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Carbon monoxide (CO) is an important gaseous signaling molecule. The use of CO-releasing molecules such as metal carbonyls enables the elucidation of the pleiotropic functions of CO. Although metal carbonyls show a broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity, it remains unclear whether the bactericidal property originates from the transition metals or the released CO. Here, we develop nonmetallic CO-releasing micelles via a photooxygenation mechanism of 3-hydroxyflavone derivatives, enabling CO release under red light irradiation (e.g., 650 nm). Unlike metal carbonyls that non-specifically internalize into both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, the nonmetallic micelles are selectively taken up by S. aureus instead of E. coli cells, exerting a selective bactericidal effect. Further, we demonstrate that the CO-releasing micelles can cure methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA)-infected wounds, simultaneously eradicating MRSA pathogens and accelerating wound healing.

The development of near-infrared (NIR) J-aggregates has received increasing attention due to their broad applications. Here, we report the nitrosation of an amine-containing aza-BODIPY precursor (BDP-NH

It is of particular interest to develop new antibacterial agents with low risk of drug resistance development and low toxicity toward mammalian cells to combat pathogen infections. Although gaseous signaling molecules (GSMs) such as nitric oxide (NO) and formaldehyde (FA) have broad-spectrum antibacterial performance and the low propensity of drug resistance development, many previous studies heavily focused on nanocarriers capable of delivering only one GSM. Herein, we developed a micellar nanoparticle platform that can simultaneously deliver NO and FA under visible light irradiation. An amphiphilic diblock copolymer of poly(ethylene oxide)-b-poly(4-((2-nitro-5-(((2-nitrobenzyl)oxy)methoxy)benzyl)(nitroso)amino)benzyl methacrylate) (PEO-b-PNNBM) was successfully synthesized through atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). The resulting diblock copolymer self-assembled into micellar nanoparticles without premature NO and FA leakage, whereas they underwent phototriggered disassembly with the corelease of NO and FA. We showed that the NO- and FA-releasing micellar nanoparticles exhibited a combinatorial antibacterial performance, efficiently killing both Gram-negative (e.g., Escherichia coli) and Gram-positive (e.g., Staphylococcus aureus) bacteria with low toxicity to mammalian cells and low hemolytic property. This work provides new insights into the development of GSM-based antibacterial agents.

The emerging therapeutic potential of nitric oxide (NO) has spurred the rapid development of NO donors to maximize the therapeutic outcomes. Although polymeric NO donors have shown extended release times and optimized biodistributions, many of these macromolecular NO donors are non-degradable. Herein, we devise a macromolecular NO donor by integrating photoresponsive N,N'-dinitroso-p-phenylenediamine (DNP) derivatives into the middle block of an amphiphilic triblock copolymer and the photo-mediated NO release process transforms the DNP to quinondimine (QDI) moieties, enabling the degradation of the resulting polymers due to the spontaneous hydrolysis of QDI moieties. We demonstrated that the NO release process could be selectively activated under visible light irradiation both in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, the simultaneous release of NO and DOX could be achieved under visible light by taking advantage of the NO release-mediated micelle disassembly. This work provides new insights into the design of degradable macromolecular NO donors where the polymer breakdown could be actuated by triggered NO release.

Hydrogels have found promising applications in drug delivery due to their biocompatibility, high drug loading capability, and tunable release profiles. However, hydrogel-based carriers are primarily employed for delivering hydrophilic payloads while hydrophobic drugs cannot be efficiently delivered due to the lack of hydrophobic domains within conventional hydrogel matrices. Herein, we report that thermo- and photo-responsive hydrogels could be constructed from amphiphilic triblock copolymers, poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)-b-poly(4-acryloylmorpholine)-b-poly(2-((((2-nitrobenzyl)oxy)carbonyl) amino)ethyl methacrylate) (PNIPAM-b-PNAM-b-PNBOC), and the resulting hydrogels could be further engineered a new carrier for both hydrophilic gemcitabine (GCT) and hydrophobic doxorubicin (DOX). PNIPAM-b-PNAM-b-PNBOC triblock copolymers were first self-assembled into micelles with hydrophobic photosensitive PNBOC cores, hydrophilic PNAM inner shells, and thermoresponsive PNIPAM coronas below the lower critical solution temperature (LCST), while hydrogels of physically cross-linked micellar nanoparticles were achieved at elevated polymer concentrations and high temperatures above the critical gelation temperature (CGT). Rheological experiments revealed that the CGT was highly dependent on polymer compositions and concentrations, that is, a longer hydrophobic PNBOC block or a higher polymer concentration led to a decreased CGT. However, the CGT prior to UV irradiation (CGT0) could be drastically elevated after UV irradiation (CGTUV) as a result of UV irradiation-induced concurrently cross-linking and hydrophobic-to-hydrophilic transition within PNBOC cores. As such, gel-to-sol transition could be accomplished by either temperature decrease or exposure to UV irradiation at a fixed temperature lower than the CGTUV. Note that both GCT and DOX could be simultaneously encapsulated into the hydrogels due to the coexistence of extramicellar aqueous phase and hydrophobic micellar cores. Intriguingly, the subsequent co-release of GCT and DOX could be regulated by taking advantage of either temperature or UV irradiation-mediated gel-to-sol transitions.

Carbon monoxide (CO) has emerged as a potential therapeutic agent for the treatment of many diseases. However, the therapeutic outcome is highly dependent on the dosages and administration sites. Hence, there is mounting interest in the development of CO-releasing materials to accomplish site-specific and dose-controlled delivery of CO. Herein, a micellar nanoparticle platform for the photo-mediated release of CO by using amphiphilic triblock copolymers bearing CO-releasing moieties of 3-hydroxylflavone (3-HF) derivatives within the middle blocks is developed. These micelles are relatively stable without CO leakage but undergo visible light-mediated CO release and simultaneous main chain scission. Moreover, these micellar nanoparticles are cytocompatible regardless of light irradiation, which shows unique anti-inflammatory performance only after light irradiation as a result of photo-triggered CO release. This work may represent the first example of main-chain degradable micellar nanocarriers with controlled CO-releasing performance for potential anti-inflammatory applications.

Spatiotemporal switching of respective phototherapy modes at the cellular level with minimum side effects and high therapeutic efficacy is a major challenge for cancer phototherapy. Herein we demonstrate how to address this issue by employing photosensitizer-conjugated pH-responsive block copolymers in combination with intracellular endocytic pH gradients. At neutral pH corresponding to extracellular and cytosol milieu, the copolymers self-assemble into micelles with prominently quenched fluorescence emission and low (1)O2 generation capability, favoring a highly efficient photothermal module. Under mildly acidic pH associated with endolysosomes, protonation-triggered micelle-to-unimer transition results in recovered emission and enhanced photodynamic (1)O2 efficiency, which synergistically actuates release of encapsulated drugs, endosomal escape, and photochemical internalization processes.

We report on the fabrication of a photodegradable gene-delivery vector based on PEO-b-P(GMA-g- PDMAEMA) neutral-cationic brush block copolymers that possess cationic poly(N,N-dimethylaminoethyl metha- crylate) (PDMAEMA) brushes for DNA compaction, poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) as a hydrophilic block, and poly(glycidyl methacrylate) (PGMA) as the backbone. The PEO-b- P(GMA-g-PDMAEMA) copolymers were synthesized through the combina- tion of reversible addition-fragmenta- tion transfer (RAFT) polymerization and postmodification. A photocleava- ble PEO-based macroRAFT agent was first synthesized; next, the PEO-b- PGMA block copolymer was prepared by RAFT polymerization of GMA; this was followed by a click reaction to introduce the RAFT initiators on the side chains of the PGMA block; then, RAFT polymerization of DMAEMA afforded the PEO-b-P(GMA-g- PDMAEMA) copolymer. The obtained neutral-cationic brush block copolymer could effectively complex plasmid DNA (pDNA) into nanoparticles at an N/P ratio (i.e., the number of nitrogen residues per DNA phosphate) of 4. Upon UV irradiation, pDNA could be released owing to cleavage of the pDNA-binding cationic PDMAEMA side chains as well as the nitrobenzyl ester linkages at the diblock junction point. In addition, in vitro gene trans- fection results demonstrated that the polyplexes could be effectively inter- nalized by cells with good transfection efficiency, and the UV irradiation pro- tocol could considerably enhance the efficiency of gene transfection.

The development of portable and inexpensive detection methods can significantly contribute to the prevention of water-borne infectious diseases caused by pathogenic bacteria. Here we designed a nanosystem capable of both bacterial detection and inhibition, where polyion complex (PIC) micelles are constructed from negatively-charged tetraphenylethylene (TPE) sulfonate derivatives, which exhibit the aggregation-induced emission (AIE) feature, and cationic diblock copolymers, poly(ethylene oxide)-b-quaternized poly(2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate) (PEO-b-PQDMA). Upon contacting with bacteria, the PIC nanosystem disintegrates presumably due to competitive binding of polycation blocks with negatively-charged bacterial surfaces. This process is accompanied by a conspicuous quenching of TPE fluorescence emission, serving as a real-time module for microbial detection. Furthermore, the sharp decrease in CFU is indicative of prominent anti-microbial activities. Thus, PIC micelles possess dual functions of fluorometric detection and inhibition for bacteria in aqueous media. By tuning the charge density of TPE sulfonate derivatives and chain length of cationic PQDMA blocks, optimal performance against Gram-negative Escherichia coli has been achieved with a detection limit of 5.5 × 10(4) CFU/mL and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 19.7 μg/mL. Tests against Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus were also conducted to demonstrate versatility of the nanosystem.

We report on thermo- and light-regulated formation and disintegration of double hydrophilic block copolymer (DHBC) micelles associated with tunable fluorescence emissions by employing two types of DHBCs covalently labeled with fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) donor and acceptor moieties, respectively, within the light and temperature dually responsive block. Both DHBCs are molecularly soluble at room temperature in their aqueous mixture, whereas, upon heating to above the critical micellization temperature (CMT, ~31 °C), they coassemble into mixed micelles possessing hydrophilic coronas and mixed cores containing FRET donors and acceptors. Accordingly, the closer spatial proximity between the FRET pair (NBDAE and RhBEA moieties) within micellar cores leads to substantially enhanced FRET efficiency, compared to that in the non-aggregated unimer state. Moreover, upon UV irradiation, the light-reactive moieties undergo light-cleavage reaction and transform into negatively charged carboxylate residues, leading to elevated CMT (∼46 °C). Thus, thermo-induced mixed micelles in the intermediate temperature range (31 °CT46 °C) undergo light-triggered disintegration into unimers, accompanied with the decrease of FRET efficiency. Overall, the coassembly and disassembly occurring in the mixed DHBC solution can be dually regulated by temperature and UV irradiation, and most importantly, these processes can be facilely monitored via changes in FRET efficiency and distinct emission colors.

Endosomal escape is of crucial importance to increase the therapeutic efficacy for nanoparticle-based drug and gene delivery. It has been long presumed that pH-responsive polymeric nanocarriers are potent in aiding endosomal escape due to the "proton sponge" effect; however, the intracellular pH (pHi) gradients subjected by pH-responsive nanocarriers during endocytic and endosomal escaping processes remain to be quantified and elucidated. We herein report the fabrication of ultrasensitive ratiometric fluorescent pHi imaging probes with robust endosomal escaping capability derived from dual dye-labeled pH-responsive block copolymers, which can directly monitor endosomal escape in living cells and quantitatively measure pHi variations during the entire endocytic and endosomolytic processes. Micellar nanoparticle-based pHi sensors could be efficiently internalized into cells via endocytosis where micelle-to-unimer transition occurs, followed by endosomal escape into the cytosol. This process is accompanied by deactivation of blue coumarin emission within acidic organelles and restored blue/red dual emissions within the neutral cytosolic milieu, allowing for ratiometric fluorescent imaging of entire pHi gradients subjected by micellar nanoparticles following the endocytic transport pathway.

Novel neutral-cationic brush block copolymer, poly[oligo(ethylene glycol) monomethyl ether methacrylate-co-folic acid methacrylate]-b-poly[2-(2-(2-(2-bromo-2-methylpropanoyloxy)-ethyl) disulfanyl) ethyl methacrylate-g-2-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate], P(OEGMA-co-FAMA)-b-P(BSSMA-g-PDMAEMA), is synthesized via consecutive controlled radical polymerizations. Containing disulfide linkages bridging backbone and side chains in the cationic brush block and cancer cell-targeting ligands (folic acid) in the neutral hydrophilic block, the diblock copolymer is employed as a tumor-targeted redox-responsive degradable nonviral gene delivery vector. P(OEGMA-co-FAMA)-b-P(BSSMA-g-PDMAEMA) brush block copolymers can condense plasmid DNA (pDNA) efficiently via the formation of electrostatic polyplex micelles. Under reductive milieu, pDNA can be released due to the cleavage of disulfide linkages and accordingly pDNA-binding cationic PDMAEMA side chains. In addition, the brush block copolymer exhibits low cytotoxicity and the corresponding polyplex micelles show relatively high gene transfection efficiency.

Core cross-linked (CCL) polymeric micelles covalently labeled with DOTA(Gd) and green- emitting NBD fluorophores within pH-responsive cores are fabricated, which can serve as a dual-modality MR/fluorescence imaging system and exhibit mildly acidic pH-triggered turn-on or enhancement of signal intensities for both imaging modalities. Compared to non-crosslinked diblock precursor, CCL micelles demonstrate better MR and fluorescence imaging performance due to structural stability and integrity endowed by the core cross-linking procedure. Furthermore, selective enhancement of MR/fluorescence imaging signal intensities of the dual-modality imaging system can also be actuated under specific intracellular microenvironments such as mildly acidic organelles.

We report on the fabrication of multifunctional polymeric unimolecular micelles as an integrated platform for cancer targeted drug delivery and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast enhancement under in vitro and in vivo conditions. Starting from a fractionated fourth-generation hyperbranched polyester (Boltorn H40), the ring-opening polymerization of ɛ-caprolactone (CL) from the periphery of H40 and subsequent terminal group esterification with 2-bromoisobutyryl bromide afforded star copolymer-based atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) macroinitiator, H40-PCL-Br. Well-defined multiarm star block copolymers, H40-PCL-b-P(OEGMA-co-AzPMA), were then synthesized by the ATRP of oligo(ethylene glycol) monomethyl ether methacrylate (OEGMA) and 3-azidopropyl methacrylate (AzPMA). This was followed by the click reaction of H40-PCL-b-P(OEGMA-co-AzPMA) with alkynyl-functionalized cancer cell-targeting moieties, alkynyl-folate, and T(1)-type MRI contrast agents, alkynyl-DOTA-Gd (DOTA is 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetrakisacetic acid), affording H40-PCL-b-P(OEGMA-Gd-FA). In aqueous solution, the amphiphilic multiarm star block copolymer exists as structurally stable unimolecular micelles possessing a hyperbranched polyester core, a hydrophobic PCL inner layer, and a hydrophilic P(OEGMA-Gd-FA) outer corona. H40-PCL-b-P(OEGMA-Gd-FA) unimolecular micelles are capable of encapsulating paclitaxel, a well-known hydrophobic anticancer drug, with a loading content of 6.67 w/w% and exhibiting controlled release of up to 80% loaded drug over a time period of ∼120 h. In vitro MRI experiments demonstrated considerably enhanced T(1) relaxivity (18.14 s(-1) mM(-1)) for unimolecular micelles compared to 3.12 s(-1) mM(-1) for that of the small molecule counterpart, alkynyl-DOTA-Gd. Further experiments of in vivo MR imaging in rats revealed good accumulation of unimolecular micelles within rat liver and kidney, prominent positive contrast enhancement, and relatively long duration of blood circulation. The reported unimolecular micelles-based structurally stable nanocarriers synergistically integrated with cancer targeted drug delivery and controlled release and MR imaging functions augur well for their potential applications as theranostic systems.