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Homopolymers have been considered as a nonideal building block for creating well-defined nanostructures due to their fuzzy boundary between hydrophobic and hydrophilic moieties. However, this unique fuzzy boundary may provide some opportunities for fabricating functional nanomaterials. Presented in this paper is a pH-responsive multifunctional homopolymer vesicle based on poly[2-hydroxy-3-(naphthalen-1-ylamino)propyl methacrylate] (PHNA). This vesicle is confirmed to be an excellent supporter for gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) to facilitate the reduction reaction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP). The pH-responsive vesicle membrane favors the effective embedding and full immobilization of AuNPs because it is kinetically frozen under neutral and basic environments, preventing AuNPs from aggregation. Meanwhile, there is a synergistic effect between the AuNPs and the supporter (PHNA vesicle). Due to the π-π interaction between the naphthalene pendants in every repeat unit of PHNA and the extra aromatic compounds, a substrate-rich (high concentration of 4-NP) microenvironment can be created around AuNPs, which can dramatically accelerate the AuNPs-catalyzed reactions. In addition, we proposed a method for more accurately determining the membrane thickness of rigid polymer vesicles from TEM images based on "stack-up" vesicles, which may overturn the measuring method commonly used by far. Moreover, proof-of-concept studies showed that those homopolymer vesicles may be used as a powerful adsorbent for effective water remediation to remove trace carcinogenic organic pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons to below parts per billion (ppb) level at a very fast rate based on the π-π interaction between the naphthalene pendants in PHNA vesicle and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Overall, this multifunctional homopolymer vesicle provides an alternative insight on preparing effective recyclable AuNPs-decorated nanoreactor and powerful water remediation adsorbent.

As an emerging field that is receiving an increasing amount of interest, theranostics is becoming increasingly important in the field of nanomedicine. Among the various smart platforms that have been proposed for use in theranostics, polymer vesicles (or polymersomes) are among the most promising candidates for integration of designated functionalities and modalities. Here, a brief summary of typical theranostic platforms is presented with a focus on modular polymer vesicles. To highlight modularity, the different methodologies for designing therapeutic and diagnostic modules are classified and current examples of theranostic vesicles that excel in both performance and design principle are provided. Finally, future prospects for theranostic polymer vesicles that can be readily prepared with functional modules are proposed. Overall, theranostic polymer vesicles with modular modalities and functions are more promising in nanomedicine than simply being "over-engineered".

Nitrogen-doped hollow carbon spheres were prepared from scalable homopolymer vesicles and used as the electrode materials of high-performance supercapacitors.

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