Protein-like particles through nanoprecipitation of mixtures of polymers of opposite charge

Hypothesis: Polymer nanoparticles (NPs) have a very high potential for applications notably in the biomedical field. However, synthetic polymer NPs cannot yet concurrence the functionalities of proteins, their natural counterparts, notably in terms of size, control over internal structure and interactions with biological environments. We hypothesize that kinetic trapping of polymers bearing oppositely charged groups in NPs could bring a new level of control and allow mimicking the surfaces of proteins. Experiments: Here, the assembly of mixed-charge polymer NPs through nanoprecipitation of mixtures of oppositely charged polymers is studied. Two series of copolymers made of ethyl methacrylate and 1 to 25 mol% of either methacrylic acid or a trimethylammonium bearing methacrylate are synthesized. These carboxylic acid or trimethylammonium bearing polymers are then mixed in different ratios and nanoprecipitated. The influence of the charge fraction, mixing ratio of the polymers, and precipitation conditions on NP size and surface charge is studied. Findings: Using this approach, NPs of less than 25 nm with tunable surface charge from +40 mV to-40 mV are assembled. The resulting NPs are sensitive to pH and certain NP formulations have an isoelectric point allowing repeated charge reversal. Encapsulation of fluorescent dyes yields very bright fluorescent NPs, whose interactions with cells are studied through fluorescence microscopy. The obtained results show the potential of nanoprecipitation of oppositely charged polymers for the design of NPs with precisely tuned surface properties. (c) 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The study investigates the assembly of mixed-charge polymer nanoparticles through nanoprecipitation of mixtures of oppositely charged polymers, examining the influence of charge fraction, polymer mixing ratio, and precipitation conditions on particle size and surface charge. The results show the potential of this method for designing nanoparticles with precisely tuned surface properties.