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Updated: Feb 3, 2026

Bio-inspired Polydopamine Surface Modification of Nanodiamonds and Its Reduction of Silver Nanoparticles
Published on: November 14, 2018
Facile synthesis of ultrasmall polydopamine-polyethylene glycol nanoparticles for cellular delivery
Sean Harvey1, David Yuen Wah Ng1, Jolanta Szelwicka1
1Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, Ackermannweg 10, 55128 Mainz, Germany.
Abstract:
Very small polydopamine (PDA) polyethylene glycol (PEG) crosslinked copolymer (PDA-PEG) nanoparticles have been prepared following a convenient one-step procedure in aqueous solution. Particle sizes and colloidal stabilities have been optimized by varying PEG in view of chain length and end group functionalities. In particular, amine-terminated PEG3000 [PEG3000(NH2)2] reacted with polydopamine intermediates so that very small, crosslinked PDA-PEG nanoparticles with sizes of less than 50 nm were formed. These nanoparticles remained stable in buffer solution and no sedimentation occurred. Chemical functionalization was straight-forward as demonstrated by the attachment of fluorescent dyes. The PDA-PEG nanoparticles revealed efficient cellular uptake via endocytosis and high cytocompatibility, thus rendering them attractive candidates for cell imaging or for drug delivery applications.
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