Bottlebrush copolymers or molecular brushes are graft copolymers containing long backbone with densely grafted side chains. The repulsions between side chains force the backbone to retain an extended conformation, giving rise to stable, shape-persistent macromolecules. With advances in polymer synthesis, bottlebrushes of desired length, grafting density and molecular weights can be prepared. This controlled synthesis has created opportunities for using brushes for a variety of applications such as photonics, lithography, imaging, sensing and drug-delivery. In this study, synthesis of bottlebrush copolymers with bioactive and photoactive side chains has been explored using various polymerization methods. In the first part, bottlebrush copolymers based on 2’-deoxycytidine analogues have been synthesized using a combination of step-growth and controlled chain polymerizations. Macromonomers containing bioactive repeat units were first prepared by step growth polymerization and subsequent end-group functionalization. The synthesis of corresponding bottlebrush copolymers was then explored using various controlled chain polymerization techniques. Furthermore, their potential for therapeutic applications has been investigated. In the second part, bottlebrush block copolymers bearing photo-active coumarin moieties and degradable polymeric side chains have been synthesized using living polymerization techniques. These brushes have been further utilized in preparing porous network materials with properties that are tunable for various applications.

Synthesis of functional bottlebrush copolymers

2019 Fall National Meeting

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