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Charge-Determined LCST/UCST Behavior in Ionic Polypeptoids.

Chao XingZhekun ShiJiliang TianJing SunZhibo Li
Published in: Biomacromolecules (2018)
Stimuli-responsive polymers have received increasing interest for a variety of applications. Here, we report a series of unique charge-determined thermoresponsive polypeptoids synthesized by a combination of ring-opening polymerization and click chemistry. The LCST-type and UCST-type behavior is mainly dominated by the charge state on the side chain. Further, the phase transition temperature highly depends on the degree of polymerization, the side-chain architecture, the pH value, and so on. The obtained polypeptoid solutions exhibit good stability against temperature and salt concentration. To our knowledge, this report presents the first charge-determined LCST/UCST-type polymer from identical homopolymer backbone that displays a wide range of tunable cloudy points in aqueous media. We propose the hydrogen-bonding interaction plays a critical part on the solution behavior. These features make polypeptoids ideal candidates for highly designable stimuli-responsive polymeric materials.
Keyphrases
  • cancer therapy
  • solar cells
  • healthcare
  • drug delivery
  • solid state