Issue 13, 2021

Recent advances in thermo-sensitive hydrogels for drug delivery

Abstract

Hydrogels are cross-linked hydrophilic macromolecules that contain a certain amount of water. Due to their biocompatible, highly tunable and hydrophilic nature, hydrogels have attracted much attention in the applications of chemical, biomedical and pharmaceutical fields over the past twenty years. In particular, thermo-sensitive hydrogels, which can undergo phase transition or swell/deswell as ambient temperature changes, endow the drug delivery system with enhanced local drug penetration, desirable spatial and temporal control, and improved drug bioavailability. These merits facilitate their extensive applications in drug delivery. In this review, we focus on advances in the development of different thermo-sensitive polymers as a scaffold for drug delivery, including poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (pNIPAAM), poloxamer, polyethylene glycol/poly(lactic acid)co-(glycolic acid) (PEG/PLGA), and chitosan. The state-of-the-art thermo-sensitive hydrogels for various pharmaceutical applications, such as anti-tumor drug delivery, transdermal drug delivery, ocular drug delivery, nasal drug delivery, and buccal drug delivery, are elaborated. Finally, the future research perspectives and challenges are also discussed, which could facilitate the translation of thermo-sensitive hydrogels for drug delivery from bench to bedside.

Graphical abstract: Recent advances in thermo-sensitive hydrogels for drug delivery

Article information

Article type
Review Article
Submitted
11 Dez 2020
Accepted
23 Feb 2021
First published
22 Mär 2021

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2021,9, 2979-2992

Recent advances in thermo-sensitive hydrogels for drug delivery

Y. Yu, Y. Cheng, J. Tong, L. Zhang, Y. Wei and M. Tian, J. Mater. Chem. B, 2021, 9, 2979 DOI: 10.1039/D0TB02877K

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements