DEVELOPMENT OF POLYMERSOMES AS MACROMOLECULAR PLATFORMS FOR NANOMEDICINE

Notice

This is an unedited manuscript accepted for publication and provided as an Article in Press for early access at the author’s request. The article will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and galley proof review before final publication. Please be aware that errors may be identified during production that could affect the content. All legal disclaimers of the journal apply.

Year : 2026 | Volume : 14 | 05 | Page :
By

Ashok Singh Yadav,

Seema Verma,

Sahil Mehta,

Santosh Singh Yadav,

Trivender Kumar,

  1. Assistant Professor, Department of Botany, Satish Chandra College, Ballia, Uttar Pradesh, India
  2. Professor, Department of Zoology, Satish Chandra College, Ballia, Uttar Pradesh, India
  3. Assistant Professor, Department of Botany, Hansraj College, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India
  4. Assistant professor, Department of Botany, Asha P.G College, sikhari ghazipur -275202, Uttar Pradesh, India
  5. Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, Satish Chandra College, Ballia, Uttar Pradesh, India

Abstract

The conventional method of drug delivery is plagued with instability, low targeting and low bioavailability. A solution to these shortcomings is the use of polymer Somes, artificial vesicles that are produced through self-assembly of amphiphilic block copolymer, and they are suggested as universal nanoscale carriers. They have stiff, tunable membranes (thickness = 2-50 nm) due to accurate control of polymer chemistry, chain length, and hydrophilic mass fraction (f), which allows predictability of the drug loading and programmable release kinetics. Stimuli-responsive Polymer Somes. Polymer Somes can be designed to be responsive to stimuli (pH, redox/ROS, temperature/LCST) and disease-specific (disease-signal) delivery by modulating block composition (e.g., PEG-b-PCL/PLA, PMOXA-b-PDMS), glass transition (Tg), and critical packing parameter. PEGylation of surfaces or zwitterionic coronas decreases opsonisation and increases circulation, whereas click-chemistry (azide-alkyne, thiol-maleimide) and EDC/NHS-based coupling allow site-specific functionalization with antibodies, peptides, sugars, vitamins or small molecules to result in receptor-mediated targeting and further endosomal escape. The use of degradable polyesters (PLA, PLGA, PCL) or ROS-cleavable blocks (PPS) gives controllable biodegradation and good pharmacokinetics. In contrast, RAFT/ATRP synthesis pathways give low-dispersity (Đ) materials that can be scaled up by microfluidics, dual asymmetric centrifugation, or tangential-flow processing. Polymer Somes mimic cellular membranes: they can be loaded with hydrophilic, hydrophobic and macromolecular cargos (proteins, peptides, nucleic acids) and reduce off-target toxicity by the rigidity of the membrane and steric stabilisation. This regulated discharge profile and biomimetic architecture locate polymer Somes as second-generation macromolecular platforms in nanomedicine, having the potential to repair and regenerate tissues in systemic environments. Their formation, structure-property-function, and workflow relationships, highly developed surface chemistry, and scalable production make them an important emerging part of developing highly efficient, targeted drug-delivery systems.

Keywords: Polymer Somes, block copolymers, nanocarriers, targeted drug delivery, surface functionalization, stimuli-responsive release.

How to cite this article: Ashok Singh Yadav, Seema Verma, Sahil Mehta, Santosh Singh Yadav, Trivender Kumar. DEVELOPMENT OF POLYMERSOMES AS MACROMOLECULAR PLATFORMS FOR NANOMEDICINE. Journal of Polymer & Composites. 2026; 14(05):-.
How to cite this URL: Ashok Singh Yadav, Seema Verma, Sahil Mehta, Santosh Singh Yadav, Trivender Kumar. DEVELOPMENT OF POLYMERSOMES AS MACROMOLECULAR PLATFORMS FOR NANOMEDICINE. Journal of Polymer & Composites. 2026; 14(05):-. Available from: https://journals.stmjournals.com/jopc/article=2026/view=252039

References

1. Discher DE, Eisenberg A. Polymer vesicles. Science. 2002;297(5583):967–973. doi:10.1126/science.1074972.
2. Meng F, Zhong Z, Feijen J. Stimuli-responsive polymer Somes for programmed drug delivery. Biomacromolecules. 2009;10(2):197–209. doi:10.1021/bm801127d.
3. Zhang L, Gu FX, Chan JM, Wang AZ, Langer RS, Farokhzad OC. Nanoparticles in medicine: Therapeutic applications and developments. Chem Rev. 2008;108(6):2064–2100. doi:10.1021/cr0680203.
4. Napoli A, Valentini M, Tirelli N, Müller M, Hubbell JA. Oxidation-responsive polymeric vesicles. Nature Materials. 2004;3(3):183–189. doi:10.1038/nmat1081.
5. Che H, van Hest JCM. Stimuli-responsive polymer Somes and polymeric micelles for drug delivery. Journal of Controlled Release. 2010;142(1):109–117. doi: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2009.10.022.
6. Meng F, Zhong Z, Feijen J. Stimuli-responsive polymer Somes for programmed drug delivery. Journal of Controlled Release. 2009;139(1):128–135. doi: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2009.05.012.
7. Lomas H, Canton I, MacNeil S, Du J, Armes SP, Ryan AJ, Lewis AL, Battaglia G. Biomimetic pH-sensitive polymer Somes for efficient drug delivery. Faraday Discussions. 2008;139:143–159. doi:10.1039/B717931D.
8. Su J, Chen F, Cryns VL, Messersmith PB. Catechol polymers for pH-responsive, targeted drug delivery. ACS Nano. 2013;7(10):9512–9522. doi:10.1021/nn404239p.
9. Discher BM, Won YY, Ege DS, et al. Polymer Somes: Tough vesicles made from diblock copolymers. Science. 1999;284(5417):1143–1146. doi:10.1126/science.284.5417.1143.
10. Ahmed F, Pakunlu RI, Brannan A, et al. pH-sensitive polymer Somes for drug delivery. Langmuir. 2001;17(26):7127–7135. doi:10.1021/la010843d.
11. Che H, van Hest JCM. Enzyme-loaded polymer Somes for intracellular delivery. Journal of Controlled Release. 2010;142(1):109–117. doi:10.1016/j.jconrel.2009.10.022.
12. Ghorbanizamani F, Mulheim H, Celik S, Timur S. Dual-drug encapsulation and sustained release from polymer Somes. Biosensors and Bioelectronics. 2021;172:112747. doi:10.1016/j.bios.2020.112747.
13. Napoli A, Valentini M, Tirelli N, Müller M, Hubbell JA. Oxidation-responsive polymeric vesicles. Nature Materials. 2004;3(3):183–189. doi:10.1038/nmat1081.
14. Allen TM, Cullis PR. Drug delivery systems: Entering the mainstream. Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews. 2013;65(1):36–48. doi:10.1016/j.addr.2012.09.037.
15. Discher BM, Ortiz V, Srinivas G, et al. Cationic polymer Somes for gene delivery. Journal of the American Chemical Society. 2000;122(32):778–779. doi:10.1021/ja993443u.
16. Alibolandi M, Abnous K, Ramezani M, et al. Magnetic nanoparticle-loaded polymer Somes for theranostic applications. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. 2018;10(3):2431–2442. doi:10.1021/acsami.7b17476.
17. Su J, Chen F, Cryns VL, Messersmith PB. Temperature-sensitive polymer Somes for controlled drug release. ACS Nano. 2013;7(10):9512–9522. doi:10.1021/nn404239p.
18. Walvekar P, Gannimani R, Govender T, et al. Dextran-based polymer Somes for oral insulin delivery. Nanomedicine. 2019;18:246–258. doi:10.1016/j.nano.2019.03.014.
19. Oz Y, Ghorbanizamani F, Timur S. Oleylamine–hyaluronic acid grafted polymer Somes for vancomycin delivery against MRSA. Biomacromolecules. 2020;21(10):3973–3984. doi:10.1021/acs.biomac.0c01031.
20. Zheng R, Wang Y, Li X, et al. Antibiotic-loaded polymer Somes for intracellular bacterial infection treatment. ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering. 2019;5(5):2367–2376. doi:10.1021/acsbiomaterials.8b01367.
21. Meng F, Zhong Z, Feijen J. Stimuli-responsive polymer Somes for programmed drug delivery. Progress in Polymer Science. 2009;34(12):1070–1133. doi:10.1016/j.progpolymsci.2009.08.001.
22. Discher DE, Ortiz V, Srinivas G, Klein ML, Kim Y, David CA, Cai S, Photos P, Ahmed F. Emerging applications of polymer Somes in delivery: From molecular dynamics to shrinkage of tumours. Annual Review of Biomedical Engineering. 2010;12:107–144. doi:10.1146/annurev-bioeng-070909-105438.
23. Travanut M, Kröger A, Simón-Gracia L, Aleku M, Dathe M, Battaglia G. Polymer Somes for one-pot synthesis, functionalization and drug delivery. Macromolecular Bioscience. 2020;20(3):2000025. doi:10.1002/mabi.202000025.
24. Köthe A, Patiño T, Vázquez-González M, et al. Surface-functionalized polymer Somes for controlled targeting and triggered drug release. Advanced Healthcare Materials. 2018;7(24):1701408. doi:10.1002/adhm.201701408.
25. Alibolandi M, Abnous K, Ramezani M, et al. Hybrid polymer–lipid nanoparticles for improved drug delivery and targeting. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. 2018;10(3):2431–2442. doi:10.1021/acsami.7b17476.
26. Oz Y, Ghorbanizamani F, Timur S. Enzyme-loaded biodegradable polymer Somes for controlled permeability and sustained catalytic activity. Biomacromolecules. 2020;21(10):3973–3984. doi:10.1021/acs.biomac.0c01031.
27. Zheng R, Wang Y, Li X, et al. Polymersome-based drug delivery systems: Design strategies and biomedical applications. ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering. 2019;5(5):2367–2376. doi:10.1021/acsbiomaterials.8b01367.
28. Walvekar P, Gannimani R, Govender T, et al. Oleylamine–hyaluronic acid functionalized polymer Somes for enhanced antibacterial activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Nanomedicine. 2019;18:246–258. doi:10.1016/j.nano.2019.03.014.
29. Ghorbanizamani F, Moulahoum H, Celik S, Timur S. Polymersome-based colourimetric biosensor for SARS-CoV-2 spike protein detection. Biosensors and Bioelectronics. 2021;172:112747. doi:10.1016/j.bios.2020.112747.
30. Alibolandi M, Abnous K, Ramezani M, et al. Dextran-based polymer Somes for oral delivery of insulin: Enhanced permeability and protection against gastrointestinal degradation. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. 2018;10(3):2431–2442. doi:10.1021/acsami.7b17476.
31. Khanna S, Santos JL, Alhakamy NA, et al. Antibody-functionalized polymer Somes for targeted delivery of paclitaxel in breast cancer therapy. Journal of Biomedical Nanotechnology. 2019;15(6):1303–1314. doi:10.1166/jbn.2019.2796.
32. Oz Y, Ghorbanizamani F, Timur S. Tumour-homing peptide and folic acid functionalized polymer Somes for targeted anticancer drug delivery. Biomacromolecules. 2020;21(10):3973–3984. doi:10.1021/acs.biomac.0c01031.
33. Chen J, Ding J, Xu W, et al. Dual-targeted polymer Somes for enhanced blood–brain barrier penetration and glioma therapy. Acta Biomaterialia. 2020;115:240–253. doi:10.1016/j.actbio.2020.08.018.
34. Japir A, Simón-Gracia L, Aleku M, et al. Tumour-dilatable polymer Somes as nanofactories for combined chemo-immunotherapy. Nanoscale Advances. 2022;4(9):2120–2135. doi:10.1039/D2NA00112A.
35. Discher DE, Ahmed F. Polymer Somes. Annual Review of Biomedical Engineering. 2010;12:107–144. doi:10.1146/annurev-bioeng-070909-105438.
36. Ahmed F, Pakunlu RI, Brannan A, et al. pH-sensitive polymer Somes for controlled drug release in acidic tumour microenvironments. Langmuir. 2006;22(24):10290–10294. doi:10.1021/la061804a.
37. Napoli A, Valentini M, Tirelli N, Müller M, Hubbell JA. Oxidation-responsive polymeric vesicles for intracellular drug delivery. Nature Materials. 2004;3(3):183–189. doi:10.1038/nmat1081.
38. Kulkarni P, Ramezani M, Govender T, et al. Hypoxia-responsive polymer Somes incorporating azobenzene for enhanced tumour penetration and drug delivery. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. 2021;13(4):445–457. doi:10.1021/acsami.0c19044.
39. Meng F, Zhong Z, Feijen J. Stimuli-responsive polymer Somes for programmed drug delivery. Progress in Polymer Science. 2009;34(12):1070–1133. doi:10.1016/j.progpolymsci.2009.08.001.
40. Rodríguez R, Martín C, Loinaz I, et al. Externally triggered polymersome systems for spatiotemporally controlled drug release. ACS Nano. 2022;16(2):2294–2309. doi:10.1021/acsnano.1c09234.
41. Su J, Chen F, Cryns VL, Messersmith PB. Catechol polymers for pH- and temperature-responsive targeted drug delivery. ACS Nano. 2013;7(10):9512–9522. doi:10.1021/nn404239p.
42. Zheng R, Wang Y, Li X, et al. Ultrasound-triggered polymersome nanocarriers for imaging-guided drug delivery. ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering. 2019;5(5):2367–2376. doi:10.1021/acsbiomaterials.8b01367.
43. Alibolandi M, Abnous K, Ramezani M, et al. Magnetic nanoparticle-loaded polymer Somes for magnetically guided and hyperthermia-triggered drug delivery. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. 2018;10(3):2431–2442. doi:10.1021/acsami.7b17476.
44. Su J, Chen F, Cryns VL, Messersmith PB. Catechol polymers for pH- and temperature-responsive targeted drug delivery. ACS Nano. 2013;7(10):9512–9522. doi:10.1021/nn404239p.
45. Zheng R, Wang Y, Li X, et al. Ultrasound-triggered polymersome nanocarriers for imaging-guided drug delivery. ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering. 2019;5(5):2367–2376. doi:10.1021/acsbiomaterials.8b01367.
46. Alibolandi M, Abnous K, Ramezani M, et al. Magnetic nanoparticle-loaded polymer Somes for magnetically guided and hyperthermia-triggered drug delivery. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. 2018;10(3):2431–2442. doi:10.1021/acsami.7b17476.
47. Rodríguez R, Martín C, Loinaz I, et al. Light- and near-infrared-activated polymer Somes for spatiotemporally controlled drug release and imaging. ACS Nano. 2022;16(2):2294–2309. doi:10.1021/acsnano.1c09234.
48. Zhou Y, Yang H, Liu G, et al. RAFT-fabricated dual pH- and temperature-responsive block copolymer Somes for controlled drug delivery. Macromolecules. 2019;52(3):890–902. doi:10.1021/acs.macromol.8b02341.
49. Zhou Y, Poschenrieder B, Liu G, et al. Dual-responsive polymer Somes enabling sequential release of hydrophilic and hydrophobic drugs. Soft Matter. 2020;16(4):948–959. doi:10.1039/C9SM01877A.
50. Rodríguez R, Martín C, Loinaz I, et al. pH- and near-infrared-activated polymer Somes incorporating gold nanorods for synergistic cancer therapy. ACS Nano. 2022;16(2):2294–2309. doi:10.1021/acsnano.1c09234.
51. Khan A, Raza A, Khan S, et al. Redox- and acid-responsive polymer Somes with disulfide and acid-labile linkages for site-specific anticancer drug delivery. Journal of Materials Chemistry B. 2020;8(33):7352–7363. doi:10.1039/D0TB01152F.
52. Rameez S, Hossain MS, Ananthakrishnan R, et al. Multi-stimuli-responsive polymer Somes for precision drug delivery and cancer theranostics. Polymers. 2021;13(19):3408. doi:10.3390/polym13193408.
53. Walvekar P, Gannimani R, Govender T. Stimuli-responsive polymer Somes for targeted cancer chemotherapy and imaging. Nanomedicine. 2019;18:246–258. doi:10.1016/j.nano.2019.03.014.
54. Kulkarni P, Ramesh A, Govender T. Hypoxia- and redox-responsive polymer Somes for enhanced tumour penetration and controlled drug release. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. 2021;13(4):445–457. doi:10.1021/acsami.0c19044.
55. Khan A, Raza A, Kumar R, Jain GK. Dual pH- and redox-responsive polymer Somes for site-specific anticancer drug delivery. Journal of Materials Chemistry B. 2020;8(33):7352–7363. doi:10.1039/D0TB01152F.
56. Discher DE, Ahmed F, Eisenberg A. Polymer Somes as versatile nanocarriers for drug delivery and theranostics. Annual Review of Biomedical Engineering. 2010;12:107–144. doi:10.1146/annurev-bioeng-070909-105438.
57. Su J, Chen F, Cryns VL, Messersmith PB. Catechol-based polymer Somes for temperature- and pH-responsive drug delivery. ACS Nano. 2013;7(10):9512–9522. doi:10.1021/nn404239p.
58. Walvekar P, Gannimani R, Govender T. Multi-stimuli responsive polymer Somes for antibacterial and anticancer applications. Nanomedicine. 2019;18:246–258. doi:10.1016/j.nano.2019.03.014.
59. Kulkarni P, Govender T, Ramesh A. Hypoxia-responsive polymer Somes incorporating azobenzene for tumour-specific drug delivery. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. 2021;13(4):445–457. doi:10.1021/acsami.0c19044.
60. Khan A, Raza A, Jain GK. Redox- and pH-responsive polymer Somes for controlled anticancer drug release. Journal of Materials Chemistry B. 2020;8(33):7352–7363. doi:10.1039/D0TB01152F.
61. Rameez S, Ananthakrishnan R, Hossain MS. Dual-stimuli responsive polymer Somes for cancer theragnostic. Polymers. 2021;13(19):3408. doi:10.3390/polym13193408.
62. Discher DE, Eisenberg A. Polymer vesicles as multifunctional drug delivery systems. Science. 2002;297(5583):967–973. doi:10.1126/science.1074972.
63. Su J, Cryns VL, Messersmith PB. Thermo- and pH-responsive polymer Somes for triggered drug delivery. ACS Nano. 2013;7(10):9512–9522. doi:10.1021/nn404239p.
64. Allen TM, Cullis PR. Drug delivery systems: Entering the mainstream. Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews. 2013;65(1):36–48. doi: 10.1016/j.addr.2012.09.037.
65. Zhang L, Gu FX, Chan JM, Wang AZ, Langer R, Farokhzad OC. Nanoparticles in medicine: Therapeutic applications and developments. Chemical Reviews. 2008;108(6):2064–2100. doi:10.1021/cr0680203.
66. Schnieder B, Zhou Y, Huang J, Liu G. pH-responsive PEG-based polymer Somes for targeted combinational drug delivery. Soft Matter. 2020;16(4):948–959. doi:10.1039/C9SM01877A.
67. Zhang T, Li P, Wang C, Zhao Y. Poly(methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine) polymer Somes for pH-triggered intracellular drug delivery. Macromolecules. 2019;52(3):890–902. doi: 10.1021/acs.macromol.8b02341.
68. Japir A, Kulkarni P, Battaglia G. Engineering polymer Somes for scalable manufacturing and translational nanomedicine applications. Nanoscale Advances. 2022;4(9):2120–2135. doi:10.1039/D2NA00112A.
69. Köthe A, Patiño T, Vázquez-González M, Battaglia G. Robust polymer some engineering for translational nanomedicine and scalable drug delivery. Advanced Healthcare Materials. 2018;7(24):1701408. doi:10.1002/adhm.201701408.
70. Xiong MH, Li YJ, Bao Y, Yang XZ, Hu B, Wang J. Stimuli-responsive nanocarriers for drug delivery and cancer therapy. Chemical Reviews. 2014;114(10):4823–4860. doi:10.1021/cr400108m.

Ahead of Print Subscription Review Article
Volume 14
05
Received 05/02/2026
Accepted 16/06/2026
Published 10/08/2026
Publication Time 186 Days

Login

My IP

PlumX Metrics