymers with varying hydrophobicities were synthesized and used to formulate particles. We attempted to measure fluorescence of released Nile red to determine whether the structural adjustments could finely tune the release kinetics in the range of minutes to hours; however, this standard technique did not differentiate each release rate of our series. Thus, a new method based on encapsulation of iron oxide nanoparticles was developed, which enabled us to resolve the release kinetics of our particles. Moreover, the kinetics matched the relative hydrophobicity order determined by octanol–water partition coefficients. To the best of our knowledge, this method provides the highest resolution of release kinetics to date