Dendrimer and an active substance occluded in the dendrimer, a process for the preparation thereof and a process for releasing the active substance

• US 5,788,989 A
• Filed: 05/30/1995
• Issued: 08/04/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: DSM B.V.
• Original Assignee: DSM B.V.
• Inventors: Jansen, Johan F. G. A., De Brabander-Van Den Berg, Ellen M. M., Meijer, Egbert W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Schofer, Joseph L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cheng, Wu C.
• Application Number:
  US08/454,026
• Time in Patent Office: 1,162 Days
• Field of Search: 424/486, 424/78.17, 424/DIG. 16
• US Class Current: 424/486
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 47/6949 inclusion complexes, e.g. clathrates, cavitates or fullerenes
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 5/00 Nanobiotechnology or nanomedicine, e.g. protein engineering or drug delivery
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 83/003 Dendrimers
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 20/582 Recycling of unreacted starting or intermediate materials
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 424/16 Dendrimers and dendritic polymers

Abstract

The invention relates to a dendrimer composition in which an effective number of the terminal functionalities are provided with blocking agents, and at least one active substance species is occluded in the dendrimer. A blocking agent is a sufficiently sterically sized compound which readily enters into a chemical bond with a terminal group of a dendrimer but which can also be split off from the dendrimer or can be modified without affecting the chemical structure of the dendrimer and the occluded active substance. The blocking agent can also be provided with a protecting group. The time and duration over which an active substance is released can be controlled. The invention also relates to a process for the preparation of such a composition and to a process for the controlled release of the active substance.

Claims

1. A composition comprising at least one dendrimer and at least one active substance occluded in said dendrimer, wherein the dendrimer has terminal groups, and wherein a sufficient number of said terminal groups are blocked with blocking agents whereby said active substance is occluded within said dendrimer.

2. A composition according to claim 1, wherein at least a portion of said blocking agents are provided with protective groups.

3. A composition according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the blocking agents are selected from the group consisting of branched or non-branched Michael acceptors, active esters, amino acids, isocyanates, aziridines, acid chlorides, anhydrides, aldehydes, ketones, acrylates, chiral epoxides, and lactones of bislactide.

4. A composition according to claim 1, wherein said blocking agents comprise an amino acid.

5. A composition according to claim 2, wherein the protective group is selected from the group consisting of hydrolyzable esters, ethers, thiol groups, sulphonic acid groups, trityl, silyl, t-butoxy carbonyl, g-fluorenyl methoxy carbonyl, benzyloxy carbonyl, 1,1,4,4-tetramethyl disilyl aza-cyclopentene, and adamantyloxycarbonyl.

6. A composition according to claim 2, wherein the protective group is a t-butoxy carbonyl group.

7. A composition according to claim 2 wherein at least 30% of the terminal groups are provided with a blocking agent with a protective group.

8. A composition according to claim 2 wherein at least 70% of the terminal groups of the dendrimer are provided with a blocking agent with a protective group.

9. A composition according to claim 1, wherein the composition contains more than one active substance.

10. A composition according to claim 1, wherein the active substance is at least one member selected from the group consisting of an agrochemical, pharmaceutical compound, a cosmetic product, an additive for an engineering plastic, a signal absorbing compound, a signal generating compound, a chelating compound, a soap, a colourant, a radioactive labelling compound, a metal, a metal compound, a radionuclide, an electron deficient compound, a non-metallic electron rich compound, and a precursor thereof.

11. A composition according to claim 1, wherein the dendrimer is a polypropylamine dendrimer.

12. A composition according to claim 11, wherein the dendrimer is a polypropylamine dendrimer and said dendrimer is of at least the fourth generation.

13. A process for the preparation of a dendrimer having at least one active substance occluded therein, which comprises adding an amount of an active substance to be occluded to a reaction mixture containing a dendrimers having terminal groups, and simultaneously or subsequently adding an amount of blocking agent provided with protective groups to block a sufficient number of said terminal groups to effect occlusion of said active substance in said dendrimer.

14. A process for releasing an active substance from a dendrimer having at least one active substance occluded therein wherein said dendrimer has terminal groups, and a sufficient number of said terminal groups are blocked with a blocking agent, which comprises releasing said active substance by splitting off or modifying a blocking-effective amount of the blocking agent.

15. A process for releasing an active substance from a dendrimer having at least one active substance occluded therein wherein said dendrimer has terminal groups, and a sufficient number of said terminal groups are blocked with a blocking agent which is protected with a protective group, which process comprises the step of splitting off a sufficient number of said protecting groups.

16. A process according to claim 15, wherein said process further comprises splitting off or modifying the blocking agent.