Engineering Research Center of Materials Chemical Engineering of Xinjiang Bingtuan , Shihezi University , Xinjiang 832000 , P. R. China.
ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2018 Aug 1;10(30):25186-25193. doi: 10.1021/acsami.8b08159. Epub 2018 Jul 18.
Aggregation-induced emission (AIE) imaging probes have recently received considerable attention because of their unique property of high performance in the aggregated state and their imaging capability. However, the tendency of AIE molecules to aggregate into micron long irregular shapes, which significantly limits their application in vivo, is becoming a serious issue that needs to be addressed. Here, we introduce a novel engineering strategy to tune the morphology and size of AIE nanoaggregates, based on flash nanoprecipitation (FNP). Quinolinemalononitrile (ED) is encapsulated inside properly selected amphiphilic block copolymers of varying concentration. This leads to a variety of ED particle morphologies with different sizes. The shape and size are found to have strong influences on tumor targeting both in vitro and in vivo. The current results therefore indicate that the FNP method together with optimal choice of an amphiphilic copolymer is a universal method to systematically control the aggregation state of AIE materials and hence tune the morphology and size of AIE nanoaggregates, which is potentially useful for precise imaging at specific tumor sites.
聚集诱导发光（AIE）成像探针因其在聚集态下的高性能和成像能力而受到广泛关注。然而，AIE 分子倾向于聚集成长为微米长的不规则形状，这极大地限制了它们在体内的应用，这正在成为一个需要解决的严重问题。在这里，我们介绍了一种基于闪蒸纳米沉淀（FNP）的新型工程策略，用于调节 AIE 纳米聚集体的形态和尺寸。将喹啉-二腈（ED）封装在具有不同浓度的适当选择的两亲嵌段共聚物中。这导致了具有不同尺寸的各种 ED 颗粒形态。发现形状和尺寸对体外和体内的肿瘤靶向均有强烈影响。因此，目前的结果表明，FNP 方法结合最佳选择的两亲嵌段共聚物是一种通用的方法，可以系统地控制 AIE 材料的聚集状态，从而调节 AIE 纳米聚集体的形态和尺寸，这对于在特定肿瘤部位进行精确成像可能是有用的。
