Thermally Triggered Frame-Guided Assembly

We report a thermally triggered frame-guided assembly (FGA) strategy for the preparation of vesicles. We employ thermally responsive poly(propylene oxide) (PPO) to make the leading hydrophobic groups (LHGs) thermally responsive, so that they are hydrophilic below the low critical solution temperature (LCST) and the frame forms in a homogeneous environment. When the temperature is increased above the LCST, the LHGs become hydrophobic and the assembly process is triggered, which drives DNA-beta-PPO to assemble around the LHGs, forming vesicles. This work verified that FGA is a general strategy and can be applied to polymeric systems. The thermally triggered assembly not only provides more controllability over the FGA process but also promotes an in-depth understanding of the FGA strategy and in a broad view, the formation mechanism and functions of cell membrane.