Cytocompatible chitosan-graft-mPEG-based 5-fluorouracil-loaded polymeric nanoparticles for tumor-targeted drug delivery.

Biodegradable materials like chitosan (CH) and methoxy polyethylene glycol (mPEG) are widely being used as drug delivery carriers for various therapeutic applications. In this study, copolymer (CH-g-mPEG) of CH and carboxylic acid terminated mPEG was synthesized by carbodiimide-mediated acid amine reaction. The resultant hydrophilic copolymer was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and H NMR studies, revealing its relevant functional bands and proton peaks, respectively.