Prof. Dr. Axel Müller

We report the synthesis of hyperbranched glycopolymers by self-condensing vinyl copolymerization (SCVCP) of the methacrylic AB* inimer, 2-(2-bromoisobutyryloxy)ethyl methacrylate (BIEM) with 3-O-methacryloyl-1,2:5,6-di-O-isopropylidene-a-D-glucofuranose (MAIGlc) via atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP), followed by deprotection of the isopropylidene protecting groups. Homopolymerization of MAIGlc with the (PPh₃)₂NiBr₂ catalyst system in solution proceeds smoothly, resulting in linear poly(MAIGlc) having controlled molecular weights and narrow molecular weight distribution. The catalyst system could be applied for SCVCP to synthesize hyperbranched poly(MAIGlc)s, as confirmed by GPC, GPC/viscosity analyses, as well as ¹H, ¹³C, and 2D NMR measurements. Depending on the comonomer ratio, g = [MAIGlc]₀/[BIEM]₀, branched poly(MAIGlc)s with number-average molecular weights between 17,500 and 29,800 and Mark-Houwink exponents between 0.20 and 0.34 were obtained within reasonable polymerization time (4 h), the polymerization being very much faster than the corresponding glyco-polyacrylates. Deprotection of the isopropylidene protecting groups of the branched poly(MAIGlc)s resulted in water-soluble glycopolymers with randomly branched architectures, which were characterized by elemental analyses, ¹H NMR and FT-IR measurements.