1
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Yang SG, Wei ZZ, Cseh L, Kazemi P, Zeng XB, Xie HJ, Saba H, Ungar G. Bowls, vases and goblets-the microcrockery of polymer and nanocomposite morphology revealed by two-photon optical tomography. Nat Commun 2021; 12:5054. [PMID: 34417451 PMCID: PMC8379155 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-25297-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2021] [Accepted: 07/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
On the >1 µm scale the morphology of semicrystalline plastics like polyethylene or Nylon features spherulites, "shish-kebabs", cylinddrites and other crystalline aggregates which strongly affect mechanical and other material properties. Current imaging techniques give only a 2D picture of these objects. Here we show how they can be visualized in 3D using fluorescent labels and confocal microscopy. As a result, we see spherulites in 3D, both in neat polymers and their nanocomposites, and observe how unevenly nanoparticles and other additives are distributed in the material. Images of i-polypropylene and biodegradable poly(lactic acid) reveal previously unsuspected morphologies such as "vases" and "goblets", nonspherical "spherulites" and, unexpectedly, "shish-kebabs" grown from quiescent melt. Also surprisingly, in nanocomposite sheets spherulite nucleation is seen to be copied from one surface to another, mediated by crystallization-induced pressure drop and local melt-flow. These first results reveal unfamiliar modes of self-assembly in familiar plastics and open fresh perspectives on polymer microstructure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shu-Gui Yang
- State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behaviour of Materials, Shaanxi International Research Centre for Soft Matter, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Zhen-Zhen Wei
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
- College of Textile and Clothing Engineering, National Engineering Laboratory for Modern Silk, Soochow University, Suzhou, China
| | - Liliana Cseh
- Romanian Academy, Coriolan Dragulescu Institute of Chemistry, Timisoara, Romania
| | - Pantea Kazemi
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Xiang-Bing Zeng
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Hui-Jie Xie
- Department of Physics, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Hina Saba
- Department of Physics, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Goran Ungar
- State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behaviour of Materials, Shaanxi International Research Centre for Soft Matter, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China.
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK.
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2
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Sai H, Lau GC, Dannenhoffer AJ, Chin SM, D Ord Ević L, Stupp SI. Imaging Supramolecular Morphogenesis with Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy at Elevated Temperatures. NANO LETTERS 2020; 20:4234-4241. [PMID: 32383889 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.0c00662] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
The morphogenesis of supramolecular assemblies is a highly dynamic process that has only recently been recognized, and our understanding of this phenomenon will require imaging techniques capable of crossing scales. Shape transformations depend both on the complex energy landscapes of supramolecular systems and the kinetically controlled pathways that define their structures and functions. We report here the use of confocal laser scanning microscopy coupled with a custom-designed variable-temperature sample stage that enables in situ observation of such shape changes. The submicrometer resolution of this technique allows for real-time observation of the nanostructures in the native liquid environments in which they transform with thermal energy. We use this technique to study the temperature-dependent morphogenic behavior of peptide amphiphile nanofibers and photocatalytic chromophore amphiphile nanoribbons. The variable-temperature confocal microscopy technique demonstrated in this work can sample a large volume and provides real-time information on thermally induced morphological changes in the solution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiroaki Sai
- Simpson Querrey Institute, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois 60611, United States
| | - Garrett C Lau
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
| | - Adam J Dannenhoffer
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
| | - Stacey M Chin
- Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
| | - Luka D Ord Ević
- Simpson Querrey Institute, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois 60611, United States
- Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
| | - Samuel I Stupp
- Simpson Querrey Institute, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois 60611, United States
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
- Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
- Department of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois 60611, United States
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
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3
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Chiang YW, Chou CY, Wu CS, Lin EL, Yoon J, Thomas EL. Large-Area Block Copolymer Photonic Gel Films with Solvent-Evaporation-Induced Red- and Blue-Shift Reflective Bands. Macromolecules 2015. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.5b00744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Yeo-Wan Chiang
- Department
of Materials and Optoelectronic Science, Center for Nanoscience and
Nanotechnology, National Sun Yat-Sen University, Kaohsiung 80424, Taiwan
| | - Chung-Yi Chou
- Department
of Materials and Optoelectronic Science, Center for Nanoscience and
Nanotechnology, National Sun Yat-Sen University, Kaohsiung 80424, Taiwan
| | - Cheng-Sian Wu
- Department
of Materials and Optoelectronic Science, Center for Nanoscience and
Nanotechnology, National Sun Yat-Sen University, Kaohsiung 80424, Taiwan
| | - En-Li Lin
- Department
of Materials and Optoelectronic Science, Center for Nanoscience and
Nanotechnology, National Sun Yat-Sen University, Kaohsiung 80424, Taiwan
| | - Jongseung Yoon
- Department
of Materials Science, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90007, United States
| | - Edwin L. Thomas
- Department
of Materials Science and NanoEngineering, Rice University, Houston, Texas 77005, United States
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4
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Fan Y, Walish JJ, Tang S, Olsen BD, Thomas EL. Defects, Solvent Quality, and Photonic Response in Lamellar Block Copolymer Gels. Macromolecules 2014. [DOI: 10.1021/ma402287x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yin Fan
- Department
of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Joseph J. Walish
- Department
of Chemistry, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Shengchang Tang
- Department
of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Bradley D. Olsen
- Department
of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Edwin L. Thomas
- Department
of Materials Science and Nano Engineering, Department of Chemical
and Biomolecular Engineering, Brown School of Engineering, Rice University, Houston, Texas 77251, United States
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5
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Wu H, Shi Y, Huang C, Zhang Y, Wu J, Shen H, Jia N. Multifunctional nanocarrier based on clay nanotubes for efficient intracellular siRNA delivery and gene silencing. J Biomater Appl 2013; 28:1180-9. [PMID: 23985535 DOI: 10.1177/0885328213501215] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
RNA interference-mediated gene silencing relating to disease has recently emerged as a powerful method in gene therapy. Despite the promises, effective transport of siRNA with minimal side effects remains a challenge. Halloysites are cheap and naturally available aluminosilicate clay nanotubes with high mechanical strength and biocompatibility. In this study, a novel multifunctional nanocarrier based on functionalized halloysite nanotubes (f-HNTs) has been developed via electrostatic layer-by-layer assembling approach for loading and intracellular delivery of therapeutic antisurvivin siRNA and simultaneously tracking their intracellular transport, in which PEI-modified HNTs are used as gene vector, antisurvivin siRNA as gene therapeutic agent, and mercaptoacetic acid-capped CdSe quantum dots as fluorescent labeling probes. The successful assembly of the f-HNTs-siRNA complexes was systematically characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), UV-visible spectrophotometry, Zeta potential measurement, fluorescence spectrophotometry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Confocal microscopy, biological TEM, and flow cytometry studies revealed that the complexes enabled the efficient intracellular delivery of siRNA for cell-specific gene silencing. MTT assays exhibited that the complexes can enhance antitumor activity. Furthermore, Western blot analysis showed that f-HNTs-mediated siRNA delivery effectively knocked down gene expression of survivin and thereby decreased the levels of target proteins of PANC-1 cells. Therefore, this study suggested that the synthesized f-HNTs were a new effective drug delivery system for potential application in cancer gene therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Wu
- The Education Ministry Key Laboratory of Resource Chemistry and Shanghai Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Functional Materials, Department of Chemistry, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
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6
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Lee W, Yoon J, Thomas EL, Lee H. Dynamic Changes in Structural Color of a Lamellar Block Copolymer Photonic Gel during Solvent Evaporation. Macromolecules 2013. [DOI: 10.1021/ma302557v] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Wonmok Lee
- Department
of Chemistry, Sejong University, 98 Gunja-dong,
Gwangjin-gu, Seoul,
Korea 143-747
| | - Jongseung Yoon
- Department
of Chemical Engineering
and Materials Science, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
| | - Edwin L. Thomas
- Department of Mechanical Engineering
and Materials Science, Rice University,
Houston, Texas 77030, United States
| | - Hyunjung Lee
- School of Advanced Materials
Engineering, Kookmin University, Jeongneung-ro
77, Seoul, Korea 136-702
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7
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Ryu HJ, Fortner DB, Lee S, Ferebee R, De Graef M, Misichronis K, Avgeropoulos A, Bockstaller MR. Role of Grain Boundary Defects During Grain Coarsening of Lamellar Block Copolymers. Macromolecules 2012. [DOI: 10.1021/ma3015382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Hyung Ju Ryu
- Department of Materials Science
and Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, United States
| | - David B. Fortner
- Department of Materials Science
and Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, United States
| | - Sukbin Lee
- Department of Materials Science
and Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, United States
| | - Rachel Ferebee
- Department of Materials Science
and Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, United States
| | - Marc De Graef
- Department of Materials Science
and Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, United States
| | - Konstantinos Misichronis
- Department of Materials Science
and Engineering, University of Ioannina, University Campus, Dourouti, 45110, Ioannina, Greece
| | - Apostolos Avgeropoulos
- Department of Materials Science
and Engineering, University of Ioannina, University Campus, Dourouti, 45110, Ioannina, Greece
| | - Michael R. Bockstaller
- Department of Materials Science
and Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, United States
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8
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Shin J, Han SG, Lee W. Inverse opal pH sensors with various protic monomers copolymerized with polyhydroxyethylmethacrylate hydrogel. Anal Chim Acta 2012; 752:87-93. [DOI: 10.1016/j.aca.2012.09.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2012] [Revised: 07/10/2012] [Accepted: 09/16/2012] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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9
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Lim HS, Lee JH, Walish JJ, Thomas EL. Dynamic swelling of tunable full-color block copolymer photonic gels via counterion exchange. ACS NANO 2012; 6:8933-8939. [PMID: 23020142 DOI: 10.1021/nn302949n] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
One-dimensionally periodic block copolymer photonic lamellar gels with full-color tunability as a result of a direct exchange of counteranions were fabricated via a two-step procedure comprising the self-assembly of a hydrophobic block-hydrophilic polyelectrolyte block copolymer, polystyrene-b-poly(2-vinyl pyridine) (PS-b-P2VP), followed by sequential quaternization of the P2VP layers in 1-bromoethane solution. Depending on the hydration characteristics of each counteranion, the selective swelling of the block copolymer lamellar structures leads to large tunability of the photonic stop band from blue to red wavelengths. More extensive quaternization of the P2VP block allows the photonic lamellar gels to swell more and red shift to longer wavelength. Here, we investigate the dynamic swelling behavior in the photonic gel films through time-resolved in situ measurement of UV-vis transmission. We model the swelling behavior using the transfer matrix method based on the experimentally observed reflectivity data with substitution of appropriate counterions. These tunable structural color materials may be attractive for numerous applications such as high-contrast displays without using a backlight, color filters, and optical mirrors for flexible lasing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ho Sun Lim
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA
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10
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Ullal CK, Schmidt R, Hell SW, Egner A. Block copolymer nanostructures mapped by far-field optics. NANO LETTERS 2009; 9:2497-2500. [PMID: 19449834 DOI: 10.1021/nl901378e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
We demonstrate stimulated emission depletion microscopy using opposing objective lenses to noninvasively reveal the nanoscale morphology of block copolymers in three dimensions with focused light. This is exemplified in a poly(styrene-block-2-vinylpyridine) model system in which contrast is achieved by specifically staining the vinylpyridine phase with a fluorescent dye. We image swelling induced mesopores and other convoluted structures within the bulk of samples, at scales that have so far required electron and scanning probe microscopes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chaitanya K Ullal
- Department of NanoBiophotonics, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Am Fassberg 11, 37077 Gottingen, Germany
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11
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Weiss PS. What do images mean? ACS NANO 2008; 2:1-2. [PMID: 19206540 DOI: 10.1021/nn800006t] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
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