Biological membranes perform diverse functions, including molecular transport, chemical transformation, and cellular communication, through the coordinated actions of lipids and membrane proteins. Reproducing such functions with synthetic materials remains a central challenge at the interface of polymer chemistry, supramolecular science, and chemical biology. In this seminar, I will present our efforts to construct synthetic membrane functions using polymer assemblies. First, I will describe the development of polymer-based molecularly permeable vesicles, focusing on the mechanisms that govern membrane permeability and the molecular design principles required to control transmembrane transport. I will then introduce polymer-based artificial ion channels designed to mediate ion transport across lipid bilayers. Finally, I will discuss amphiphilic random copolymers that associate with lipid membranes to form polymer-rich domains. These membrane-associated polymer assemblies provide a platform for integrating molecular transport with catalytic transformation, thereby serving as synthetic analogues of multifunctional membrane proteins.  I will also highlight their extension toward cancer-related therapeutic applications.

Together, these studies illustrate how polymer assemblies can be used to create programmable membrane functions, from molecular transport to chemical transformation, in biomimetic and biological environments.

Julie Champion, faculty host