Virus-like particles composed of sphere-forming polystyrene-block-poly(t-butyl acrylate) (PS-b-PtBA) and control of surface morphology by homopolymer blending

The present report describes the preparation of asymmetric polystyrene-block-poly(t-butyl acrylate) (PS-b-PtBA) particles having virus-like surface structures. Submicron-sized virus-like particles composed of asymmetric polystyrene-block-poly(t-butyl acrylate) (PS-b-PtBA) diblock copolymer particles with a dot pattern on the surface were prepared successfully using a simple solvent evaporation process. Particle surface morphology was controlled by mixing hPS with hPS of varying molecular weights and amounts. These results indicate that the surface morphology of virus-like particles can be controlled using asymmetric diblock copolymers and homopolymers. Deprotection of t-butyl moieties led to the formation of daughter particles with a size in the range of tens of nanometres. This process allows the development of new classes of functional particles useful for immunological diagnosis, drug delivery, and nanoscale-assembled architectures.