Poly(2-oxazoline)s have recently been discussed in the context of biomedical applications due to their biocompatibility as well as their stealth behavior which has been shown to be comparable to that of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO). In addition, linear poly(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline) (PEtOx) exhibits a lower critical solution temperature in water above a certain molar mass. Whereas a lot of work has been devoted to linear examples, literature on star-shaped poly(2-oxazolines) and any respective block copolymers to date is scarce. Here, we present the synthesis, characterization, and self-assembly of star-shaped block copolymers with an outer block of PEtOx. The inner block consists of either poly(e-caprolactone) (PCL, hydrophobic) or poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO, hydrophilic) segments. The materials were synthesized via a convergent approach, i.e. the attachment of accordingly functionalized PEtOx homopolymers to a star-shaped PCL or PEO core through Cu-catalyzed cycloaddition reactions.

Star-shaped block copolymers with a responsive poly(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline) shell: Synthesis and self-assembly in dilute solution

243rd National Meeting (2012)

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