Visible-Light-Induced Control over Reversible Single-Chain Nanoparticle Folding |
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| Authors: | Patrick H Maag Dr Florian Feist Dr Vinh X Truong Dr Hendrik Frisch Prof Peter W Roesky Prof Christopher Barner-Kowollik |
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| Institution: | 1. School of Chemistry and Physics, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), 2 George Street, 4000 Brisbane, QLD, Australia;2. Institute of Nanotechnology (INT), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany;3. Institute of Sustainability for Chemicals, Energy and Environment (ISCE2), Agency for Science, Technology and Re-search (A*STAR), 1 Pesek Road, Jurong Island, Singapore, 627833 Republic of Singapore;4. Institute of Inorganic Chemistry, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Engesserstraße 15, 76131 Karlsruhe, Germany |
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| Abstract: | We introduce a class of single-chain nanoparticles (SCNPs) that respond to visible light (λmax=415 nm) with complete unfolding from their compact structure into linear chain analogues. The initial folding is achieved by a simple esterification reaction of the polymer backbone constituted of acrylic acid and polyethylene glycol carrying monomer units, introducing bimane moieties, which allow for the photochemical unfolding, reversing the ester-bond formation. The compaction and the light driven unfolding proceed cleanly and are readily followed by size exclusion chromatography (SEC) and diffusion ordered NMR spectroscopy (DOSY), monitoring the change in the hydrodynamic radius (RH). Importantly, the folding reaction and the light-induced unfolding are reversible, supported by the high conversion of the photo cleavage. As the unfolding reaction occurs in aqueous systems, the system holds promise for controlling the unfolding of SCNPs in biological environments. |
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| Keywords: | Bimanes Reversible Polymer Folding Single-Chain Nanoparticles Visible Light Photochemistry |
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