2 顯微鏡下的藥物膠囊

共聚物又稱為共聚體，是由兩種或兩種以上不同單體經聚合反應而得的聚合物。共聚物可用于制造藥物膠囊，它負責裝載藥物微粒；聚合物不溶于酸性溶液，因此它們可用于制成藥物涂層，從而避免人體吞服藥物時藥物在胃中溶化，或者通過緩慢消溶聚合物，逐漸釋放藥物效力，減少服藥次數。

如圖所示，圖中橙色部分是藥物膠囊中的內部微粒。這種膠囊是脫氫皮質醇藥物，用于治療腸炎。外部呈藍色的顆粒是共聚物，負責裝載這些藥物微粒。圖片是由安妮－卡瓦納(Annie Cavanagh)提供的。

Copolymers can be used in microparticle or "particle-in-particle" drug delivery. Polymers that do not dissolve in acidic solutions can be used to coat a drug to prevent it being released in the stomach; or slowly dissolving polymers can slowly release a drug, reducing the number of times a day a person has to take medication.The inner particle, shown here in orange, is loaded with the drug prednisolone, used to treat inflammatory bowel disease. The outer particle, in blue, is the copolymer that encapsulates it.(Image: Annie Cavanagh) [NewScientist]