Synthesis of stimulus-responsive ABC triblock fluorinated polyether amphiphilic polymer and application as low toxicity smart drug carrier

Polymeric surfactants based on hydrocarbon polyether structure, have been used in many pharmaceutical formulations and drug delivery for many years. However, nowadays, developing novel drugs is often accompanied by introducing fluoride atom, inhibiting the application scope of traditional hydrocarbon surfactants. Thus, we argued it is necessary to develop novel fluorinated polyether polymeric surfactant. Herein, poly(ethylene glycol) monomethyl ether was used to initiate the living cationic polymerization of fluorinated epichlorohydrin (EPTF) prepared by our group and (R)-glycidyl butyrate to obtain a type of triblock fluorinated polyether amphiphilic polymer, which possesses stimulus-responsive characteristic in the presence of acid and enzyme. The structure of this triblock fluorinated polyether amphiphilic polymer was confirmed by spectroscopic data. And the critical micelles concentration of this surfactant was relatively low representing their excellent surface activity. CCK-8 test showed that this triblock fluorinated polyether amphiphilic polymer displayed no toxic effect on NIH3T3 cells even its concentration reached to 1 g/L. Therefore, we design and obtain a kind of triblock fluorinated polyether amphiphilic polymer possessing low toxicity and stimulus-responsive characteristic which can also be used to improve the solubility of baicalin. © 2022 Elsevier Ltd