Multiple-Responsive Chiral Hydrogels from Helical Dendronized Poly(phenylacetylene)s

Lei Wang; Quan-Sheng Li; Lin Yun; Afang Zhang; Wen Li

doi:10.1007/s10118-026-3715-5

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Multiple-Responsive Chiral Hydrogels from Helical Dendronized Poly(phenylacetylene)s

Special Topic: Chirality in Polymers | Updated：2026-08-31

- Multiple-Responsive Chiral Hydrogels from Helical Dendronized Poly(phenylacetylene)s
- Chinese Journal of Polymer Science Vol. 44, Issue 9, Pages: 2880-2890(2026)
- Affiliations：
  
  School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
- Author bio：
  
  azhang@shu.edu.cn (A.Z.)
  wli@shu.edu.cn (W.L.)
- Funds：
- DOI：10.1007/s10118-026-3715-5
  CLC：
- Received：01 March 2026，
  
  Accepted：14 April 2026，
  
  Online First：22 June 2026，
  
  Published：05 September 2026
- Accepted：
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Wang, L.; Li, Q. S.; Yun, L.; Zhang, A.; Li, W. Multiple-responsive chiral hydrogels from helical dendronized poly(phenylacetylene)s. Chinese J. Polym. Sci. 2026, 44, 2880–2890

Lei Wang, Quan-Sheng Li, Lin Yun, et al. Multiple-Responsive Chiral Hydrogels from Helical Dendronized Poly(phenylacetylene)s[J]. Chinese Journal of Polymer Science, 2026, 44(9): 2880-2890.
Wang, L.; Li, Q. S.; Yun, L.; Zhang, A.; Li, W. Multiple-responsive chiral hydrogels from helical dendronized poly(phenylacetylene)s. Chinese J. Polym. Sci. 2026, 44, 2880–2890 DOI： 10.1007/s10118-026-3715-5.

Lei Wang, Quan-Sheng Li, Lin Yun, et al. Multiple-Responsive Chiral Hydrogels from Helical Dendronized Poly(phenylacetylene)s[J]. Chinese Journal of Polymer Science, 2026, 44(9): 2880-2890. DOI： 10.1007/s10118-026-3715-5.

摘要

Chiral hydrogels were fabricated from helical dendronized poly(phenylacetylene)s through acylhydrazone linkage with a disulfide crosslinker. They exhibited responsiveness to temperature

and redox

and possessed characteristic stabilized helicity

reversible compression

and low cytotoxicity.

Abstract

Chiral hydrogels derived from helical polymers are attractive as intelligent chiral materials due to the combination of polymer helicity and hydrogel characteristics. Here

we report the synthesis and characterization of chiral hydrogels from helical thermoresponsive dendronized poly(phenylacetylene)s

via

dynamic covalent acylhydrazone crosslinking

which are responsive to temperature

pH and redox. Two types of helical copolymers

featuring dendritic oligoethylene glycol (OEG) units terminated with either methoxyl or ethoxyl groups

were employed as precursors to afford distinct overall hydrophilicity. These precursors exhibited unprecedented thermoresponsive behavior attributed to the densely grafted dendritic OEGs

with cloud points (

s) primarily governed by the terminal groups (methoxyl versus ethoxyl). To impart multi-responsiveness

a disulfide-containing crosslinker was selected for hydrogel formation. Gelation was conducted at three different tempe

ratures—freezing temperature

room temperature (below

)

and elevated temperature (above

)—yielding hydrogels with tunable responsiveness to temperature

and redox conditions. The resulting hydrogels displayed stabilized helicity

along with good self-healing properties

excellent compressibility and robust mechanical performance. Preliminary biocompatibility assays indicated low cytotoxicity

underscoring their potential for biomedical applications.

关键词

Keywords

references

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