Tannic acid-mediated aggregate stabilization of poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone)-b-poly(oligo (ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate) double hydrophilic block copolymers

Al Nakeeb, N., Nischang, I. and Schmidt, B. V.K.J. (2019) Tannic acid-mediated aggregate stabilization of poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone)-b-poly(oligo (ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate) double hydrophilic block copolymers. Nanomaterials, 9(5), 662. (doi: 10.3390/nano9050662) (PMID:31035517) (PMCID:PMC6566864)

Abstract

The self-assembly of block copolymers in aqueous solution is an important field in modern polymer science that has been extended to double hydrophilic block copolymers (DHBC) in recent years. In here, a significant improvement of the self-assembly process of DHBC in aqueous solution by utilizing a linear-brush macromolecular architecture is presented. The improved self-assembly behavior of poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone)-b-poly(oligo(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate) (PVP-b-P(OEGMA)) and its concentration dependency is investigated via dynamic light scattering (DLS) (apparent hydrodynamic radii ≈ 100–120 nm). Moreover, the DHBC assemblies can be non-covalently crosslinked with tannic acid via hydrogen bonding, which leads to the formation of small aggregates as well (apparent hydrodynamic radius ≈ 15 nm). Non-covalent crosslinking improves the self-assembly and stabilizes the aggregates upon dilution, reducing the concentration dependency of aggregate self-assembly. Additionally, the non-covalent aggregates can be disassembled in basic media. The presence of aggregates was studied via cryogenic scanning electron microscopy (cryo-SEM) and DLS before and after non-covalent crosslinking. Furthermore, analytical ultracentrifugation of the formed aggregate structures was performed, clearly showing the existence of polymer assemblies, particularly after non-covalent crosslinking. In summary, we report on the completely hydrophilic self-assembled structures in solution formed from fully biocompatible building entities in water.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Schmidt, Dr Bernhard

Creator Roles

Schmidt, B. V.K.J.: Conceptualization, Methodology, Writing – original draft, Writing – review and editing

• Authors: Al Nakeeb, N., Nischang, I., and Schmidt, B. V.K.J.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Chemistry
• Journal Name: Nanomaterials
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 2079-4991
• ISSN (Online): 2079-4991
• Published Online: 26 April 2019
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2019 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Nanomaterials 9(5): 662
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License