ArticleMacromolecules2026
Effect of Polymer Structure on the Thermodynamics of Polyelectrolyte Complex Micelle Formation.
Article in Macromolecules, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Ultrastable Water-in-Water Emulsions by Addition of Polyion Complex Micelles.Macromolecular rapid communications · 2026Article
- Composite biomaterials of polyelectrolyte complex micelle nanoparticles in hyaluronic acid gels enable local, targeted miR-92a inhibition and enhanced angiogenesis in diabetic wound repair.Journal of controlled release : official journal of the Controlled Release Society · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Polyelectrolyte complex micelles (PCMs) are nanoparticles that form through the associative phase separation between hydrophilic neutral-charged block copolymers and oppositely charged polyelectrolytes, resulting in a dense, charged core surrounded by a stabilizing neutral corona. Among other applications, these constructs have been studied as nonviral vectors for therapeutic nucleic acid delivery for a variety of potential clinical indications. Although prior research has focused on tailoring PCM morphology and size by modifying block polyelectrolyte characteristics, thermodynamic considerations have received comparatively little attention in the design of PCMs. In this study, we explore the dependencies of PCM complexation thermodynamics, particularly the entropy of complexation, on polyelectrolyte block length and PCM structure. We employ scattering (DLS, SAXS, MALS) to characterize PCM structure, while using isothermal titration calorimetry to provide quantitative thermodynamic data. Compared to complexation between homopolymers, we observe that PCM formation involving block polyelectrolytes introduces an entropic cost related to the neutral corona-forming block. This penalty depends on the sizes of the charged blocks but is relatively insensitive to the neutral block size. Scattering results show that PCM complexation entropy is not correlated with indicators of corona chain conformation, such as brush height and corona surface chain density. Rather, for PCMs composed of polymers with equal charged block lengths, complexation entropy is correlated with monomer density within the core and corona. Our findings also suggest a negligible free polymer concentration in PCM formulations with net neutral charge. These insights advance the rational design of block copolymers for encapsulating a wide array of therapeutically relevant cargos and deepen our understanding of the factors governing PCM formation.
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.