Disulfide-Functionalized Diblock Copolymer Worm Gels

A review of advanced hydrogels for cartilage tissue engineering

With the increase in weight and age of the population, the consumption of tobacco, inappropriate foods, and the reduction of sports activities in recent years, bone and joint diseases such as osteoarthritis (OA) have become more common in the world. From the past until now, various treatment strategies (e.g., microfracture treatment, Autologous Chondrocyte Implantation (ACI), and Mosaicplasty) have been investigated and studied for the prevention and treatment of this disease. However, these methods face problems such as being invasive, not fully repairing the tissue, and damaging the surrounding tissues. Tissue engineering, including cartilage tissue engineering, is one of the minimally invasive, innovative, and effective methods for the treatment and regeneration of damaged cartilage, which has attracted the attention of scientists in the fields of medicine and biomaterials engineering in the past several years. Hydrogels of different types with diverse properties have become desirable candidates for engineering and treating cartilage tissue. They can cover most of the shortcomings of other treatment methods and cause the least secondary damage to the patient. Besides using hydrogels as an ideal strategy, new drug delivery and treatment methods, such as targeted drug delivery and treatment through mechanical signaling, have been studied as interesting strategies. In this study, we review and discuss various types of hydrogels, biomaterials used for hydrogel manufacturing, cartilage-targeting drug delivery, and mechanosignaling as modern strategies for cartilage treatment.

Strategies for Anisotropic Fibrillar Hydrogels: Design, Cell Alignment, and Applications in Tissue Engineering

Efficient cellular alignment in biomaterials presents a considerable challenge, demanding the refinement of appropriate material morphologies, while ensuring effective cell-surface interactions. To address this, biomaterials are continuously researched with diverse coatings, hydrogels, and polymeric surfaces. In this context, we investigate the influence of physicochemical parameters on the architecture of fibrillar hydrogels that significantly orient the topography of flexible hydrogel substrates, thereby fostering cellular adhesion and spatial organization. Our Review comprehensively assesses various techniques for aligning polymer fibrils within hydrogels, specifically interventions applied during and after the cross-linking process. These methodologies include mechanical strains, precise temperature modulation, controlled fluidic dynamics, and chemical modulators, as well as the use of magnetic and electric fields. We highlight the intrinsic appeal of these methodologies in fabricating cell-aligning interfaces and discuss their potential implications within the fields of biomaterials and tissue engineering, particularly concerning the pursuit of optimal cellular alignment.

Thermoresponsive Poly(N,N'-dimethylacrylamide)-Based Diblock Copolymer Worm Gels via RAFT Solution Polymerization: Synthesis, Characterization, and Cell Biology Applications

RAFT solution polymerization is used to polymerize 2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate (HPMA). The resulting PHPMA precursor is then chain-extended using N,N'-dimethylacrylamide (DMAC) to produce a series of thermoresponsive PHPMA-PDMAC diblock copolymers. Such amphiphilic copolymers can be directly dispersed in ice-cold water and self-assembled at 20 °C to form spheres, worms, or vesicles depending on their copolymer composition. Construction of a pseudo-phase diagram is required to identify the pure worm phase, which corresponds to a rather narrow range of PDMAC DPs. Such worms form soft, free-standing gels in aqueous solution at around ambient temperature. Rheology studies confirm the thermoresponsive nature of such worms, which undergo a reversible worm-to-sphere on cooling below ambient temperature. This morphological transition leads to in situ degelation, and variable temperature 1H NMR studies indicate a higher degree of (partial) hydration for the weakly hydrophobic PHPMA chains at lower temperatures. The trithiocarbonate end-group located at the end of each PDMAC chain can be removed by treatment with excess hydrazine. The resulting terminal secondary thiol group can form disulfide bonds via coupling, which produces PHPMA-PDMAC-PHPMA triblock copolymer chains. Alternatively, this reactive thiol group can be used for conjugation reactions. A PHPMA141-PDMAC36 worm gel was used to store human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for up to three weeks at 37 °C. MSCs retrieved from this gel subsequently underwent proliferation and maintained their ability to differentiate into osteoblastic cells.

Reverse sequence polymerization-induced self-assembly in aqueous media: a counter-intuitive approach to sterically-stabilized diblock copolymer nano-objects

A 500 nm charge-stabilized latex is converted into 40 nm sterically-stabilized nanoparticles via reverse sequence polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA).

Fibril Assembly and Gelation of Macromolecules with Amphiphilic Repeating Units

This paper reports the self-assembly of the fibrillar network in a concentrated solution of macromolecules with an amphiphilic structure of repeating units. The investigation of amphiphilic homopolymers and alternating copolymers with the linear and cyclic topologies, the solution with different polymer concentrations and solvent qualities, allows us to conclude that the ability to form a fibrillar gel with branched fibrils and regular subchain thickness is inherent for macromolecules with the solvophobic backbone and solvophilic pendants. The elements of the gel structure, such as the mesh size and fibrillar thickness, the number of cross-links, and their functionality, can be tuned and customized according to the requirements of their application. The results could be helpful for the directed design of the synthetic analogue of the relevant extracellular matrix, in tissue engineering, for fibrotic disease treatment and cell encapsulation.

Rational synthesis of novel biocompatible thermoresponsive block copolymer worm gels

It is well known that reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) aqueous dispersion polymerization of 2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate (HPMA) enables the rational design of diblock copolymer worm gels. Moreover, such hydrogels can undergo degelation on cooling below ambient temperature as a result of a worm-to-sphere transition. However, only a subset of such block copolymer worms exhibit thermoresponsive behavior. For example, PMPC26-PHPMA280 worm gels prepared using a poly(2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl phosphorylcholine) (PMPC26) precursor do not undergo degelation on cooling to 6 °C (see S. Sugihara et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2011, 133, 15707-15713). Informed by our recent studies (N. J. Warren et al., Macromolecules, 2018, 51, 8357-8371), we decided to reduce the mean degrees of polymerization of both the PMPC steric stabilizer block and the structure-directing PHPMA block when targeting a pure worm morphology. This rational approach reduces the hydrophobic character of the PHPMA block and hence introduces the desired thermoresponsive character, as evidenced by the worm-to-sphere transition (and concomitant degelation) that occurs on cooling a PMPC15-PHPMA150 worm gel from 40 °C to 6 °C. Moreover, worms are reconstituted on returning to 40 °C and the original gel modulus is restored. This augurs well for potential biomedical applications, which will be examined in due course. Finally, small-angle X-ray scattering studies indicated a scaling law exponent of 0.67 (≈2/3) for the relationship between the worm core cross-sectional diameter and the PHPMA DP for a series of PHPMA-based worms prepared using a range of steric stabilizer blocks, which is consistent with the strong segregation regime for such systems.

Synthesis and applications of anisotropic nanoparticles with precisely defined dimensions

Shape and size play powerful roles in determining the properties of a material; controlling these aspects with precision is therefore an important, fundamental goal of the chemical sciences. In particular, the introduction of shape anisotropy at the nanoscale has emerged as a potent way to access new properties and functionality, enabling the exploration of complex nanomaterials across a range of applications. Recent advances in DNA and protein nanotechnology, inorganic crystallization techniques, and precision polymer self-assembly are now enabling unprecedented control over the synthesis of anisotropic nanoparticles with a variety of shapes, encompassing one-dimensional rods, dumbbells and wires, two-dimensional and three-dimensional platelets, rings, polyhedra, stars, and more. This has, in turn, enabled much progress to be made in our understanding of how anisotropy and particle dimensions can be tuned to produce materials with unique and optimized properties. In this Review, we bring these recent developments together to critically appraise the different methods for the bottom-up synthesis of anisotropic nanoparticles enabling exquisite control over morphology and dimensions. We highlight the unique properties of these materials in arenas as diverse as electron transport and biological processing, illustrating how they can be leveraged to produce devices and materials with otherwise inaccessible functionality. By making size and shape our focus, we aim to identify potential synergies between different disciplines and produce a road map for future research in this crucial area.

A Self-Healing Hierarchical Fiber Hydrogel That Mimics ECM Structure

Although there have been many studies on using hydrogels as substitutes for natural extracellular matrices (ECMs), hydrogels that mimic the structure and properties of ECM remain a contentious topic in current research. Herein, a hierarchical biomimetic fiber hydrogel was prepared using a simple strategy, with a structure highly similar to that of the ECM. Cell viability experiments showed that the hydrogel not only has good biocompatibility but also promotes cell proliferation and growth. It was also observed that cells adhere to the fibers in the hydrogel, mimicking the state of cells in the ECM. Lastly, through a rat skin wound repair experiment, we demonstrated that this hydrogel has a good effect on promoting rat skin healing. Its high structural similarity to the ECM and good biocompatibility make this hydrogel a good candidate for prospective applications in the field of tissue engineering.

A worm gel-based 3D model to elucidate the paracrine interaction between multiple myeloma and mesenchymal stem cells

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a malignancy of terminally-differentiated plasma cells that develops mainly inside the bone marrow (BM) microenvironment. It is well known that autocrine and paracrine signals are responsible for the progression of this disease but the precise mechanism and contributions from single cell remain largely unknown. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) are an important cellular component of the BM: they support MM growth by increasing its survival and chemo-resistance, but little is known about the paracrine signaling pathways. Three-dimensional (3D) models of MM-MSC paracrine interactions are much more biologically-relevant than simple 2D models and are considered essential for detailed studies of MM pathogenesis. Herein we present a novel 3D co-culture model designed to mimic the paracrine interaction between MSC and MM cells. MSC were embedded within a previously characterized thermoresponsive block copolymer worm gel that can induce stasis in human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC) and then co-cultured with MM cells. Transcriptional phenotyping of co-cultured cells indicated the dysregulation of genes that code for known disease-relevant factors, and also revealed IL-6 and IL-10 as upstream regulators. Importantly, we have identified a synergistic paracrine signaling pathway between IL-6 and IL-10 that plays a critical role in sustaining MM cell proliferation. Our findings indicate that this 3D co-culture system is a useful model to investigate the paracrine interaction between MM cells and the BM microenvironment in vitro. This approach has revealed a new mechanism that promotes the proliferation of MM cells and suggested a new therapeutic target.

Polymerization-induced self-assembly for the fabrication of polymeric nano-objects with enhanced structural stability by cross-linking

This review discusses the strategies of core-cross-linking in most of the PISA literatures (including post-polymerization cross-linking, photo-cross-linking and in situ cross-linking) and the applications of the cross-linked nano-objects.

A Single Thermoresponsive Diblock Copolymer Can Form Spheres, Worms or Vesicles in Aqueous Solution

It is well-known that the self-assembly of AB diblock copolymers in solution can produce various morphologies depending on the relative volume fraction of each block. Recently, polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA) has become widely recognized as a powerful platform technology for the rational design and efficient synthesis of a wide range of block copolymer nano-objects. In this study, PISA is used to prepare a new thermoresponsive poly(N-(2-hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide)-poly(2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate) [PHPMAC-PHPMA] diblock copolymer. Remarkably, TEM, rheology and SAXS studies indicate that a single copolymer composition can form well-defined spheres (4 °C), worms (22 °C) or vesicles (50 °C) in aqueous solution. Given that the two monomer repeat units have almost identical chemical structures, this system is particularly well-suited to theoretical analysis. Self-consistent mean field theory suggests this rich self-assembly behavior is the result of the greater degree of hydration of the PHPMA block at lower temperature, which is in agreement with variable temperature 1 H NMR studies.

Surface lattice resonance of line array of poly (glycidyl methacrylate) with CdS quantum dots for label-free biosensing

One dimensional plasmonic grating is a kind of resonant electromagnetic wave absorber with a characteristic wavelength. This study focusses on one-dimensional plasmonic grating consisting of poly (glycidyl methacrylate) (PGMA) brushes and CdS quantum dots (CdQDs) fabrication and PGMA chains grafted on a primary substrate in a line array continued by the immobilization of biotin-modified CdQDs. PGMA brush line array (PBLA) of plasmonic grating exhibited an absorptance at 441 nm while at the same time, CdQDs immobilized with PBLA showed characteristic absorbance at 396 nm. The blue-shift from 441 nm matches the absorbance peak of biotin-modified CdQDs resulting in the enhancement of photoluminescence emission of CdQDs. With streptavidin incubation to assemble CdQDs at 50 nM, the significant decrease in grating height resulted in the red-shift of the absorbance peak to 536 nm. Due to the deviation in absorbance, the intensity of the PL emission decreased gradually with the increase in concentration of streptavidin. In addition, our results showed that streptavidin incubation altered the color reflected from the surface due to effective changes in the refractive index of the layer as well. The limit of detection of the grating for streptavidin detection was determined to be 50 nM. Thus, PBLA-CdQD has the potential to act as a highly-sensitive, label-free optical biosensor.

Coordination between Surface Lattice Resonances of Poly(glycidyl Methacrylate) Line Array and Surface Plasmon Resonances of CdS Quantum on Silicon Surface

In this work, a unique hybrid system is proposed for one-dimensional gratings comprising of poly(glycidyl methacrylate) (PGMA) brushes and CdS quantum dots (CQDs). Generally, the emission of QDs is too weak to be observed in a dry state. Plasmonic resonances of the grating structures can be used to enhance the light emission or absorption of CQDs. The interaction between PGMA plasmonic nanostructures and inorganic CQDs plays a crucial role in engineering the light harvest, notably for optoelectronic applications. Extinction measurements of the hybrid system consisting of a PGMA grating and CQDs are reported. We designed one-dimensional gratings with various resolutions to tune the absorptance peaks of grating. PGMA grating grafted from a 1.5 µm resolution of trench arrays of photoresist exhibited absorptance peak at 395 nm, close to the absorption peak of CQDs, resulting in the photoluminescence enhancement of CQDs on the grating due to high charge carriers’ recombination rate. Generally, the emission of quantum dots occurs under irradiation at characteristic wavelengths. Immobilizing QDs on the grating facilitates the emission of QDs under irradiation of full-wavelength light. Furthermore, the PGMA gratings with CQDs were immersed in various solvents to change the geometries resulting the shift of absorptance peak of grating. The proposed method could be applied for sensing the nature of the surrounding media and vice versa, as well as for various media of solvents.

Degradable pH and redox dual responsive nanoparticles for efficient covalent drug delivery

Hydrophobic drug paclitaxel was modified into a polymerizable monomer and subsequently copolymerized with pH-sensitive monomers and redox-sensitive disulfide-based cyclic monomers.

Straightforward access to biocompatible poly(2-oxazoline)-coated nanomaterials by polymerization-induced self-assembly

Poly(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline) chain transfer agents are employed in photoinitiated RAFT PISA, providing access to biocompatible core–shell polymeric nanostructures with various morphologies.

Critical Dependence of Molecular Weight on Thermoresponsive Behavior of Diblock Copolymer Worm Gels in Aqueous Solution

Reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) aqueous dispersion polymerization of 2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate was used to prepare three poly(glycerol monomethacrylate) x -poly(2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate) y (denoted G x -H y  or PGMA-PHPMA) diblock copolymers, namely G37-H80, G54-H140, and G71-H200. A master phase diagram was used to select each copolymer composition to ensure that a pure worm phase was obtained in each case, as confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) studies. The latter technique indicated a mean worm cross-sectional diameter (or worm width) ranging from 11 to 20 nm as the mean degree of polymerization (DP) of the hydrophobic PHPMA block was increased from 80 to 200. These copolymer worms form soft hydrogels at 20 °C that undergo degelation on cooling. This thermoresponsive behavior was examined using variable temperature DLS, oscillatory rheology, and SAXS. A 10% w/w G37-H80 worm dispersion dissociated to afford an aqueous solution of molecularly dissolved copolymer chains at 2 °C; on returning to ambient temperature, these chains aggregated to form first spheres and then worms, with the original gel strength being recovered. In contrast, the G54-H140 and G71-H200 worms each only formed spheres on cooling to 2 °C, with thermoreversible (de)gelation being observed in the former case. The sphere-to-worm transition for G54-H140 was monitored by variable temperature SAXS: these experiments indicated the gradual formation of longer worms at higher temperature, with a concomitant reduction in the number of spheres, suggesting worm growth via multiple 1D sphere-sphere fusion events. DLS studies indicated that a 0.1% w/w aqueous dispersion of G71-H200 worms underwent an irreversible worm-to-sphere transition on cooling to 2 °C. Furthermore, irreversible degelation over the time scale of the experiment was also observed during rheological studies of a 10% w/w G71-H200 worm dispersion. Shear-induced polarized light imaging (SIPLI) studies revealed qualitatively different thermoreversible behavior for these three copolymer worm dispersions, although worm alignment was observed at a shear rate of 10 s-1 in each case. Subsequently conducting this technique at a lower shear rate of 1 s-1 combined with ultra small-angle x-ray scattering (USAXS) also indicated that worm branching occurred at a certain critical temperature since an upturn in viscosity, distortion in the birefringence, and a characteristic feature in the USAXS pattern were observed. Finally, SIPLI studies indicated that the characteristic relaxation times required for loss of worm alignment after cessation of shear depended markedly on the copolymer molecular weight.

Two Robust Strategies toward Hydrogels from Quenched Block Copolymer Nanofibrillar Micelles

While the formation of (tri)block copolymer hydrogels has been extensively investigated, such studies mostly focused on equilibrium self-assembling whereas the use of preformed structures as building blocks such as out of equilibrium, quenched, nanofibrillar micelles is still a challenge. Here, we demonstrate that quenched, ultralong polystyrene-b-poly(ethylene oxide) (PS-b-PEO) micelles can be used as robust precursors of hydrogels. Two cross-linking strategies, (i) thermal fusion of micellar cores and (ii) chemical cross-linking of preformed micellar coronas were studied. The gelation process and the structure of the micellar networks were investigated by in situ rheological measurements, confocal microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. Direct observation of core fusion of preformed quenched micelles is provided validating this method as a robust gelation route. Using time sweep rheological experiments, it was found for both cross-linking methods that these 3D “mikado” gels are formed in three different stages, containing (1) initiation, (2) transition (growth), and (3) stabilization regimes.

Precision Epitaxy for Aqueous 1D and 2D Poly(ε-caprolactone) Assemblies

The fabrication of monodisperse nanostructures of highly controlled size and morphology with spatially distinct functional regions is a current area of high interest in materials science. Achieving this control directly in a biologically relevant solvent, without affecting cell viability, opens the door to a wide range of biomedical applications, yet this remains a significant challenge. Herein, we report the preparation of biocompatible and biodegradable poly(ε-caprolactone) 1D (cylindrical) and 2D (platelet) micelles in water and alcoholic solvents via crystallization-driven self-assembly. Using epitaxial growth in an alcoholic solvent, we show exquisite control over the dimensions and dispersity of these nanostructures, allowing access to uniform morphologies and predictable dimensions based on the unimer-to-seed ratio. Furthermore, for the first time, we report epitaxial growth in aqueous solvent, achieving precise control over 1D nanostructures in water, an essential feature for any relevant biological application. Exploiting this further, a strong, biocompatible and fluorescent hydrogel was obtained as a result of living epitaxial growth in aqueous solvent and cell culture medium. MC3T3 and A549 cells were successfully encapsulated, demonstrating high viability (>95% after 4 days) in these novel hydrogel materials.

Cationic disulfide-functionalized worm gels

The recent development of polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA) has facilitated the rational synthesis of a range of diblock copolymer worms, which hitherto could only be prepared via traditional post-polymerization processing in dilute solution. Herein we explore a new synthetic route to aqueous dispersions of cationic disulfide-functionalized worm gels. This is achieved via the PISA synthesis of poly[(glycerol monomethacrylate-stat-glycidyl methacrylate)]-block-poly(2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate) (P(GMA-stat-GlyMA)-PHPMA) block copolymer worms via reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) aqueous dispersion polymerization of HPMA. A water-soluble reagent, cystamine, is then reacted with the pendent epoxy groups located within the P(GMA-stat-GlyMA) stabilizer chains to introduce disulfide functionality, while simultaneously conferring cationic character via formation of secondary amine groups. Moreover, systematic variation of the cystamine/epoxy molar ratio enables either chemically cross-linked worm gels or physical (linear) primary amine-functionalized disulfide-based worm gels to be obtained. These new worm gels were characterized using gel permeation chromatography, 1H NMR spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, aqueous electrophoresis and rheology. In principle, such hydrogels may offer enhanced mucoadhesive properties.

Polymerization-Induced Self-Assembly of Homopolymer and Diblock Copolymer: A Facile Approach for Preparing Polymer Nano-Objects with Higher-Order Morphologies

Polymerization-induced self-assembly of homopolymer and diblock copolymer using a binary mixture of small chain transfer agent (CTA) and macromolecular chain transfer agent (macro-CTA) is reported. With this system, homopolymer and diblock copolymer were formed and chain extended at the same time to form polymer nano-objects. The molar ratio of homopolymer and diblock copolymer had a significant effect on the morphology of the polymer nano-objects. Porous vesicles, porous nanospheres, and micron-sized particles with highly porous inner structure were prepared by this method. We expect that this method will greatly expand the promise of polymerization-induced self-assembly for the synthesis of a range of polymer nano-objects with unique morphologies.

RAFT polymerization to form stimuli-responsive polymers

Stimuli-responsive polymers respond to a variety of external stimuli, which include optical, electrical, thermal, mechanical, redox, pH, chemical, environmental and biological signals. This paper is concerned with the process of forming such polymers by RAFT polymerization.

Inducing an Order-Order Morphological Transition via Chemical Degradation of Amphiphilic Diblock Copolymer Nano-Objects

The disulfide-based cyclic monomer, 3-methylidene-1,9-dioxa-5,12,13-trithiacyclopentadecane-2,8-dione (MTC), is statistically copolymerized with 2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate to form a range of diblock copolymer nano-objects via reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. Poly(glycerol monomethacrylate) (PGMA) is employed as the hydrophilic stabilizer block in this aqueous polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA) formulation, which affords pure spheres, worms or vesicles depending on the target degree of polymerization for the core-forming block. When relatively low levels (<1 mol %) of MTC are incorporated, high monomer conversions (>99%) are achieved and high blocking efficiencies are observed, as judged by ¹H NMR spectroscopy and gel permeation chromatography (GPC), respectively. However, the side reactions that are known to occur when cyclic allylic sulfides such as MTC are statistically copolymerized with methacrylic comonomers lead to relatively broad molecular weight distributions. Nevertheless, the worm-like nanoparticles obtained via PISA can be successfully transformed into spherical nanoparticles by addition of excess tris(2-carboxyethyl)phosphine (TCEP) at pH 8–9. Surprisingly, DLS and TEM studies indicate that the time scale needed for this order–order transition is significantly longer than that required for cleavage of the disulfide bonds located in the worm cores indicated by GPC analysis. This reductive degradation pathway may enable the use of these chemically degradable nanoparticles in biomedical applications, such as drug delivery systems and responsive biomaterials.

A Critical Appraisal of RAFT-Mediated Polymerization-Induced Self-Assembly

Recently, polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA) has become widely recognized as a robust and efficient route to produce block copolymer nanoparticles of controlled size, morphology, and surface chemistry. Several reviews of this field have been published since 2012, but a substantial number of new papers have been published in the last three years. In this Perspective, we provide a critical appraisal of the various advantages offered by this approach, while also pointing out some of its current drawbacks. Promising future research directions as well as remaining technical challenges and unresolved problems are briefly highlighted.

Tuning the growth, crosslinking, and gating effect of disulfide-containing PGMAs on the surfaces of mesoporous silica nanoparticles for redox/pH dual-controlled cargo release

PGMA brushes grown on MSN surfaces via SI-ATRP could be cross-linked by cystamine or through a KI/H₂O₂ (30%) assisted disulfide bond exchange to realize gating effects for redox/pH dual-controlled cargo release.