Polymer Chemistry Blog

Dr. Cyrille Boyer received his PhD in polymer chemistry in 2005 from the University of Montpellier II.  His PhD was in collaboration with Solvay-Solexis and devoted to the synthesis of new graft copolymers using grafting “onto” under the supervision of Prof. B. Boutevin and Prof. J.J. Robin. In 2005, he undertook an engineer position with Dupont Performance and Elastomers dealing with the synthesis of original fluorinated elastomers using controlled radical polymerization (e.g., iodine transfer polymerization). In October 2006, he joined the Centre for Advanced Macromolecular Design (CAMD) as a senior research fellow under the direction of Prof. Tom Davis. In 2009, he got an Australian Post-Doctoral Fellowship from the Australian Research Council (ARC). Recently, Dr. Cyrille Boyer has been appointed as a Nanomedicine Lecturer at the University of New South Wales. His research interests mainly cover the preparation of well-defined polymers for drug delivery and imaging applications, protein-polymer conjugates and hybrid organic-inorganic nanoparticles using controlled radical polymerization. He is also working on the preparation of new systems for energy storage using hybrid organic/inorganic nanomaterials. He has co-authored over 70 peer-reviewed research papers, including two book chapters and two international patents.

Please follow the link to get more information about Cyrille’s laboratory and his recent paper in Polymer Chemistry.What was your inspiration in becoming a chemist?
When I was a child, I was very interested in science, in particular chemistry. With chemistry, it is possible to construct/build complex molecules from basic compounds. It is like playing LEGO at the molecular level. I enjoy the bench work and exploring new types of chemistry. My recent Nanomedicine Lectureship position allows me to use my knowledge in polymer sciences to prepare new nanomaterials for applications in nanomedicine. Currently, I am involved in developing new therapies for neuroblastoma and liver diseases in collaboration with Children’s Cancer Institute Australia and Westmead Millennium Institute.

What was the motivation behind the research in your recent Polymer Chemistry paper? (DOI: 10.1039/c1py00102g)
The star polymer structure presents very interesting properties for bio-applications due to their small size as underlined by the great work of Kris Matyjaszewsky (Carnegie Mellon) and Gregg Qiao (University of Melbourne). However, when I started to work on star polymers, I realized it was very difficult to obtain well-defined star polymers with a very high incorporation of arms using the RAFT process and decided to focus my efforts to optimize this process in collaboration with Dave Haddleton, Mike Whittaker and Tom Davis.  Now with this recent success, we are very excited and will continue our work with the plan to exploit these star polymers for drug/gene delivery and for imaging applications.

Why did you choose Polymer Chemistry to publish your work?
I believe this journal has a huge potential and it will become one of the top journals in polymer science. I was immediately impressed with the high quality papers that appeared in the first edition.

In which upcoming conferences may our readers meet you?
I am going to Frontiers in Polymer Science at the end of May in Lyon (France), American Chemical Society in Denver at the end of August.  At these conferences, I will be presenting the latest outcomes of this on-going research program into RAFT polymer stars. I am also organising a special “Early Career Researcher” symposium as part of the 2^nd International Nanomedicine Conference to be held in Sydney July 2011 (http://oznanomed.org/). It’s 3 days of great science and I welcome everyone to attend.

How do you spend your spare time?
I like to go to the cinema with friends, and practice sport. When I am on my own I always enjoy a good book.

Which profession would you choose if you were not a scientist?
I would love to be a wine maker because I like to drink good wine and my family has some experience in the wine industry. My parents operate a vineyard in the area of Avignon (France); “La Bignande Des Clos”. This is still possible and perhaps something I will consider when I will retire…

Didier Gigmes got his education in chemistry at the University Paul Cezanne (Marseille, France). In 1998, he received his PhD in organic chemistry under the guidance of Prof. Paul Tordo (Marseille, France). He completed a first postdoctoral fellowship at Elf-Atochem, North America in Pennsylvania (USA) under the supervision of Dr. Gary Silverman. Then, he came back to France to work as a postdoctoral fellow under the supervision of Prof. Paul Tordo in Marseille. In 2001 he obtained a position of researcher at CNRS to develop nitroxide-mediated polymerization (NMP). In 2008 he defended his Habilitation at the University of Provence and became a group leader in June 2008. In October 2010, he was appointed Research Director at CNRS. During the past few years he has been working on the development of NMP and particularly the design of a highly efficient SG1-based alkoxyamine. After a significant contribution to the understanding of the mechanisms involved in NMP, one of his main concerns is now to promote NMP in material science for various applications such as biomaterials, environment and energy.

Please follow the link to get more information about Didier’s laboratory and his recent paper in Polymer Chemistry.

What was your inspiration in becoming a scientist?
During my education at the University I met two supervisors who strongly influenced my career choices. I can say that working and discussing with Pr. J.-P. Galy and Pr. P. Tordo made me realize the incredible scope of applications of chemistry and that being a scientist is extremely exciting and not so conventional a job.

What was the motivation behind the research in your recent Polymer Chemistry paper? (DOI: 10.1039/C1PY00057H)
I was investigating the potential of the radical reactivity of highly labile alkoxyamines. We discovered that by using this kind of compounds, we were able to perform particularly clean 1,2-intermolecular radical addition onto activated olefins. Then, we exploited this reactivity as an efficient, simple and versatile synthetic tool to prepare advanced polymer materials. I like when ideas are simple to set up.

Why did you choose Polymer Chemistry to publish your work?
I was immediately convinced when I heard about the launch of Polymer Chemistry journal. Obviously, the number of papers in science increases year after year, therefore having different high level journals that offer the possibility to publish scientific achievements of the community is mandatory. I really appreciate Polymer Chemistry for the quality of the contributions and also because it is really professional. The review and publication processes are particularly fast and efficient.

At which upcoming conferences may our readers meet you?
In 2011, I plan to attend the up-coming polymer conference in Granada at European Polymer Congress in July and the ACS Meeting in Denver end August.

How do you spend your spare time?
My spare time is devoted to sport. Playing tennis with my daughters and cycling alone or with friends. It’s good for the shape and also for the mind.

Which profession would you choose if you were not a scientist?
I think I would have wanted to become a physician. This is probably why I’m very interested in research studies dealing with the synthesis and the use of polymer materials designed for biomedical applications.

Krzysztof (Kris) Matyjaszewski received his PhD degree in 1976 at the Polish Academy of Sciences under Prof. S. Penczek.  Since 1985 he has been at Carnegie Mellon University where he is currently J. C. Warner University Professor of Natural Sciences and director of Center for Macromolecular Engineering. He is also Adjunct Professor at the University of Pittsburgh and at the Polish Academy of Sciences. Kris is the editor of Progress in Polymer Science and Central European Journal of Chemistry. His publications have been cited over 42,000 times. His research interests include controlled/living radical polymerization, catalysis, environmental chemistry, and advanced materials for optoelectronic and biomedical applications.

Please follow the link to get more information about Kris’ research group and his recent paper in Polymer Chemistry.

What was your inspiration in becoming a chemist?
Chemistry is a central science that bridges efficiently with many other disciplines. Perhaps the most exciting is its molecular aspect  enabling creation of new compounds and new matter.

What was the motivation behind the research in your recent Polymer Chemistry paper? (DOI: 10.1039/C1PY00050K)
Controlled radical polymerization, including ATRP, allows chemists to link well-defined synthetic polymers with inorganics but also with natural products. Using genetically modified GFP with ATRP initiating sites and entrapping it inside nanogels is a continuation of collaboration with Ryan Mehl’s group and was spearheaded by Saadyah Averick, a talented graduate student.

Why did you choose Polymer Chemistry to publish your work?
We were invited to contribute to a special issue in this new interesting journal.

At which upcoming conferences may our readers meet you?
European Polymer Federation Meeting in Granada in June 2011.
Together with Brent Sumerlin and Nick Tsarevsky, we are organizing the 6^th Controlled Radical Polymerization in Denver in late August 2011.

How do you spend your spare times?
I wish I will have some spare time…

André Laschewsky has been a professor for Macromolecular Science in the University of Potsdam since 2001. His main research interests can be listed as synthesis and characterization of novel functional monomers and polymers, polymers in aqueous media, self-organization of polymers and functionalization of the assemblies formed, biomimicking by polymer and surfactant systems, correlation of molecular architecture, supramolecular structure and macroscopic properties of polymers. Please follow the link to get more information about Andre’s research group and his recent paper in Polymer Chemistry.

What was your inspiration in becoming a chemist?
The possibility to create my own personal and unique objects of research, as well as the combination of practical work in the laboratory together with a rigid logical approach to understand what I do and provoke.

What was the motivation behind the research in your recent Polymer Chemistry paper? (DOI: 10.1039/c1py00001b)
We wanted to show that localized supramolecular interactions can modify key properties of functional macromolecules as a whole, though most molecular fragments seem “independent” and are not involved in the interaction.

Why did you choose Polymer Chemistry to publish your work?
Though the journal is very new, I like it very much and enjoyed reading every issue so far. I find it to be the journal with the most creative contributions to polymer synthesis at present.

In which upcoming conferences may our readers meet you?
– Smart Polymer Systems Conference, 25-26 May 2011at Mainz (Germany)
– 25th European Colloid and Interface Society Conference, Berlin Sept. 4-9 sept 2011 at Berlin (Germany)
– 7th European Detergents Conference (EDC), 14-16 oct 2011 at Fulda (Germany)

How do you spend your spare time?
With my family, reading, hiking

Which profession would you choose if you were not a scientist?
I cannot imagine that.

Franck D’Agosto studied chemistry at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie in Mulhouse (France). He completed a PhD in Polymer Chemistry at the joint unit between CNRS and bioMérieux (University of Lyon, France) before working at the University of Sydney (Australia) as a postdoctoral fellow in the Key Center for Polymer Colloids. Since 2002, he has been a researcher at the CNRS in the Chemistry and Process of Polymerization Team in C2P2 laboratory (Lyon, France). His research interests focus on the control of polymer architectures by the use of different polymerization chemistries – such as catalytic and controlled free radical polymerizations – either performed in solution or in dispersed media.

Please follow the link for further information on Franck’s recent paper in Polymer Chemistry.

What was your inspiration in becoming a chemist?
Becoming a Chemist was not really what I always dreamt of being. Still I reckon that I always enjoyed fixing things or finding the way to fix them. Has playing with macromolecular architectures and polymerization techniques anything to do with this? Maybe. But I remember that I really got into the polymer world after listening to Prof. G. Riess at the University who was the first to teach me (and grab my attention with) how to make macromolecules and what they were useful for.

What was the motivation behind the research in your recent Polymer Chemistry paper? (DOI: 10.1039/C0PY00237B)
Our group has a great experience in the field of polymer colloids and as a part of my research I am trying to take advantage of well defined polymer chains in this area. Together with Dr. Muriel Lansalot, who has a strong background in miniemulsion polymerization, we were wondering if a well defined hydrophilic polymer chain alone could play multiple roles in a miniemulsion polymerization system. In the current paper, this chain is a stabilizing agent for the monomer droplets, a surfactant precursor and a control agent for the growth of the hydrophobic chains.

Why did you choose Polymer Chemistry to publish your work?
I knew this Journal from its launch as Dave Haddleton invited me to write a review on the polyethylene functionalization work we have been doing in the group (another part of my research activities). I had already experienced the submission process which was perfect. But I reckon that the trust you can put in a new journal is really dependant upon the trust you have in the editors and the editorial board and I was really confident with that. Besides, I was amazed by the name “Polymer Chemistry” and the fact that no other journal in Polymer Science had already chosen it. I like the way the people who chose that name were thinking!

In which upcoming conferences may our readers meet you?
I will be attending the second Edition of the Frontiers in Polymer Science conference in Lyon in May, without being jetlagged. Then I’ll be mostly travelling in the US attending the International Polymer Colloid Group conference in Durham in June, and the ACS Meetings in Denver in August and Sonoma in September.

How do you spend your spare time?
Spare time? I have three children… but that’s quality time.

Which profession would you choose if you were not a scientist?
I don’t know. Maybe something around travelling, food and wine.