Polymersomes for drug delivery and other biomedical applications

Polymersomes are self-assembled polymeric vesicles prepared from amphiphilic block-copolymers. This chapter provides an overview of their composition, preparation, and characterization as well as their similarities and differences from liposomes. The recent developments and uses of polymersomes in drug delivery and other biomedical applications are further emphasized. Polymersomes development for drug delivery includes approaches for synthesis of novel block-copolymers, their assembly, and drug loading. Various surface modification strategies have been used for their targeting. Internal and external stimuli have been studied for controlling the release of drugs from polymersomes. In addition to drug delivery, the biomedical applications of polymersomes include diagnostics, polymersome-based nanoreactors, and the development of artificial cells (especially artificial erythrocytes) for scientific or clinical use. While none of these developments are in clinical use yet, they show a great promise for drug and gene delivery, imaging, blood substitution, and tissue engineering in the near future.