POS4-0208
Azo-Functionalized Polymersomes for Light-Triggered Membrane Permeabilization
Topic
S4. Colloids, Interfaces, and Molecular Assemblies for Functional Soft Materials
When and Where
Sep 29, 2026
08:30 - 09:30
Room 301 (Grand Ballroom)
Session Chairs
Hae Jung SON
Boseok KANG
Presenter(s)
Hyun Su Lee (POSTECH)
Co-Author(s)
Abstract
Polymersomes are synthetic vesicles based on a bilayer membrane formed through the self-assembly of amphiphilic block copolymers, and serve as versatile artificial cell models for applications including drug delivery, biosensing, and bioreactors. Polybutadiene-b-poly(ethylene oxide) (PB-PEO), an amphiphilic polymer widely used as a polymersome building block, offers low toxicity and excellent stability. However, PB-PEO polymersomes have been reported to exhibit low membrane permeability and restricted responsiveness to external stimuli. In this work, we synthesized an amphiphilic polymer in which azobenzene, a photoisomerizable moiety, is covalently incorporated into the PB-PEO backbone, to microfluidically synthesize polymersomes. As the resulting azo-polymersomes can precisely regulate the transport of neutral molecules and ions through photoisomerization under UV light, these light-responsive polymersomes allow selective delivery of molecules into artificial cell models at a desired time, as well as active control of internal biochemical reactions in response to external stimuli.
