Synthesis of bioadhesive poly(acrylic acid) nano- and microparticles using an inverse emulsion polymerization method for the entrapment of hydrophilic drug candidates

Bioadhesive latices of water-swollen poly(acrylic acid) nano-and microparticles were synthesized using an inverse (W/O) emulsion polymerization method. They are stabilized by a co-emulsifier system consisting of Span™ 80 and Tween™ 80 dispersed in aliphatic hydrocarbons. The initial polymerization medium contains emulsion droplets and inverse micelles which solubilize a part of the monomer solution. The polymerization is initiated by free radicals, and particle dispersions with a narrow size distribution are obtained. The particle size is dependent on the type of radical initiator used. With water-soluble initiators, for example ammonium persulfate, microparticles were obtained in the size range of 1 to 10 μm indicating that these microparticles originate from the emulsion droplets since the droplet sizes of the W/O emulsion show similar distribution. When lipophilic radical initiators, such as azobis-isobutyronitrile, are used, almost exclusively nanoparticles are generated with diameters in the range of 80 to 150 nm, due to the limited solubility of oligomeric poly(acrylic acid) chains in the lipophilic continuous phase. These poly(acrylic acid) micro- and nanoparticles yielded excellent bioadhesive properties in an in-vitro assay and may, therefore, be suitable for the encapsulation of peptides and other hydrophilic drugs.