Issue 14, 2022

Amphiphilic conjugated block copolymers as NIR-bioimaging probes

Abstract

Although semiconducting polymer nanoparticles (SPN) are emerging as versatile theragnostic platforms for drug delivery and near infrared (NIR)-imaging, their synthesis remains restricted to nanoprecipatation or graft polymers. Here we present a novel method for creating an SPN of the donor–acceptor conjugated polymer p(IDT-NDI) containing indacenodithienothiophene (IDT) and naphthalene diimide (NDI) units. The conjugated polymer is functionalised with a styryl endgroup which is used to introduce a RAFT-agent via a 1,2-radical insertion reaction. This results in a conjugated macroinitiator which can be chain extended using classical RAFT polymerization with methyl acrylate resulting in an amphiphillic triblock copolymer. The amphiphile showed excellent self-assembly with stable particles of 80–110 nm diameter and absorption and emission in the NIR-region. The micelles are taken up efficiently by cells and can deliver a payload proving this method to be a new and powerful tool for the future of SPN in bioimaging.

Graphical abstract: Amphiphilic conjugated block copolymers as NIR-bioimaging probes

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
25 Feb 2022
Accepted
04 Mar 2022
First published
15 Mar 2022

Polym. Chem., 2022,13, 2057-2064

Amphiphilic conjugated block copolymers as NIR-bioimaging probes

A. Buckinx, A. M. Rozario, T. D. M. Bell, J. J. Michels and T. Junkers, Polym. Chem., 2022, 13, 2057 DOI: 10.1039/D2PY00258B

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