Discrete Polymer-based, Metal-free MRI Contrast Agents

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Project Summary Structural dispersity in synthetic polymers is paramount for their clinical use and regulatory approval. In this project, we propose the development of water-soluble discrete bottlebrush polymers bearing alternating phospholipid and fluorinated comonomers to enable their clinical applications as metal-free19F MRI contrast agents. The novelty of the proposed polymer system is that it combines: 1. discrete molecular weight (as opposed to conventional disperse polymers); 2. multifunctionality of branched architectures; 3. high water solubility and biocompatibility of phosphorylcholine groups; and 4. exogenous and chemically identical signal of19F groups. Rational design of the brush polymer architecture, comonomer sequence, and lipophilic-hydrophilic balance is anticipated to suppress signal broadening and yield discrete synthetic polymer-based platforms that can be further extended to other targeted imaging and sensing strategies.