Self-Assembled Amphiphilic Copolymers in Drug Delivery, 2nd Edition

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to invite you to publish your valuable research results in this Special Issue titled “Self-Assembled Amphiphilic Copolymers in Drug Delivery, 2nd Edition”. Amphiphilic copolymers present a unique chemical structure that includes both hydrophilic and hydrophobic chains, which trigger a self-assembling behavior in selective solvents due to the hydrophilic/hydrophobic interactions among different polymer blocks. Based on this behavior, amphiphilic copolymers can form micelles or polymer vesicles (polymersomes), making them attractive for numerous applications in biomedicine, including their usage as drug delivery systems. There is a high demand for new drug-polymer formulations to be used as effective carriers that allow for an efficient controlled release of the active substance in the targeted area. From this point of view, amphiphilic copolymers are emerging in biomedicine, where there is a stringent need for a system responsive to external stimuli (pH, temperature, solvents, etc.) and that is capable of loading and releasing the incorporated drug.

This Special Issue aims to collect papers related to all aspects regarding the development (process engineering, synthesis, characterization, theoretical modelling, etc.) of self-assembled amphiphilic copolymers and their application as new drug delivery systems. In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Synthesis routes and property control;
• Fine tuning of amphiphilic copolymers’ properties;
• Chemical modifications of amphiphilic copolymers;
• Process engineering of polymer matrices;
• Encapsulation and delivery of hydrophilic drugs from hydrophobic copolymers;
• Encapsulation and delivery of hydrophobic drugs from hydrophilic copolymers;
• Controlled drug delivery studies;
• Drug targeting.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Ana Cazacu
Dr. Elena-Laura Ursu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Pharmaceutics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• self-assembly
• amphiphilic block copolymers
• nanostructures
• drug delivery systems
• targeted drug delivery
• controlled release
• kinetics studies
• carriers
• micelles
• polymersomes

• Self-Assembled Amphiphilic Copolymers in Drug Delivery in Pharmaceutics (14 articles)