Influence of polymer molecular weight on the in vitro cytotoxicity of poly (N-isopropylacrylamide)

Amir Mellati; Meisam Valizadeh Kiamahalleh; Sheng Dai; Jingxiu Bi; Bo Jin; Hu Zhang

doi:10.1016/j.msec.2015.10.043

Influence of polymer molecular weight on the in vitro cytotoxicity of poly (N-isopropylacrylamide)

Mater Sci Eng C Mater Biol Appl. 2016 Feb:59:509-513. doi: 10.1016/j.msec.2015.10.043. Epub 2015 Oct 22.

Authors

Amir Mellati¹, Meisam Valizadeh Kiamahalleh², Sheng Dai³, Jingxiu Bi⁴, Bo Jin⁵, Hu Zhang⁶

Affiliations

¹ School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide SA5005, Australia. Electronic address: amir.mellati@adelaide.edu.au.
² School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide SA5005, Australia. Electronic address: meisam.valizadehkiamahalleh@adelaide.edu.au.
³ School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide SA5005, Australia. Electronic address: s.dai@adelaide.edu.au.
⁴ School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide SA5005, Australia. Electronic address: jingxiu.bi@adelaide.edu.au.
⁵ School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide SA5005, Australia. Electronic address: bo.jin@adelaide.edu.au.
⁶ School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide SA5005, Australia. Electronic address: hu.zhang@adelaide.edu.au.

PMID: 26652402
DOI: 10.1016/j.msec.2015.10.043

Abstract

Poly (N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) is a thermosensitive polymer with various biomedical applications. We examined molecular weight (MW)-dependent cytotoxicity of PNIPAAm. Our results indicated that low-MW PNIPAAm (degree of polymerization (DP)=35) is inherently toxic to cells. Moderate-MW PNIPAAms with their DP between 100 and 200 are non-cytotoxic. When cells are seeded on top of a polymer-coated surface, PNIPAAm with a higher MW (DP=400) shows non/low cytotoxicity, while when monolayer cells are exposed to the polymer solution, cell viability drops drastically. This may be due to lack of nutrient and oxygen rather than intrinsic toxicity of the polymer.

Keywords: Cytotoxicity; Drug delivery; Poly (N-isopropylacrylamide); Polymer molecular weight; Thermosensitive hydrogel; Tissue engineering.

MeSH terms

Acrylic Resins / chemistry*
Acrylic Resins / toxicity*
Cell Line
Cell Survival / drug effects*
Drug Delivery Systems
HEK293 Cells
HeLa Cells
Humans
Molecular Weight
Temperature

Substances

Acrylic Resins
poly-N-isopropylacrylamide