Polymeric nanocarriers possessing thermoresponsive coronas

Abstract

Polymeric micelles self-assembled from amphiphilic copolymers in aqueous solution have emerged as versatile drug nanocarriers in the past few decades. To enhance the bioavailability of drugs at the target disease site and upon cellular internalization, the use of stimuli-responsive nanocarriers with triggered release characteristics is highly desirable. This article highlights the recent developments in the field of polymeric nanocarriers possessing thermoresponsive coronas, focusing on the fabrication of structurally stable multi-responsive micelles via core or shell cross-linking, the phase transition behavior of thermoresponsive polymer brushes at the corona of unimolecular micelles, and their application as vehicles for targeted drug delivery and stimuli-responsive on-demand release.