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Sujita R, Aoki H, Takenaka M, Ouchi M, Terashima T. Universal Access to Water-Compatible and Nanostructured Materials via the Self-Assembly of Cationic Alternating Copolymers. ACS Macro Lett 2024; 13:747-753. [PMID: 38815215 DOI: 10.1021/acsmacrolett.4c00173] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2024]
Abstract
Herein, we report the water-assisted self-assembly of alternating copolymers bearing imidazolium cations and hydrophobic groups to create water-compatible and nanostructured materials. The copolymers efficiently absorbed water into the cationic segments from the outer environments, depending on the relative humidity. The absorbed water serves as hydrophilic molecules to modulate the weight fraction of hydrophilic/hydrophobic units in the samples. Thus, the morphologies and domain spacing of the nanostructures can be controlled by not only the side chains, but also the amount of absorbed water. The self-assembly of the cationic copolymers, developed herein, afforded universal access to various morphologies, including lamella, gyroid, and cylinder, in addition to the precision control of the domain spacing at the 0.01 nm level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryota Sujita
- Department of Polymer Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
| | - Hiroyuki Aoki
- Materials and Life Science Division, J-PARC Center, Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Tokai, Naka-gun, Ibaraki 319-1195, Japan
- Institute of Materials Structure Science, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization, Tokai, Naka-gun, Ibaraki 319-1106, Japan
| | - Mikihito Takenaka
- Institute for Chemical Research, Kyoto University, Gokasho, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011, Japan
- RIKEN SPring-8 Center, Sayo-cho, Sayo-gun, Hyogo 679-5148, Japan
| | - Makoto Ouchi
- Department of Polymer Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
| | - Takaya Terashima
- Department of Polymer Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
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Guazzelli E, Pisano G, Turriani M, Biver T, Kriechbaum M, Uhlig F, Galli G, Martinelli E. The Nanostructured Self-Assembly and Thermoresponsiveness in Water of Amphiphilic Copolymers Carrying Oligoethylene Glycol and Polysiloxane Side Chains. Pharmaceutics 2023; 15:1703. [PMID: 37376151 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics15061703] [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: 05/02/2023] [Revised: 06/02/2023] [Accepted: 06/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Amphiphilic copolymer self-assembly is a straightforward approach to obtain responsive micelles, nanoparticles, and vesicles that are particularly attractive for biomedicine, i.e., for the delivery of functional molecules. Here, amphiphilic copolymers of hydrophobic polysiloxane methacrylate and hydrophilic oligo (ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate with different lengths of oxyethylenic side chains were synthesized via controlled RAFT radical polymerization and characterized both thermally and in solution. In particular, the thermoresponsive and self-assembling behavior of the water-soluble copolymers in water was investigated via complementary techniques such as light transmittance, dynamic light scattering (DLS), and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) measurements. All the copolymers synthesized were thermoresponsive, displaying a cloud point temperature (Tcp) strongly dependent on macromolecular parameters such as the length of the oligo(ethylene glycol) side chains and the content of the SiMA counits, as well as the concentration of the copolymer in water, which is consistent with a lower critical solution temperature (LCST)-type behavior. SAXS analysis revealed that the copolymers formed nanostructures in water below Tcp, whose dimension and shape depended on the content of the hydrophobic components in the copolymer. The hydrodynamic diameter (Dh) determined by DLS increased with the amount of SiMA and the associated morphology at higher SiMA contents was found to be pearl-necklace-micelle-like, composed of connected hydrophobic cores. These novel amphiphilic copolymers were able to modulate thermoresponsiveness in water in a wide range of temperatures, including the physiological temperature, as well as the dimension and shape of their nanostructured assemblies, simply by varying their chemical composition and the length of the hydrophilic side chains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Guazzelli
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università di Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Pisano
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università di Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Marco Turriani
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università di Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Tarita Biver
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università di Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Manfred Kriechbaum
- Institute for Inorganic Chemistry, Graz University of Technology, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Frank Uhlig
- Institute for Inorganic Chemistry, Graz University of Technology, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Giancarlo Galli
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università di Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Elisa Martinelli
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università di Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy
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Gan Z, Zhou D, Ma Z, Xu M, Xu Z, He J, Zhou J, Dong XH. Local Chain Feature Mandated Self-Assembly of Block Copolymers. J Am Chem Soc 2023; 145:487-497. [PMID: 36572645 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.2c10761] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
This work demonstrates an effective and robust approach to regulate phase behaviors of a block copolymer by programming local features into otherwise homogeneous linear chains. A library of sequence-defined, isomeric block copolymers with globally the same composition but locally different side chain patterns were elaborately designed and prepared through an iterative convergent growth method. The precise chemical structure and uniform chain length rule out all inherent molecular defects associated with statistical distribution. The local features are found to exert surprisingly pronounced impacts on the self-assembly process, which have yet to be well recognized. While other molecular parameters remain essentially the same, simply rearranging a few methylene units among the alkyl side chains leads to strikingly different phase behaviors, bringing about (i) a rich diversity of nanostructures across hexagonally packed cylinders, Frank-Kasper A15 phase, Frank-Kasper σ phase, dodecagonal quasicrystals, and disordered state; (ii) a significant change of lattice dimension; and (iii) a substantial shift of order-to-disorder transition temperature (up to 40 °C). Different from the commonly observed enthalpy-dominated cases, the frustration due to the divergence between the native molecular geometry originating from side chain distribution and the local packing environment mandated by lattice symmetry is believed to play a pivotal role. Engineering the local chain feature introduces another level of structural complexity, opening up a new and effective pathway for modulating phase transition without changing the chemistry or composition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhanhui Gan
- South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Dongdong Zhou
- South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China.,College of Polymer Science and Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Polymer Materials Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Zhuang Ma
- South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Miao Xu
- South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Zhuoqi Xu
- South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Jiawen He
- South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Jiajia Zhou
- South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China.,Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Functional and Intelligent Hybrid Materials and Devices, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
| | - Xue-Hui Dong
- South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China.,Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Functional and Intelligent Hybrid Materials and Devices, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China
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Imai S, Arakawa M, Nakanishi Y, Takenaka M, Aoki H, Ouchi M, Terashima T. Water-Assisted Microphase Separation of Cationic Random Copolymers into Sub-5 nm Lamellar Materials and Thin Films. Macromolecules 2022. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.2c01287] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sahori Imai
- Department of Polymer Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
| | - Masato Arakawa
- Institute for Chemical Research, Kyoto University, Gokasho, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011, Japan
| | - Yohei Nakanishi
- Institute for Chemical Research, Kyoto University, Gokasho, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011, Japan
| | - Mikihito Takenaka
- Institute for Chemical Research, Kyoto University, Gokasho, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011, Japan
- RIKEN SPring-8 Center, Sayo-cho, Sayo-gun, Hyogo 679-5148, Japan
| | - Hiroyuki Aoki
- Institute of Materials Structure Science, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization, 203-1, Shirakata, Tokai, Ibaraki 319-1106, Japan
- Materials and Life Science Division, J-PARC Center, Japan Atomic Energy Agency, 2-4, Shirakata, Tokai, Ibaraki 319-1195, Japan
| | - Makoto Ouchi
- Department of Polymer Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
| | - Takaya Terashima
- Department of Polymer Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
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Chai X, Zhou P, Xia Q, Shi B, Wang G. Fluorine-containing nano-objects with the same compositions but different segment distributions: synthesis, characterization and comparison. Polym Chem 2022. [DOI: 10.1039/d2py01148d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
PHOS-b-PPFS nano-objects and PPFS-b-PHOS nano-objects can be prepared by RAFT PISA and MISA processes, respectively. These nano-objects have the same compositions but different segment distributions and distinct hydrophilic/hydrophobic properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xingpeng Chai
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Department of Macromolecular Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Peng Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Department of Macromolecular Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Qi Xia
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Department of Macromolecular Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Boyang Shi
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Department of Macromolecular Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Guowei Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Department of Macromolecular Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
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