Phosphate-Functionalized Stabilized F127 Nanoparticles: Introduction of Discrete Surface Charges and Electrophoretic Determination of Aggregation Number

Pluronic F127 forms spherical micelle with a defined number of molecules aggregated in aqueous environments. Such self-assembled micelles dissociate into unimers below certain concentration and temperature. We stabilized the micelles by semi-interpenetrating network (sIPN) formation within the hydrophobic core in the presence of a fluorescent dye. Additionally, by varying the mixing ratio of negatively charged and pristine F127s we prepared thermally stable polymeric nanoparticles with discrete surface charges within nearly same sizes. Using the nanomaterials with prescribed number of charges, we demonstrate that the electrophoretic mobility of nanoparticles is solely depending on number of surface charges. Finally, the aggregation number (Nagg) of F127 was further determined by electrophoresis.