Construction of a Drug Delivery System via pH-Responsive Polymeric Nanomicelles Containing Ferrocene for DOX Release and Enhancement of Therapeutic Effects.

We report an amphiphilic block copolymer via poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether-D-poly(caprolactone)-ferrocene (mPEG-D-PCL-Fc) to deliver anticancer drug doxorubicin (DOX). Lipase Novozyme-435 was used as a catalyst for ring-opening polymerization with ε-caprolactone, and an acid-sensitive Schiff base was used to connect the hydrophilic and hydrophobic parts; the ferrocene provided ferrous ions and was introduced at the end of the amphiphilic copolymer. The resulting copolymers were characterized by H NMR/C NMR and could be self-assembled in an aqueous solution to form nanomicelles with PCL-Fc as a hydrophobic core and mPEG as a hydrophilic shell.