Controlling CO2 -Responsive Behaviors of Polymersomes Self-Assembled by Coumarin-Containing Star Polymer via Regulating Its Crosslinking Pattern

Macromol Rapid Commun. 2018 Jun;39(11):e1800009. doi: 10.1002/marc.201800009. Epub 2018 Apr 30.

Abstract

An oligo(ethylene glycol)-based star polymer of N2 -(OEG-C)3 with fluorescent coumarin as hydrophobic end groups and dual tertiary amines as the star center is designed and synthesized. Owing to its amphiphilic nature of N2 -(OEG-C)3 , it will self-assemble into hollow vesicles with coumarin groups dispersed in the hydrophobic membrane and exhibits CO2 -responsive behavior due to the protonation of amine centers with CO2 . More importantly, coumarin moieties can either form non-crosslinking with γ-cyclodextrin via the 2/1 host-guest inclusion, or covalently photodimerized by 365 nm light, offering a tunable crosslinking pattern in the hydrophobic membrane and thus adjusting its CO2 -stimulated reorganization and disassembly behaviors of these vesicles in aqueous solution.

Keywords: CO2-responsive; coumarin; crosslinking; star polymers; γ-cyclodextrin.

MeSH terms

  • Amines / chemistry
  • Carbon Dioxide / chemistry*
  • Coumarins / chemistry*
  • Dimerization
  • Dynamic Light Scattering
  • Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions
  • Light
  • Microscopy, Electron, Transmission
  • Polyethylene Glycols / chemistry*
  • Polymers / chemistry*
  • Spectrometry, Fluorescence
  • Water / chemistry
  • gamma-Cyclodextrins / chemistry

Substances

  • Amines
  • Coumarins
  • Polymers
  • gamma-Cyclodextrins
  • Water
  • Carbon Dioxide
  • Polyethylene Glycols
  • coumarin