Logic gate aggregation of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) nanogels with catechol substituents that respond to body heat

Shingo Tamesue, Shinji Abe, Takuo Endo, Takeshi Yamauchi

Index: 10.1038/s41428-018-0042-x

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Abstract

Smart hydrogel materials are a popular topic of investigation because they have the potential to be used as smart drug carriers and soft actuators. Hydrogel materials showing responsiveness to logic gate-type stimuli are of special interest because their responsiveness can be regulated more accurately than that of common stimuli-responsive materials. In this study, poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) nanogels containing catechol substituents in their polymer network structure were prepared via precipitation polymerization. The prepared nanogels showed AND-type logic gate thermal aggregation behavior. The possible use of this logic gate-type smart nanogel aggregating system was investigated in a smart valve system.