A dual responsive ionic liquid-based polymeric hydrogel: a promising drug delivery vehicle for the treatment of breast cancer

Designing cancer therapeutics that can ameliorate the high dose related side effects of chemotherapy and are safer, more effective, and site specific with a stimuli response has received attention in recent times. In our quest for a new age drug delivery vehicle that can solve the above-mentioned drawbacks, herein we have developed a pH and temperature responsive self-healable and injectable ionic-liquid-based polymeric hydrogel. The hydrogel responds to intracellular biological stimuli, such as cancerous cells' pH and temperature, and serves as a local drug delivery system that releases the antitumor drug, 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), at the targeted site. The hydrogel was formed by cross-linking a Gaussian coil matrix of poly(vinyl alcohol) with worm-like micelles of pH responsive choline oleate ([Ch][Ol]) using borax. The internal morphology, mechanical strength, and self-healing ability of the hydrogel were assessed using various state-of-the-art analytical techniques, including ATR-FTIR, small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), SEM, and rheological measurement. The dual responsive character of the hydrogel was confirmed using absorbance measurements, ATR-FTIR and rheological measurements. The hydrogel was loaded with the anticancer drug, 5-FU, and the in vitro cytotoxicity (MCF-7) and drug release study demonstrated that the hydrogel can be utilized for targeted delivery under physiological conditions and more effectively kill cancer cells. Overall, this study shows the effectiveness of the hydrogel system by determining whether hydrogel formulation supported or hampered total cellular trafficking.