Surface-Accessible Detection Units in Self-Immolative Polymers Enable Translation of Selective Molecular Detection Events into Amplified Responses in Macroscopic, Solid-State Plastics

Abstract

This Communication describes a strategy for incorporating detection units onto each repeating unit of self-immolative CDr polymers. This strategy enables macroscopic plastics to respond quickly to specific applied molecular signals that react with the plastic at the solid-liquid interface between the plastic and surrounding fluid. The response is a signal-induced depolymerization reaction that is continuous and complete from the site of the reacted detection unit to the end of the polymer. Thus, this strategy retains the ability of CDr polymers to provide amplified responses via depolymerization while simultaneously enhancing the rate of response of CDr-based macroscopic plastics to specific applied signals. Depolymerizable poly(benzyl ethers) were used to demonstrate the strategy and now are capable of depolymerizing in the context of rigid, solid-state polymeric materials.

Biomimetic antimicrobial polymers: recent advances in molecular design

“…105 A novel and interesting class of materials that undergo triggered depolymerization are the so-called "self-immolative" polymers (SIMPs), designed to unzip into a monomer upon the cleavage of their ω-end-groups. [106][107][108][109][110][111][112][113][114][115] SIMPs have been utilized in drug delivery, [116][117][118] biosensors, 119 microfluidics 120 and dynamic plastics 121 but did not find use in the context of antimicrobials until very recently.…”

Chemical Design of Functional Polymer Structures for Biosensors: From Nanoscale to Macroscale

“…In particular, from the perspective of biosensing, many devices that can sensitively monitor biosignals (e.g., breath, pulse, sweat, and strain) have been successfully developed based on hydrogel materials. Furthermore, new designs for hydrogels (e.g., double-network hydrogels, dynamic bonding-assisted hydrogels, and nanocomposite-reinforced hydrogels) have been extensively investigated over the last decade, and new chemical reactions such as head-to-tail depolymerization [138,139,140] or self-propagating reactions [141,142] can be further integrated into hydrogels, giving rise to an autonomous response system. In the future, hydrogels could be used as a platform for theragnosis, a combination of diagnosis and therapeutics, which is an emerging concept in biomedicine.…”

Biodegradable Contrast Agents for Photoacoustic Imaging

“…Notwithstanding, the examples of well-designed, biodegradable, functional polymers for PAI are still rare as far as we know. The use of other chemistry, such as continuous depolymerization [80][81][82] and dynamic physicochemical bonds or the formation of reversible and hierarchical structures of polymeric materials [83][84][85][86], would further provide new, biocompatible, degradation pathways of polymer structures without losing PA properties. In another example, a synthetic block copolymer that contains Pt(II) complexes was used [78].…”