title: Self-assembly modulation in ionic PAMAM derivatives.
abstract: The self-assembly behaviour both in the bulk and water of a series of amphiphilic dendrimers constituted by second generation PAMAM ionically functionalized with different amounts of myristic acid is shown here. The number of acids in the dendrimer determines the liquid-crystal properties and the structural parameters of their supramolecular organization. Most of them present mesomorphism, organizing in a smectic A mesophase, with a layer spacing decreasing when increasing the number of acids. All these dendrimers form well-defined nanoobjects in water. Micelles and broken lamellae have been found for compounds with low acid contents. In contrast, dendrimers with higher fatty acid contents self-assemble forming nanospheres with a lamellar nanostructure. All compounds are able to trap the hydrophobic molecule 9,10-diphenylanthracene independent of the acid contents. Interestingly, the trapped hydrophobic molecule dominates the self-assembly trend of the dendrimers with low acid contents and thus different nanoobjects are found after the encapsulation.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Química Orgánica, Facultad de Ciencias-Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Aragón, CSIC, Pedro Cerbuna 12, 50009-Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hernández-Ainsa
authors.forename: Elisabetta
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fedeli
authors.forename: Joaquín
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Barberá
authors.forename: Mercedes
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Marcos
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sierra
authors.forename: José Luis
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Serrano
mesh_terms: D000143:Acids / Q000737:chemistry; D050091:Dendrimers / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D008823:Micelles
chemical_list: D000143:Acids; D050091:Dendrimers; D008823:Micelles; C104700:PAMAM Starburst