Surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) of 2-(tert-butylamino)ethyl methacrylate (TBAEMA) produced pH-responsive secondary amine-functionalized polymer brushes with dry thicknesses ranging from 4 to 28 nm, as determined by ellipsometry. At low pH, linear PTBAEMA brushes became protonated and highly swollen; brush collapse occurred when the solution pH was increased to ca. ...

Inspired by the fascinating working process of living systems, materials that can respond to external stimuli (mechanical, chemical, optical changes in environmental conditions, etc.) are of enormous interest owing to their applications in a wide range of fields including microfluidic devices, drug delivery, tissue engineering, sensors and actuators. This review, while being non-exhaustive in l...

Abstract There is a growing interest in making stimuli-responsive polymer systems, particularly ones that are bio-inspired/biomimetic and could perform mechanical work. Here, biological device made from gelatin described can mechanically cycle back forth response to solution pH ionic strength (IS) changes. The bilayer has one layer of Type A the other B gelatin, which have two different isoelec...

A series of doxorubicin-loaded polymer-caged nanobins (PCN(DXR)) were evaluated in vivo in a murine MDA-MB-231 xenograft model of triple-negative breast cancer. The cross-linked polymer cage in PCN(DXR) offers protection for the drug payload while serving as a pH-responsive trigger that enhances drug release in the acidic environments commonly seen in solid tumors and endosomes. Varying the deg...

SUMMARYTriblock pH-responsive co-polymers were synthetized byRAFT polymerization and assembled in vesicles for thedelivery of siRNA to cancer cells. The copolymers self-assemble in spherical shape vesicles at pH 7.4 with a size of 60 nm, high homogeneity and good stability at 37°C.The carrier loads double stranded DNA sequences with a14% molar loading capacity and releas...

Stimulus-responsive microporous solid thin films were successfully fabricated by simple molecular self-assembly via an amphiphilic block polymer, polystryene-b-polyacrylic acid (PS-b-PAA). The solid thin films exhibit different surface morphologies in response to external stimuli, such as environments with different pH values in aqueous solutions. The experiments have successfully applied atomi...

Smart hydrogels, or stimuli-responsive hydrogels, are three-dimensional networks composed of crosslinked hydrophilic polymer chains that are able to dramatically change their volume and other properties in response to environmental stimuli such as temperature, pH and certain chemicals. Rapid and significant response to environmental stimuli and high elasticity are critical for the versatility o...