1 research outputs found
Entrapment and Rigidification of Adenine by a Photo-Cross-Linked Thymine Network Leads to Fluorescent Polymer Nanoparticles
Photo-cross-linking
of nucleobase-containing polymer micelles was
observed to result in fluorescent polymer nanoparticles. By varying
the micelle assembly conditions, it was possible to probe the origins
of this behavior. A number of factors were investigated, including
the effect of omitting one of the nucleobases, blocking hydrogen-bonding
interactions, detaching the nucleobase from the polymer backbone,
and changing the degree of core cross-linking. Spectroscopic investigations
were also carried out to further characterize the fluorescent nanoparticles.
These data revealed that no new small molecule fluorophores were created
during cross-linking and that a dense, hydrogen-bonded network of
photodimerized thymine with entrapped adenine was required for fluorescence
to arise. We conclude that rigidification and immobilization of adenine
in this way leads to the enhancement of an already extant fluorescence
pathway and suggests that synergistic covalent and supramolecular
entrapment of profluorophores may provide a general strategy for the
production of novel fluorescent polymer nanoparticles