Comparative study of polymer nanoparticles on the basis of caprolactone–polyvinyl alcohol mixtures with an encapsulated antitumor preparation by atomic force microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and dynamic light scattering

The morphology, structure, and optical properties of composites with biodegradable polymeric particles, which are based on poly-$\varepsilon$-caprolactone–polyvinyl alcohol (stabilizer) mixtures and contain 5-Fluorouracil (an antitumor preparation), have been studied by atomic-force and optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and dynamic and static light scattering. Studies have shown that the morphology of synthesized composites sustains appreciable transformations depending on their stabilizer content. No crystalline reflections corresponding to 5-Fluorouracil have been revealed, thus arguing for a high dispersity of this preparation in the polymeric matrix of caprolactone. The correlations between the structural and morphological parameters, composition, stabilizer concentration and the efficiency of the encapsulation of 5-Fluorouracil by the composites have been established.