Novel poly(ethylene oxide)-b-poly(propylene oxide) copolymer-glucose conjugate by the microwave-assisted ring opening of a sugar lactone
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Updated: Apr 25, 2026

Controlled Photoredox Ring-Opening Polymerization of O-Carboxyanhydrides Mediated by Ni/Zn Complexes
Published on: November 21, 2017
Romina J Glisoni1, Alejandro Sosnik
1The Group of Biomaterials and Nanotechnology for Improved Medicines (BIONIMED), Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Biochemistry, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, CP1113, Argentina; National Science Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Abstract:
In this work, we investigated for the first time the conjugation of gluconolactone to a poly(ethylene oxide)-poly(propylene oxide) block copolymer by a microwave-assisted ring opening reaction. The glucosylated copolymer was obtained with high yield (90%). A conjugation extent of approximately 100% was achieved within 15 min. The modification reduced the critical micellar concentration and increased the size of the micelles. The agglutination of the modified polymeric micelles by a soluble lectin that binds glucose confirmed the recognizability of the modified nanocarrier. Finally, the solubilization of darunavir, an anti-HIV protease inhibitor, showed a sharp increase of the aqueous solubility from 91 microgram/mL to 14.2 and 18.9 mg/mL for 10% w/v pristine and glucosylated polymeric micelles, respectively.
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