Department of Chemistry , Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur , Kharagpur 721302 , India.
Langmuir. 2019 Jan 29;35(4):848-861. doi: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.8b00779. Epub 2018 Jul 6.
The design and synthesis of biocompatible surfactants are important for a wide range of applications in cosmetics, personal care products, and nanomedicine. This feature article summarizes our studies over the past 8 years on the design, synthesis, surface activity, and self-assembly of a series of unconventional low-molecular-mass amphiphiles containing a poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) tail or spacer and different ionic or zwitterionic headgroups, including carboxylate, sulfonate, and quaternary ammonium salts. Despite having a so-called polar PEG chain as a tail or spacer, these ionic amphiphiles are found to have a tendency to adsorb at the air/water interface and self-assemble in pH 7.0 buffers at 298 K in the same way that conventional hydrocarbon tail surfactants do. However, they are observed to be relatively less surface-active compared to hydrocarbon tail surfactants. Although these amphiphilic molecules have less surface activity, they do self-assemble in aqueous buffer at 298 K, producing a range of microstructures, including spherical micelles, disclike micelles, and vesicles. In fact, our group is the first to report the self-assembly of PEG-tailed ionic amphiphiles in water at room temperature. Some of these molecules are also found to gel various organic liquids on heat-cool treatment or by ultrasound irradiation. We think that the present article will arouse general interest among researchers working toward the development of new biocompatible amphiphiles and soft materials.
生物相容性表面活性剂的设计和合成对于化妆品、个人护理产品和纳米医学等广泛领域的应用非常重要。这篇专题文章总结了我们在过去 8 年中对一系列含有聚乙二醇（PEG）尾或间隔基以及不同离子或两性离子头基的非常规低分子量两亲物的设计、合成、表面活性和自组装的研究，这些头基包括羧酸盐、磺酸盐和季铵盐。尽管这些离子两亲物具有所谓的极性 PEG 链作为尾或间隔基，但它们在 298 K 下的 pH 7.0 缓冲液中具有与常规烃尾表面活性剂相同的趋势，即在空气/水界面上吸附并自组装。然而，与烃尾表面活性剂相比，它们被观察到具有相对较低的表面活性。尽管这些两亲分子的表面活性较低，但它们确实在 298 K 的水性缓冲液中自组装，产生了一系列微观结构，包括球形胶束、盘状胶束和囊泡。事实上，我们小组是第一个报道 PEG 尾离子两亲物在室温下自组装在水中的。还发现其中一些分子通过加热-冷却处理或超声辐射能够使各种有机液体凝胶化。我们认为，本文将引起从事新型生物相容性两亲物和软物质开发的研究人员的普遍兴趣。
