Well-defined polymer scaffolds convertible to (multi)functional polymer structures via selective and efficient modifications potentially provide an easy, versatile, and useful approach for a wide variety of applications. Considering this, a homopolymer scaffold, poly(pyridyldisulfide ethylmethacrylate) (poly(PDSM)), having pendant groups selectively reactive with thiols, was synthesized by reversible addition fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. Soluble polymers with controlled molecular weights and narrow PDIs were generated efficiently. The versatility of the scaffold to generate random co- and ter-polymers combining multiple functionalities with controlled-composition was shown by separate and simultaneous conjugation of different mercapto-compounds, including a tripeptide in one-step. Conversion of water-insoluble scaffold to peptide-containing water-soluble copolymers was observed to yield nanometer-size particles with narrow polydispersity. The overall results suggest that the well-defined PDSM homopolymer scaffold generated via RAFT polymerization can be a versatile building block for generation of new structures having potential for drug delivery applications via a straightforward synthetic approach.

Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of oligo(ethylene glycol) (OEG)-tethered molecules on gold are important for various biorelevant applications ranging from biomaterials to bioanalytical devices, where surface resistance to nonspecific protein adsorption is needed. Incorporation of a stimuli-responsive character to the OEG SAMs enables the creation of nonfouling surfaces with switchable functionality. Here we present an OEG-derived structure that is highly responsive to temperature changes in the vicinity of the physiological temperature, 37 degrees C. The temperature-responsive solution behavior of this new compound was demonstrated by UV-vis and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Its chemisorption onto gold(111), and the retention of responsive behavior after chemisorption have been demonstrated by surface plasmon resonance (SPR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and atomic force and scanning tunneling microscopy. The OEG-derived SAMs have been shown to reversibly switch the wettability of the surface, as determined by contact angle measurements. More importantly, SPR and AFM studies showed that the OEG SAMs can be utilized to control the affinity binding of streptavidin to the biotin-tethered surface in a temperature-dependent manner while still offering the nonspecific protein-resistance to the surface.

Label free imaging of the chemical environment of biological specimens would readily bridge the supramolecular and the cellular scales, if a chemical fingerprint technique such as Raman scattering can be coupled with super resolution imaging. We demonstrate the possibility of label-free super-resolution Raman imaging, by applying stochastic reconstruction to temporal fluctuations of the surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) signal which originate from biomolecular layers on large-area plasmonic surfaces with a high and uniform hot-spot density (>1011/cm2, 20 to 35 nm spacing). A resolution of 20 nm is demonstrated in reconstructed images of self-assembled peptide network and fibrilated lamellipodia of cardiomyocytes. Blink rate density is observed to be proportional to the excitation intensity and at high excitation densities (>10 kW/cm2) blinking is accompanied by molecular breakdown. However, at low powers, simultaneous Raman measurements show that SERS can provide sufficient blink rates required for image reconstruction without completely damaging the chemical structure.