Collaborative Research: Well-Defined Polyelectrolyte Nanocages via Crystallized Miniemulsion Nanodroplets

在大分子、超分子和纳米化学项目资助的合作研究中，布法罗纽约州立大学的Chong Cheng和约翰霍普金斯大学的Honggang Cui正在开发控制制备微小纳米尺寸聚合物笼的新技术。这些小结构对于开发将药物或其他物质直接递送到组织和细胞的新方法具有巨大的潜力。这项研究的重点是一种特定类型的纳米笼，或纳米笼，它是晶体，但涂有肥皂样分子称为表面活性剂。该策略旨在稳定生成的表面，并使其能够更紧密地控制生成的保持架的尺寸。该小组还进行了系统的研究，以精确地调查这种稳定化是如何发生的，以便更多地了解所涉及的分子水平事件。这将使这项研究的结果应用到其他系统。这项工作对开发新系统产生了更广泛的影响，这些新系统用于将药物和其他治疗剂输送到体内的精确位置。通过制作一系列解释这项工作的视频，它正在产生更广泛的影响。这些视频通过YouTube分发，有助于将这项研究的结果带给公众。该项目的重点是通过“形成晶体”的细乳液精确合成聚电解质纳米笼。研究的第二个目的是获得分子水平的理解，在这个模板系统的稳定机制。正在进行系统的研究，以获得具有高表面活性剂效率和预定尺寸的结晶细乳液纳米液滴。这允许通过自由基聚合合成具有良好控制的尺寸和不同交联密度的多种多样的纳米笼。正在进行的稳定化机制研究，以确定表面活性剂单层是否通过疏水相互作用或通过表面活性剂烷基链与油分子的共结晶而稳定在结晶细乳液纳米液滴的表面上。这种“晶体形成”的稳定策略可能会导致几十年来的技术问题的动态不稳定性的表面活性剂单分子层在各种乳液系统的实际解决方案。该项目的成功实施将为进一步优化具有增强稳定性和控制尺寸的单层系统奠定基础。

In collaborative research funded by the Macromolecular, Supramolecular and Nanochemistry program, Chong Cheng of the State University at New York at Buffalo and Honggang Cui of John Hopkins University are developing new techniques for the controlled preparation of tiny nanometer-sized polymer cages. These small structures have enormous potential for the development of new methods to deliver drugs or other substances directly to tissues and cells. The research is focused on a specific type of nanometer-sized cage, or nanocage, that is crystalline but coated with a soap-like molecule known as a surfactant. The strategy is meant to stabilize the resulting surfaces and make it possible to more closely control the size of the resulting cages. The group is also carrying out systematic studies to investigate precisely how this stabilization occurs, in order to learn more about the molecular-level events involved. This will allow application of the results of this research to other systems. The work is having a broader impact on the development of new systems for the delivery of drugs and other therapeutic agents to precise locations in the body. It is having a further broad impact through the production of a series of videos that explain the work. These videos are being distributed via YouTube, helping to bring the results of this research to members of the public.This project focuses on the precise synthesis of polyelectrolyte nanocages via "crystal-forming" miniemulsions. A second aim of the study is to obtain a molecular level understanding of the stabilization mechanism in this template system. Systematic studies are being conducted to obtain crystallized miniemulsion nanodroplets with high surfactant efficiency and predetermined sizes. This is allowing the synthesis of a great diversity of nanocages with well-controlled dimensions and varying cross-linking densities via free-radical polymerization. The stabilization mechanism study is being performed to identify whether the surfactant monolayers are stabilized on the surface of crystallized miniemulsion nanodroplets through hydrophobic interaction or via co-crystallization of surfactant alkyl chains with oil molecules. This "crystal-forming" stabilization strategy may lead to a practical solution for the decades-long technical problem of dynamic instability of surfactant monolayers in various emulsion systems. Successful implementation of this project will lay the foundation for further optimization of monolayer systems with both enhanced stability and controlled dimensions.