Reversible Deactivation Radical Polymerization: State-of-the-Art in 2017

Hybrid Materials: A Metareview

The field of hybrid materials has grown so wildly in the last 30 years that writing a comprehensive review has turned into an impossible mission. Yet, the need for a general view of the field remains, and it would be certainly useful to draw a scientific and technological map connecting the dots of the very different subfields of hybrid materials, a map which could relate the essential common characteristics of these fascinating materials while providing an overview of the very different combinations, synthetic approaches, and final applications formulated in this field, which has become a whole world. That is why we decided to write this metareview, that is, a review of reviews that could provide an eagle's eye view of a complex and varied landscape of materials which nevertheless share a common driving force: the power of hybridization.

PET-RAFT Polymerization: Mechanistic Perspectives for Future Materials

In the past decade, photochemistry has emerged as a growing area in organic and polymer chemistry. Use of light to drive polymerization has advantages by imparting spatial and temporal control over the reaction. Photoinduced electron/energy transfer reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer polymerization (PET-RAFT) has emerged as an excellent technique for developing well-defined polymers from a variety of functional monomers. However, the mechanism, of electron versus energy transfer is debated in the literature, with conflicting reports on the underlying process. This perspective focuses on the mechanistic aspects of PET-RAFT, in particular, the electron versus energy transfer pathways. The different mechanisms are evaluated, including evidence for one versus the other mechanisms. The current literature has not reached a consensus across all PET-RAFT processes, but rather, each catalytic system has unique characteristics.

Substituent effects in iniferter photopolymerization: can bond homolysis be enhanced by electronics?

Substituent effects on the dithiobenzoate moiety of RAFT iniferters are investigated. Donating groups accelerate the iniferter process, while withdrawing groups slow it. The unique efficiency of the methoxydithiobenzoate iniferter was uncovered.

Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization for Biorelated Hybrid Materials

Proteins, nucleic acids, lipid vesicles, and carbohydrates are the major classes of biomacromolecules that function to sustain life. Biology also uses post-translation modification to increase the diversity and functionality of these materials, which has inspired attaching various other types of polymers to biomacromolecules. These polymers can be naturally (carbohydrates and biomimetic polymers) or synthetically derived and have unique properties with tunable architectures. Polymers are either grafted-to or grown-from the biomacromolecule's surface, and characteristics including polymer molar mass, grafting density, and degree of branching can be controlled by changing reaction stoichiometries. The resultant conjugated products display a chimerism of properties such as polymer-induced enhancement in stability with maintained bioactivity, and while polymers are most often conjugated to proteins, they are starting to be attached to nucleic acids and lipid membranes (cells) as well. The fundamental studies with protein-polymer conjugates have improved our synthetic approaches, characterization techniques, and understanding of structure-function relationships that will lay the groundwork for creating new conjugated biomacromolecular products which could lead to breakthroughs in genetic and tissue engineering.