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Deng Z, Sun Y, Chen A. Light-Triggered Reversible Swelling of Azobenzene-Containing Block Copolymer Worms via Confined Deformation Prepared by Polymerization-Induced Self-Assembly. Macromol Rapid Commun 2024:e2400372. [PMID: 38885423 DOI: 10.1002/marc.202400372] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2024] [Revised: 06/10/2024] [Indexed: 06/20/2024]
Abstract
Stimuli-responsive block copolymer nanoparticles (NPs) have received close attention in recent years owing to their tremendous application potential in smart materials. Azobenzene-containing NPs are widely studied due to the advantages of light as a stimulus and fast reversible trans-cis isomerization of azobenzene chromophores. However, the inefficient preparation process and difficult reversible transformation of morphologies limit their development. Herein it is demonstrated that the light-triggered reversible swelling behavior of wormlike NPs with high azobenzene content could be realized via confined deformation. These worms are prepared in large quantities via polymerization-induced self-assembly based on the copolymerization of 11-(4-(4-butylphenylazo)phenoxy)undecyl methacrylate (MAAz) and N-(methacryloxy)succinimide (NMAS) monomers. Upon UV/visible light irradiation, the reversible deformation of worms is achieved when the feed molar ratio of NMAS/MAAz is relatively high or via crosslinking using diamines, which leads to the reduction of the photoisomerization efficiency. The diameter variation of the worms is influenced by the amount and types of crosslinkers. Moreover, the scalability of this strategy is further proved by the fabrication of photo- and reductant-responsive crosslinked worms. It is expected that this study not only provides a new route to affording reversible photoresponsive NPs but also offers a unique insight into the reversible photodeformation mechanism of azobenzene-containing NPs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zichao Deng
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Yalan Sun
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Aihua Chen
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, 100191, China
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Li Z, Feng W, Zhang X, Xu B, Wang L, Lin S. Self-assembly of amphiphilic asymmetric comb-like copolymers with responsive rigid side chains. SOFT MATTER 2024; 20:2823-2830. [PMID: 38451223 DOI: 10.1039/d4sm00076e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Abstract
Amphiphilic asymmetric comb-like copolymers (AACCs) exhibit distinct self-assembly behaviours due to their unique architecture. However, the synthetic difficulties of well-defined AACCs have prohibited a systematic understanding of the architecture-morphology relationship. In this work, we conducted dissipative particle dynamics simulations to investigate the self-assembly behaviours of AACCs with responsive rigid side chains in selective solvents. The effects of side chain length, number of branches, and spacers on the morphology of aggregates were investigated by mapping out morphology diagrams. Besides, the numbers and surface areas of aggregates clearly depicted the morphological transitions during the self-assembly process. Moreover, the rod-to-coil conformation transitions were simulated to explore the stimuli-responsive behaviour of the AACCs with responsive rigid side chains by adjusting the bond angle parameter of the rigid chains. The results indicated that without the support of the rigid chains, the assembly structure collapsed, leading to the tube-to-channelized micelles and one-compartment-to-multicompartment vesicle morphology transformations. The simulation results are consistent with earlier experimental results, which can provide theoretical guidance for assembly toward desired nanostructures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhengyi Li
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Advanced Polymeric Materials, Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, Frontiers Science Center for Materiobiology and Dynamic Chemistry, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China.
| | - Weisheng Feng
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Advanced Polymeric Materials, Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, Frontiers Science Center for Materiobiology and Dynamic Chemistry, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China.
| | - Xing Zhang
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Advanced Polymeric Materials, Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, Frontiers Science Center for Materiobiology and Dynamic Chemistry, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China.
| | - Binbin Xu
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Advanced Polymeric Materials, Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, Frontiers Science Center for Materiobiology and Dynamic Chemistry, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China.
| | - Liquan Wang
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Advanced Polymeric Materials, Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, Frontiers Science Center for Materiobiology and Dynamic Chemistry, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China.
| | - Shaoliang Lin
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Advanced Polymeric Materials, Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, Frontiers Science Center for Materiobiology and Dynamic Chemistry, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China.
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Yao Y, Zhang L, Zhang S, Huang X, Feng C, Lin S, Xu B. Morphologically Tunable Rectangular Platelets Self-Assembled from Diblock Molecular Brushes Containing Azopyridine Pendants. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2023; 39:18880-18888. [PMID: 38084706 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c02727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2023]
Abstract
Two-dimensional (2D) platelet structures are of growing importance as building blocks for the preparation of optical and electrical devices. However, the creation of morphologically tunable rectangular platelets through polymer self-assembly still remains a challenge. Herein, we describe a rational strategy for the fabrication of 2D rectangular platelets by stacking azopyridine-containing diblock molecular brushes in two dimensions in a selective solvent. Amphiphilic PEG-co-(PtBA-g-PAzoPy) DMBs with poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) block, poly(t-butyl acrylate) (PtBA) backbone, and poly(6-(4-(4-pyridyazo)phenoxy)-hexyl methacrylate) (PAzoPy) brush were synthesized by sequential reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer polymerization and atom transfer radical polymerization. Various rectangular platelets were obtained via the solution self-assembly of PEG-co-(PtBA-g-PAzoPy) through a heating-cooling-aging process in which the morphology and size of platelets could be controlled by adjusting the composition of DMBs as well as the solvent polarity. In addition, we investigated the metal chelation ability and H-bonding-assisted co-assembly capability of PEG-co-(PtBA-g-PAzoPy). The results displayed that 2D hybrids and flower-like platelets were formed, respectively. Our study presents an efficient method to fabricate rectangular platelets with tunable morphologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuan Yao
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Advanced Polymeric Materials, Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, 130 Meilong Road, Shanghai 200237, People's Republic of China
| | - Lu Zhang
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Advanced Polymeric Materials, Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, 130 Meilong Road, Shanghai 200237, People's Republic of China
| | - Sen Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Self-Assembly Chemistry for Organic Functional Molecules, Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 345 Lingling Road, Shanghai 200032, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiaoyu Huang
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Self-Assembly Chemistry for Organic Functional Molecules, Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 345 Lingling Road, Shanghai 200032, People's Republic of China
| | - Chun Feng
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Advanced Polymeric Materials, Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, 130 Meilong Road, Shanghai 200237, People's Republic of China
| | - Shaoliang Lin
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Advanced Polymeric Materials, Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, 130 Meilong Road, Shanghai 200237, People's Republic of China
| | - Binbin Xu
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Advanced Polymeric Materials, Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, 130 Meilong Road, Shanghai 200237, People's Republic of China
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Sun H, Leng Y, Zhou X, Li X, Wang T. Regulation of the nanostructures self-assembled from an amphiphilic azobenzene homopolymer: influence of initial concentration and solvent solubility parameter. SOFT MATTER 2023; 19:743-748. [PMID: 36621933 DOI: 10.1039/d2sm01059c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
The control over the morphology and nanostructure of soft nanomaterials self-assembled from amphiphilic polymers is of high interest, but is still challenging. Herein, we manipulate the morphology of bowl-shaped nanoparticles by changing initial polymer concentrations, and prepare nanotubes and nanowires, both twisted and not, by using solvents with different solubility parameters. An amphiphilic azobenzene homopolymer (poly(4-(phenyldiazenyl)phenyl methacrylamide), PAzoMAA) is designed and synthesized via reversible addition fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization, which can self-assemble into bowl-shaped nanoparticles promoted by the synergy of hydrogen bonding and π-π interaction. More significantly, the opening size of the bowl-shaped nanoparticles can be controlled by changing initial polymer concentrations. Nanotubes and nanowires, both twisted and not, are also obtained using a solvothermal method in alcohols. The relationship between the structure of the nanomaterials and the solubility parameters of the alcohols is investigated, revealing the molecular arrangement patterns of PAzoMAA in different nanostructures. Overall, we propose a facile strategy to manipulate the microstructure of bowl-shaped nanoparticles and one-dimensional nanomaterials by adjusting initial polymer concentration and solvent solubility parameters. Our study may bring new avenues for controlling the nanostructures of soft nanomaterials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Sun
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, State Key Laboratory of High-Efficiency Coal Utilization and Green Chemical Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, 750021, China.
| | - Ying Leng
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, State Key Laboratory of High-Efficiency Coal Utilization and Green Chemical Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, 750021, China.
| | - Xiaoyan Zhou
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, State Key Laboratory of High-Efficiency Coal Utilization and Green Chemical Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, 750021, China.
| | - Xiao Li
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, State Key Laboratory of High-Efficiency Coal Utilization and Green Chemical Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, 750021, China.
| | - Tian Wang
- Department of Chemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA
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Li W, Zhang H, Zhai Z, Huang X, Shang S, Song Z. Fast and Reversible Photoresponsive Self-Assembly Behavior of Rosin-Based Amphiphilic Polymers. JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD CHEMISTRY 2022; 70:12885-12896. [PMID: 36175382 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.2c04389] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Designing stimulus-responsive amphiphilic polymers with a fast photoresponsive self-assembly behavior remains a challenge. Two series of rosin-terminated and azobenzene-terminated amphiphilic polymers (PAMn and PMAn) with fast and reversible photoresponsive properties were prepared using rosin-based azobenzene groups and polyethylene glycol, respectively. Under 5-10 s of UV irradiation, the polymers showed trans-to-cis isomerization and reached a photosteady state. For the PAMn polymer, the absorbance of the absorption peak at 325 nm recovered to more than 95% of the initial value under visible light for 5-10 s, whereas that of the PMAn polymer recovered completely. Notably, the PAMn and PMAn polymers initially self-assembled to vesicles or spherical micelles, and various morphological changes were achieved by manipulating UV irradiation time, with the initial morphology again recovered under dark conditions or visible-light irradiation. Remarkably, vesicles of the PAM34 and PMA34 polymers presented an intermediate open-vesicle state before being completely deformed under UV irradiation because of the existence of a π-π interaction. Finally, the ability of PAM34 and PMA34 polymer vesicles to perform the controlled release and reversible loading of a fluorescent probe was evaluated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wanbing Li
- CAF; National Engineering Lab. for Biomass Chemical Utilization; Key Lab. of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration; Key Lab. of Biomass Energy and Material, Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province210042, P. R. China
- Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing210037, P. R. China
| | - Haibo Zhang
- CAF; National Engineering Lab. for Biomass Chemical Utilization; Key Lab. of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration; Key Lab. of Biomass Energy and Material, Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province210042, P. R. China
| | - Zhaolan Zhai
- CAF; National Engineering Lab. for Biomass Chemical Utilization; Key Lab. of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration; Key Lab. of Biomass Energy and Material, Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province210042, P. R. China
| | - Xujuan Huang
- School of Chemical and Chemistry, Yancheng Institute of Technology, Yancheng, Jiangsu Province210042, P. R. China
| | - Shibin Shang
- CAF; National Engineering Lab. for Biomass Chemical Utilization; Key Lab. of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration; Key Lab. of Biomass Energy and Material, Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province210042, P. R. China
| | - Zhanqian Song
- CAF; National Engineering Lab. for Biomass Chemical Utilization; Key Lab. of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration; Key Lab. of Biomass Energy and Material, Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province210042, P. R. China
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Liu Z, Yao Y, Tao X, Wei J, Lin S. Helical supramolecular nanorods via sequential meticulous tailoring of noncovalent interaction and light irradiation. Sci China Chem 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s11426-022-1286-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
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Sun H, Zhou X, Leng Y, Li X, Du J. Transformation of Amorphous Nanobowls to Crystalline Ellipsoids Induced by Trans-Cis Isomerization of Azobenzene. Macromol Rapid Commun 2022; 43:e2200131. [PMID: 35322512 DOI: 10.1002/marc.202200131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2022] [Revised: 03/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The stimuli-responsive transition of nanostructures from amorphous to crystalline state is of high interest in polymer science, but is still challenging. Herein, we demonstrate the transformation of amorphous nanobowls to crystalline ellipsoids triggered by UV induced trans-cis isomerization, using an azobenzene-containing amphiphilic homopolymer (PAzoAA) as building block. The amide bond and azobenzene pendants are introduced to the side chain of PAzoAA to afford hydrogen bonding and π-π interaction, which promotes the formation of nanobowls rather than spherical nanostructures. Upon exposed to UV irradiation, trans-cis isomerization of azobenzene pendants occurs, leading to the increase of hydrophilicity and destruction of π-π interaction, further resulting in the disassembly of the nanobowls. Then the PAzoAA re-assembles to form crystalline ellipsoids instead of amorphous nanostructures when recovered at 70°C without UV light. We further confirm that the high incubation temperature after UV irradiation is critical for the cis-trans transformation and the high mobility of the polymer chains to facilitate the regular rearrangement of azobenzene pendants. Overall, we propose a facile method to achieve the transformation of amorphous nanobowls to crystalline ellipsoids, which may bring new insight into preparation of crystalline nanoparticles using amorphous precursors. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Sun
- State Key Laboratory of High-Efficiency Coal Utilization and Green Chemical Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, 750021, China
| | - Xiaoyan Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of High-Efficiency Coal Utilization and Green Chemical Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, 750021, China
| | - Ying Leng
- State Key Laboratory of High-Efficiency Coal Utilization and Green Chemical Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, 750021, China
| | - Xiao Li
- State Key Laboratory of High-Efficiency Coal Utilization and Green Chemical Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, 750021, China
| | - Jianzhong Du
- Department of Polymeric Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 4800 Caoan Road, Shanghai, 201804, China
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Zhou M, Guo W, Zhang S, Xu B, Jin W, Huang X. Synthesis of Double-Bonds-Containing Diblock Copolymers via RAFT Polymerization. Polym Chem 2022. [DOI: 10.1039/d1py01626a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Polyallenes that present internal double bonds are attractive platforms for the development of diverse functional materials. However, the controlled block copolymerization of allene derivatives with precise structure and designable architecture...
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Li W, Zhang H, Zhai Z, Huang X, Shang S, Song Z. Photo-controlled self-assembly behavior of novel amphiphilic polymers with a rosin-based azobenzene group. NEW J CHEM 2022. [DOI: 10.1039/d1nj04575j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Novel ‘bola’ rosin-based photo-responsive amphiphilic polymers PMPn show an extremely high photoresponsive efficiency and various assembly morphological changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wanbing Li
- Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, CAF, National Engineering Lab. for Biomass Chemical Utilization, Key Lab. of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Key Lab. of Biomass Energy and Material, Nanjing 210042, Jiangsu Province, P. R. China
- Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, P. R. China
| | - Haibo Zhang
- Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, CAF, National Engineering Lab. for Biomass Chemical Utilization, Key Lab. of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Key Lab. of Biomass Energy and Material, Nanjing 210042, Jiangsu Province, P. R. China
| | - Zhaolan Zhai
- Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, CAF, National Engineering Lab. for Biomass Chemical Utilization, Key Lab. of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Key Lab. of Biomass Energy and Material, Nanjing 210042, Jiangsu Province, P. R. China
| | - Xujuan Huang
- School of Chemical and Chemistry, Yancheng Institute of Technology, Yancheng 210042, Jiangsu Province, P. R. China
| | - Shibin Shang
- Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, CAF, National Engineering Lab. for Biomass Chemical Utilization, Key Lab. of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Key Lab. of Biomass Energy and Material, Nanjing 210042, Jiangsu Province, P. R. China
| | - Zhanqian Song
- Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, CAF, National Engineering Lab. for Biomass Chemical Utilization, Key Lab. of Chemical Engineering of Forest Products, National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Key Lab. of Biomass Energy and Material, Nanjing 210042, Jiangsu Province, P. R. China
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Zheng M, Yuan J. Polymeric nanostructures based on azobenzene and their biomedical applications: synthesis, self-assembly and stimuli-responsiveness. Org Biomol Chem 2021; 20:749-767. [PMID: 34908082 DOI: 10.1039/d1ob01823j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Amphiphilic polymers can self-assemble to form nanoparticles with different structures under suitable conditions. Polymer nanoparticles functionalized with aromatic azo groups are endowed with photo-responsive properties. In recent years, a variety of photoresponsive polymers and nanoparticles have been developed based on azobenzene, using different molecular design strategies and synthetic routes. This article reviews the progress of this rapidly developing research field, focusing on the structure, synthesis, assembly and response of photo-responsive polymer assemblies. According to the molecular structure, photo-responsive polymers can be divided into linear polymers containing azobenzene in a side chain, linear polymers containing azobenzene in the main chain, linear polymers containing azobenzene in an end group, branched polymers containing azobenzene and supramolecular polymers containing azobenzene. These systems have broad biomedical application prospects in the field of drug delivery and imaging applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mingxin Zheng
- Key Lab of Organic Optoelectronics & Molecular Engineering, Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China.
| | - Jinying Yuan
- Key Lab of Organic Optoelectronics & Molecular Engineering, Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China.
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