Red and Near-Infrared Light-Cleavable Polymers

Xiaolong Zeng; Xuechang Zhou; Si Wu

doi:10.1002/marc.201800034

Red and Near-Infrared Light-Cleavable Polymers

Macromol Rapid Commun. 2018 Jul;39(14):e1800034. doi: 10.1002/marc.201800034. Epub 2018 Jul 20.

Authors

Xiaolong Zeng¹, Xuechang Zhou², Si Wu^{1

3}

Affiliations

¹ Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, Ackermannweg 10, 55128, Mainz, Germany.
² College of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518060, P. R. China.
³ CAS Key Laboratory of Soft Matter Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Science and Technology, Innovation Centre of Chemistry for Energy Materials, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026, China.

PMID: 29682838
DOI: 10.1002/marc.201800034

Abstract

Photocleavable polymers have attracted much attention in drug delivery, photopatterning, and controlling cell behavior. Photolysis is usually induced by UV light. However, UV light cannot penetrate deeply into biological tissue and may damage biological components. Therefore, conventional UV-light-cleavable polymers are problematic for deep-tissue biomedical applications. In this feature article, red and near-infrared light-cleavable polymers are reviewed, and their potential applications are highlighted. The remaining challenges in the field of photocleavable polymers are discussed.

Keywords: drug delivery; photoresponsiveness; polymers; two-photon absorption; upconversion.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Drug Delivery Systems*
Humans
Infrared Rays
Light
Nanoparticles / chemistry*
Nanoparticles / therapeutic use
Photolysis / radiation effects
Polymers / chemistry*
Polymers / therapeutic use

Substances

Polymers