The objective of this joint proposal is to develop efficient syntheses for new dendritic core-shell nanocarriers and to systematically investigate the effects of molecular architecture on their encapsulation and transport of hydrophobic molecules in aqueous systems. By combining the expertise of the Guan group (UC Irvine, USA) for one-pot synthesis of hydrophobic polyolefin cores with controllable topologies and the Haag group (Freie Universitaet Berlin, Germany) for efficient synthesis of hydrophilic and biocompatible polyglycerol shells, the proposed study intends to develop efficient methodology for the synthesis of core-shell nanocarriers and to reveal basic structure-property information on the resulting new amphiphilic molecular architectures. The understanding of structure-property relationships gained from this study will provide critical insight for designing highly efficient molecular nanocarriers that may find potential applications for ink formulation and drug delivery.
With this award, the Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry Program and the Office of International Science and Engineering are supporting the research of Professor Zhibin Guan of the Department of Chemistry at the University of California, Irvine. This award coordinates with a collaborative award funded by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) for Professor Rainer Haag, Freie Universitaet Berlin, Germany. Professors Guan and Haag's research efforts revolve around the development of facile synthetic methods for the preparation of dendritic polymers. Such chemistry will contribute to environmentally benign methods for polymer synthesis as the method is highly efficient. Successful development of the methodology will have an impact on drug delivery for pharmaceutical industries and on dye encapsulation for chemical industries.
