Disintegrating polymer multilayers to jump-start colloidal micromotors

Fernández-Medina, Marina; Qian, Xinhua; Hovorka, Ondřej; Städler, Brigitte

doi:10.1039/c8nr08071b

Cited by 13 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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Section: Fuel‐driven Nano/micromotorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Initial examples include the stomatocyte‐like micromotors outlined in detail above, or PNIPAM/PCL/Pt microjets that reversibly fold and unfold by changes in temperature . We recently demonstrated that micromotors equipped with poly(methacrylic acid)/poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PMA/PVP) polymer multilayers can exploit pH changes to trigger their locomotion due to the polymer multilayer disassembly . Specifically, polymer layers stabilized at acidic pH via hydrogen bonds disintegrated at higher pH due to the deprotonation of PMA (Figure B‐i) yielding in micromotor motion.…”

Section: Fuel‐driven Nano/micromotorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[106] We recently demonstrated that micromotors equipped with poly(methacrylic acid)/poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PMA/PVP) polymer multilayers can exploit pH changes to trigger their locomotion due to the polymer multilayer disassembly. [107] Specifically, polymer layers stabilized at acidic pH via hydrogen bonds disintegrated at higher pH due to the deprotonation of PMA ( Figure 5B-i) yielding in micromotor motion. When these micromotors were exposed to steep pH gradients, directed motion was observed, while shallow pH gradients resulted in enhanced Brownian motion.…”

Section: Polymer-coated Surface Reactive Nano/micromotorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Polymer-coated Surface Reactive Nano/micromotorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Recent Advances in Nano‐ and Micromotors

Fernández-Medina

Ramos-Docampo

Hovorka

et al. 2020

Adv Funct Materials

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163

143

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Nano‐ and micromotors are fascinating objects that can navigate in complex fluidic environments. Their active motion can be triggered by external power sources or they can exhibit self‐propulsion using fuel extracted from their surroundings. The research field is rapidly evolving and has produced nano/micromotors of different geometrical designs, exploiting a variety of mechanisms of locomotion, being capable of achieving remarkable speeds in diverse environments ranging from simple aqueous solutions to complex media including cell cultures or animal tissue. This review aims to provide an overview of the recent developments with focus on predominantly experimental demonstrations of the various motor designs developed in the past 24 months. First, externally driven motors are discussed followed by considering fuel‐driven approaches. Finally, a short future perspective is provided.

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Section: Fuel‐driven Nano/micromotorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Fuel‐driven Nano/micromotorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Polymer-coated Surface Reactive Nano/micromotorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Polymer-coated Surface Reactive Nano/micromotorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Recent Advances in Nano‐ and Micromotors

Fernández-Medina

Ramos-Docampo

Hovorka

et al. 2020

Adv Funct Materials

Self Cite

163

143

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“…40 In another example, silica particles coated with polymer multilayers disintegrating by change in pH were observed to have active motion and the self-propulsion was reported to result from a broken symmetry due to the polymer concentration gradient along the surface of the swimmers. 41 However, the former system requires highly acidic conditions which is not present in TME and the transition metal Zn is also known to corrode slowly. 42 The latter system used pH gradient created by NaOH solution in µ-slides that is not present in TME.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Supramolecular nanomotors with “pH taxis” for active drug delivery in the tumor microenvironment

Mathesh¹,

Sun²,

Sandt³

et al. 2020

Nanoscale

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On Nanomachines and Their Future Perspectives in Biomedicine

Ramos-Docampo

2023

Advanced Biology

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in time, as pointed out by the "Scallop theorem." [1] This means that asymmetry has to present, either as part of the design of the motors or by creating a gradient of matter in the environment. Nanomotors have been widely explored in the last years after being first introduced in the late 90's. Pioneering groups in the field have envisioned these nanomaterials as capable of the most intricate tasks, such as detecting and fighting malignant diseases, nanosurgery, or cleaning clogged arteries. Some of these idealistic scenarios are unfortunately still far to be accomplished. Nonetheless, many challenges predicted more than 10 years ago have already been solved, contributing to great advances in the field of nanomotors, including the use of multiple enzymes to produce locomotion by cascade reactions that would overcome the low-speed motion of single-enzyme-powered motors (vs the use of highly toxic, inorganic catalysts), fast locomotion in nonliquid environments (e.g., gels, cellulose, instead of low-viscous, aqueous media) that better resemble the extracellular matrix or body fluids, or implementation of the motors in cells and animal models (and not only in microfluidic channels) toward future applications in biomedicine, such as drug delivery and diagnosis. Despite the fast progression of the area and the vast possibilities these nanomachines offer, many open questions still need to be answered. For instance, will nanomotors be able to accomplish equally sophisticated tasks as biological motors? Will energy conversion efficiency in the nanomotors compare to that of molecular machines? What are the limits in terms of power/thrust that nanomotors can attain? Will nanomotors be able to cooperate and make collective decisions toward a specific task, i.e., transporting heavy cargo or overcoming physical obstacles?In this Perspective, the evolution of nano/micromotors in biomedicine will be examined (Scheme 1). First, an overview of the classical mechanisms of motion together with the most advanced methods will be provided. Second, the mobility performance of different kind of motors will be discussed, with special emphasis in their improvement from simple media to more complex environments and finally cells and in vivo models. In addition, the challenges and opportunities in the field will be highlighted, with focus on swarms of nanomotors, theoretical models, and the crossing of biological membranes. Eventually, an outlook and future perspective of the field will be outlined, pointing out selected innovative solutions.Nano/micromotors are a class of active matter that can self-propel converting different types of input energy into kinetic energy. The huge efforts that are made in this field over the last years result in remarkable advances. Specifically, a high number of publications have dealt with biomedical applications that these motors may offer. From the first attempts in 2D cell cultures, the research has evolved to tissue and in vivo experimentation, where motors show promising results. In this Perspective, ...

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Disintegrating polymer multilayers to jump-start colloidal micromotors

Abstract: Colloidal systems with autonomous mobility are attractive alternatives to static particles for diverse applications.

Cited by 13 publications

References 60 publications

Recent Advances in Nano‐ and Micromotors

Recent Advances in Nano‐ and Micromotors

Supramolecular nanomotors with “pH taxis” for active drug delivery in the tumor microenvironment

On Nanomachines and Their Future Perspectives in Biomedicine

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