Dual-responsive pegylated polypeptoids with tunable cloud point temperatures |
| |
Authors: | Xiaohui Fu Jiliang Tian Zheng Li Jing Sun Zhibo Li |
| |
Affiliation: | Key Laboratory of Biobased Polymer Materials, Shandong Provincial Education Department, College of Polymer Science and Engineering, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao, China |
| |
Abstract: | A series of pegylated polypeptoids have been readily synthesized by a strategy combining ring-opening polymerization (ROP) and thiol-yne photoaddition. The polypeptoids simultaneously incorporated branched oligo(ethylene glycol) (OEG) units and thioether bonds in the side-chains. All the polypeptoids are readily soluble in aqueous solution and show reversible thermo-responsive properties. The cloud points (CPs) were demonstrated to be readily tunable in the range of ~25 °C-60 °C by varying the chemical composition, OEG chain length and the degree of polymerization. Attractively, the chemical compositions of the side chains are readily tunable via adjusting the molar ratios of a mixture of thiol terminated OEG molecules, which avoid synthesizing new monomers or copolymerization of different monomers. Further, the oxidation/reduction of thioether groups shows significant influence on the CPs, providing a second stimulus to tune the phase transition behaviors. Considering the biocompatibility and degradability, the dual-responsive polypeptoids are potential candidates for various biomedical or biotechnological applications. |
| |
Keywords: | polypeptoid redox responsive ring-opening polymerization thermo-responsive |
|
|