Dynamic and degradable covalent chemistries to develop advanced polymeric materials

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The research in my group, which falls in the field of polymer chemistry and materials, enables the design and processing of macromolecular nanoscale materials (named polymer-based nanomaterials) to address important problems in the crossroads of biology and materials science. The new research program proposed here aims for fundamental and applied studies of degradable and dynamic covalent chemistries to tailor important properties of advanced functional materials at nano- and microscales. Such smart chemistries involve the incorporation of either cleavable or dynamic (or reversible) linkages into the design of multifunctional copolymers and their materials. When needed, they undergo degradable disassembly or reversible dissociation/association in response to external stimuli. Various strategies will be developed to synthesize novel copolymers with various architectures and functionalities, which will be designed as effective building blocks in the construction of delivery nanoassemblies, polymer-nanoadditive hybrids, and self-healable network films. Our new research program is outlined with two research streams with several projects. In Stream 1, with our focus on degradation chemistries, we will explore the synthesis and disassembly of nanomaterials, degradable in the endogenous environment found in biological systems. We will study dual location degradable drug delivery mechanism and new cytosol-mediated gene release mechanism. In stream 2, with our emphasis on dynamic chemistries, we will develop new strategies to study self-healing mechanisms of hindered urea chemistry as well as design principles to develop novel energy harvesting materials and self-healable heterogeneous nanostructured networks. Our interdisciplinary research will provide HQP training in chemistry, biology, and engineering.