Synthesis and characterization of polymethacrylate-based nitric oxide donors

Area of Science:

• Polymer Chemistry
• Materials Science
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Nitric oxide (NO) plays crucial roles in physiological processes.
• Developing materials capable of controlled NO release is of significant therapeutic interest.
• Methacrylate-based polymers offer versatile platforms for material functionalization.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize novel methacrylate homo- and copolymers functionalized with secondary amine groups.
• To convert these amine groups into nitric oxide (NO)-releasing N-diazeniumdiolates.
• To investigate the NO release kinetics and potential for creating NO-releasing polymer microbeads.

Main Methods:

• Multistep synthesis of boc-protected methacrylate monomers.
• Free radical polymerization initiated by benzoyl peroxide.
• Amine deprotection and subsequent reaction with NO and sodium methoxide.
• Characterization of polymer molecular weights and compositions.
• Suspension polymerization using dimethacrylate cross-linkers for microbead formation.

Main Results:

• Successfully synthesized methacrylate polymers with molecular weights up to 2.58 x 10^6 Da.
• Achieved sustained NO release from N-diazeniumdiolated polymers with apparent half-lives of 30-60 min.
• Demonstrated NO loading and release up to 1.99 micromol/mg, proportional to amine content.
• Fabricated methacrylate microbeads (100-200 microm) capable of in-situ NO release.

Conclusions:

• A viable synthetic route for NO-releasing methacrylate polymers and microbeads was established.
• The synthesized materials exhibit controlled and sustained nitric oxide release.
• The developed polymers and microbeads hold promise for applications requiring localized NO delivery.