Ozer, ImranTomak, AyselZareie, Hadi M.Baran, YusufBulmus, Volga2021-08-252021-08-2520171525-77971526-4602PubMed ID28777555https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.biomac.7b00443https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12573/943The authors acknowledge The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) for financial support (113Z823) and Bioengineering Research and Application Centre (Izmir Institute of Technology, Turkey) for providing the cell culture research facilities and SPR spectroscopy.PEGylation, covalent attachment of PEG to therapeutic biomolecules, in which suboptimal pharmacokinetic profiles limiting their therapeutic utility are of concern, is a widely applied technology. However, this technology has been challenged by reduced bioactivity of biomolecules upon PEGylation and immunogenicity of PEG triggering immune response and abrogating clinical efficacy, which collectively necessitate development of stealth polymer alternatives. Here we demonstrate that comb-shape poly[oligo(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate](POEGMA); a stealth polymer alternative, has a more compact structure than PEG and self-organize into nanoparticles in a molecular weight dependent manner. Most notably, we show that comb shape POEGMA promotes significantly higher cellular uptake and exhibits less steric hindrance imposed on the conjugated biomolecule than PEG. Collectively, comb-shape POEGMA offers a versatile alternative to PEG for stealth polymer-biomolecule conjugation applications.enginfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessBREAST-CANCER CELLSIN-SITU GROWTHPOLY(ETHYLENE GLYCOL)DRUG-DELIVERYINTRACELLULAR TRAFFICKINGarticleVolume 18 Issue 9 Page 2699-2710