Synthesis of Novel Graft Copolymers
Shirin Alexander
My research project is mainly involved in the study of Pluronics and their properties in solution. Pluronics are amphiphilic tri-block copolymers with poly(ethylene oxide) at both ends of the chain and poly(propylene oxide) as the middle block. Pluronics are very temperature and concentration sensitive and because of the hydrophobic properties of the PPO block, they form micelles with a core of PPO and shell of PEO above their Critical Micelle Concentration (CMC). This makes them very suitable compounds for drug delivery or gene therapy.
My project is concerned with synthesising novel graft copolymers of pluronics to make them less sensitive to pH and temperature, therefore better drug carriers.
Contact: sk4350@bristol.ac.uk
