Methacrylate Backbone Research Articles

Hydrophilic CdSe−ZnS Core−Shell Quantum Dots with Reactive Functional Groups on Their Surface

We synthesized macromolecular ligands for CdSe-ZnS core-shell quantum dots incorporating multiple thiol groups, poly(ethylene glycol) chains, and either carboxylic acids or primary amines along a common poly(methacrylate) backbone. The thiol groups encourage the adsorption of these macromolecular constructs on the ZnS shell of the nanoparticles, and the poly(ethylene glycol) chains impose hydrophilic character on the resulting assemblies. Indeed, the coated quantum dots are readily soluble in water and are stable under these conditions for months over a broad pH range (4.0-12.0) and even in the presence of large salt concentrations. In addition, these nanoparticles have relatively small hydrodynamic diameters (17-30 nm) and good quantum yields (0.3-0.4). Furthermore, the pendant carboxylic acids or primary amines of the macromolecular ligands can be exploited to modify the quantum dots after the adsorption of the polymers on their surface. For example, boron dipyrromethene dyes can be connected to the hydrophilic quantum dots on the basis of amide bond formation to encourage the transfer of energy from the luminescent CdSe core to the organic dyes. Our hydrophilic nanoparticles can also cross the membrane of Chinese hamster ovarian cells and accumulate in the cytosol with limited nuclear localization. Moreover, the internalized quantum dots are not cytotoxic and have essentially no influence on cell viability. Thus, our strategy for the preparation of biocompatible quantum dots can evolve into the development of valuable luminescent probes with nanoscaled dimensions and optimal photophysical properties for a diversity of biomedical applications.

The Effect of Hofmeister Salts on the LCST Transition of Poly(2‐oxazoline)s with Varying Hydrophilicity

The influence of Hofmeister salts was investigated on the cloud point of three poly(2-oxazoline)s, namely poly(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline) [PEtOx], poly(2-n-propyl-2-oxazoline) [PnPropOx], and poly(2-isopropyl-2-oxazoline) [PiPropOx]. In addition, a comb polymer based on oligo-2-ethyl-2-oxazoline side chains and a methacrylate backbone (POEtOxMA) was included in this investigation. It was found that the ionic response of the poly(2-oxazoline)s strongly depends on their hydrophilicity. The comb polymer POEtOxMA revealed a strikingly similar response to the salts as linear PEtOx even though the cloud points of the polymers in water differ. This indicates that the architecture does not significantly influence the effect of the Hofmeister ions, even though there is a difference in the absolute cloud point.

Brush-shaped polycation with poly(ethylenimine)- b-poly(ethylene glycol) side chains as highly efficient gene delivery vector

A brush-shaped polymer PHEMA- g-(PEI- b-PEG) with poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) backbone and linear poly(ethylenimine)- b-poly(ethylene glycol) (PEI- b-PEG) side chains was synthesized and evaluated as a vector for potential cancer gene therapy. The characterizations by 1H NMR and laser light scattering demonstrated the brush structure of the polymer. PHEMA- g-(PEI- b-PEG) was much less cytotoxic when compared with branched poly(ethylenimine) with M w of 25 kDa. The capacity of plasmid DNA condensation by PHEMA- g-(PEI- b-PEG) was demonstrated by gel retardation assay, and they formed nanosized complexes with surface zeta potential around 20 mV at N/P ratios higher than 5:1. The complexes of PHEMA- g-(PEI- b-PEG) with plasmid DNA were more efficiently internalized by BT474 cells in comparison with the complexes of PEI25K, leading to higher gene transfection in cells. Further investigation using complexes of PHEMA- g-(PEI- b-PEG) with plasmid DNA encoding wild-type p53 gene showed its potential as a carrier for cancer gene therapy. The complexes of PHEMA- g-(PEI- b-PEG) successfully induced elevated wild-type p53 expression in BT474 cells and led to enhanced apoptosis of BT474 cells. Transfection of wild-type p53 using the complexes also significantly increased the sensitivity of BT474 cells to doxorubicin chemotherapy, suggesting the potential of this carrier in cancer gene therapy.

Precise Synthesis of Exact Graft Copolymers, Poly(methyl methacrylate)-exact graft-polystyrene, by Iterative Methodology Using a Specially Designed In-Chain-Functionalized AB Diblock Copolymer Anion

The synthesis of a series of exact graft copolymers composed of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) backbone chains and PS graft chains up to five in number by a new iterative methodology is described. In this methodology, an in-chain-functionalized AB diblock copolymer (PS-block-PMMA) anion with 3-(tert-butyldimethylsilyloxymethyl)phenyl (SiOMP) group between the PS and PMMA blocks is used as a key building block specially designed to simultaneously introduce both backbone and graft chains. The methodology involves the following three reaction steps in the entire iterative reaction sequence: (1) a living anionic block copolymerization to prepare the above-mentioned in-chain-SiOMP-functionalized AB diblock copolymer anion, (2) a transformation of the SiOMP group to benzyl bromide (BnBr) function, and (3) a coupling reaction of the in-chain-SiOMP-functionalized AB diblock copolymer anion with the in-chain-BnBr-functionalized block copolymer. By repeating the reaction sequence five times, a series of well-defi...

Synbeads Porous-Rigid Methacrylic Support: Application to Solid Phase Peptide Synthesis and Characterization of the Polymeric Matrix by FTIR Microspectroscopy and High Resolution Magic Angle Spinning NMR

Porous and rigid methacrylic Synbeads were optimized and applied efficiently to the solid phase peptide synthesis with the objective of improving significantly volumetric yields (0.33 mol/L calculated on the basis of maximum chemical accessibility, i.e. the maximum number of functional groups that can be acylated by FmocCl) as compared to swelling commercial polymers (from 0.06 to 0.12 mol/L). The effects of the density of functional groups and spacer length were investigated obtaining a chemical accessibility of the functional groups up to 1 mmol/g(dry). High resolution magic angle spinning (HR-MAS) was exploited to evidence the presence of "solution-like" flexible linkers anchored on the rigid methacrylic backbone of Synbeads and to study the degree of functionalization by the Wang linker. To demonstrate the efficiency of the optimized Synbeads, the peptides Somatostatin and Terlipressin were synthesized. In the case of Somatostatin, final synthetic yields of 45 and 60% were achieved by following the HCTU/DIPEA and DIC/HOBt routes respectively, with the HPLC purity always higher than 83%. In the case of Terlipressin, the synthesis was carried out in parallel on Synbeads and also on TentaGel, ChemMatrix, and PS-DVB for comparison (DIC/HOBt route). The profiles describing the synthetic efficiency demonstrated that Synbeads leads to synthetic efficiency (86%) comparable to PS-DVB (96%) or ChemMatrix (84%). In order to gain a more precise picture of chemical and morphological features of Synbeads, their matrix was also characterized by exploiting innovative approaches based on FTIR microspectroscopy with a conventional source and with synchrotron radiation. A uniform distribution of the functional groups was evidenced through a detailed chemical mapping.

Effect of Graft Density on the Nonionic Bottle Brush Polymer/Surfactant Interaction

The effect of graft density on the interaction of nonionic bottle brush polymers with an anionic surfactant (sodium dodecyl sulfate) was investigated. The graft density of 45 units long poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) side chains was varied in a wide range (30, 50, 75, 90, and 100%) on a methacrylate type polymer backbone. The surfactant binding isotherms were determined by the potentiometric method in the presence of 0.1 M sodium bromide. It was found that due to the grafting of the PEO chains to a polymer backbone the surfactant binding becomes significantly suppressed. The amount of bound surfactant at the critical micelle concentration (cmc) decreases almost 2 orders of magnitude compared to the binding on a linear PEO having a similar molecular weight. The binding of the surfactant was found to occur in cooperative fashion, though the critical aggregation concentration (cac) of the binding was found surprisingly small. This result was interpreted in terms of the surfactant aggregation numbers that were found much smaller in the case of the bottle brush polymers than in the case of linear PEOs due to the steric crowding of the grafted PEO chains. To confirm the results of the binding isotherm measurements, steady-state fluorescence probe (pyrene) measurements as well as static and dynamic light scattering measurements were performed.

Synthesis and properties of fluorine‐containing amphiphilic graft copolymer P(HFMA)‐g‐P(SPEG)

AbstractA series of amphiphilic graft copolymers P(HFMA)‐g‐P(SPEG) comprising poly(hexafluorobutyl methacrylate) (PHFMA) backbones and poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) side chains were synthesized by copolymerization of HFMA and SPEG macromonomer with the p‐vinylbenzyl end group. The SPEG macromonomer was synthesized by reacting Methoxy poly(ethylene glycol) (MPEG) with p‐chloromethylstyrene in THF in the presence of NaH. The macromonomer and amphiphilic graft copolymer were characterized by FTIR, 1H NMR, 19F NMR, and gel permeation chromatography (GPC). The critical micelle concentration (CMC) of the amphiphilic graft copolymer was measured by surface tension technique. The results showed that the CMC decreased with increasing HFMA contents in the graft copolymers. The interaction between P(HFMA)‐g‐P(SPEG) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) was studied by fluorescence spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and photon correlation spectroscopy (PCS). The fluorescence spectrum showed that the fluorescence intensity of BSA increased with increasing content of HFMA in P(HFMA)‐g‐P(SPEG) and concentration of P(HFMA)‐g‐P(SPEG) in the P(HFMA)‐g‐P(SPEG)/BSA solution. TEM micrographs showed that P(HFMA)‐g‐P(SPEG) mainly formed core‐shell structure micelles. When BSA was added, the micelles changed from a core‐shell structure into a worm‐like, vesicle‐like and hollow‐like structure with different initial concentrations of the copolymer. The size distribution of the micelles increased proving that the copolymer micelles encapsulated the bovine serum albumin. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 4895–4907, 2009

Biocompatible CdSe−ZnS Core−Shell Quantum Dots Coated with Hydrophilic Polythiols

We designed four polymeric ligands for semiconductor quantum dots and synthesized these macromolecular constructs in four steps, starting from commercial precursors. These ligands have a poly(methacrylate) backbone with pendant thiol groups and poly(ethylene glycol) chains. The thiol groups anchor these ligands on the surface of preformed CdSe-ZnS core-shell quantum dots, and the poly(ethylene glycol) chains impose hydrophilic character on the resulting assemblies. Indeed, three of the four sets of quantum dots are soluble in aqueous environments and are stable under these conditions for days over a wide pH range (5.0-9.0). Furthermore, the polymeric coatings wrapped around the inorganic nanoparticles preserve the photophysical properties of the CdSe core and ensure relatively compact dimensions. Specifically, the luminescence quantum yield is ca. 0.4 and the hydrodynamic diameter ranges from 15 to 29 nm with the nature of the polymeric ligand. Model studies with human umbilical vein endothelial cells demonstrated that these hydrophilic quantum dots cross the cell membrane and localize either in the cytosol or in the nucleus. The length of the poly(ethylene glycol) chains appears to guide the intracellular localization of these luminescent probes. In addition, these studies indicated that these particular nanoparticles are not cytotoxic. In fact, their cellular internalization has essentially no influence on cell growth. In summary, we developed novel polymeric ligands able to impose hydrophilic character and biocompatibility on CdSe-ZnS core-shell nanoparticles. Thus, our results can lead to a new family of valuable luminescent probes for cellular imaging, based on the unique photophysical properties of semiconductor quantum dots.

Cationic Comb Polymer Superdispersants for Colloidal Silica Suspensions

We investigate the ability of a cationic comb polymer composed of a poly(trimethylammonium iodide ethyl methacrylate) (PTMAM) backbone and uncharged poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) teeth to stabilize aqueous silica suspensions of varying ionic strength and pH. Both PTMAM-g-PEG and its homopolymer backbone, PTMAM, are synthesized via reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer followed by quaternization of the pendant amine groups with methyl iodide. Through a combination of polymer adsorption, zeta potential, and sedimentation measurements as well as confocal imaging of sediment structures, we find that PTMAM-g-PEG imparts stability over a broad range of solution conditions, where pure PTMAM fails.

Creation of dense polymer brush layers by the controlled deposition of an amphiphilic responsive comb polymer

We introduce a copolymer with a comb topology that has been engineered to assemble in a brush configuration at an air–water interface. The molecule comprises a 6.1 kDa poly(methyl methacrylate) backbone with a statistical amount of poly[2-(dimethyl amino)ethyl methacrylate] polybase side chains averaging 2.43 per backbone. Brush layers deposited with the hydrophobic PMMA backbone adsorbed to hydrophobized silicon are stable in water even when stored at pH values less than 2.0 for over 24 h. The use of a Langmuir trough allows a simple controlled deposition of the layers at a variety of grafting densities. Depth profiling of brush layers was performed using neutron reflectometry and reveals a significant shifting of the responsiveness of the layer upon changing the grafting density. The degree of swelling of the layers at a pH value of 4 (below the pKb) decreases as grafting density increases. Lowering the pH of the subphase during deposition causes the side chains to become charged and more hydrophilic extending to a brush-like configuration while at neutral pH the side chains lie in a “pancake” conformation at the interface.

Lower Critical Solution Temperature Behavior of Comb and Graft Shaped Poly[oligo(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline)methacrylate

Comb and graft polymers with lower critical solution temperature (LCST) behavior based on hydrophilic oligo(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline) side chains and a hydrophobic methacrylate backbone were synthesized using the macromonomer method. Well-defined oligo(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline) methacrylate (OEtOxMA) macromonomers were obtained by direct end-capping of living oligo(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline) chains with in situ formed triethylammonium methacrylate. The macromonomers were subsequently polymerized in a controlled manner using the reversible addition−fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization technique yielding a series of comb polymers with varying side chain length and backbone length. In addition, a series of graft copolymers were prepared by copolymerizing OEtOxMA with methyl methacrylate (MMA, 40−80 mol %). The copolymers were characterized by 1H NMR spectroscopy, size exclusion chromatography (SEC), and, partially, by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry. The LCST behavior of aqueous polymer solutions was investigated by turbidity measurements revealing cloud points that can be tuned from 35 to 80 °C by variation of the MMA content.

Thermal and mechanical properties of copolymers of methyl methacrylate with N‐aryl itaconimides

AbstractThe article describes the preparation of cast copolymer sheets of methyl methacrylate with varying mole fractions of N‐(p‐methoxyphenyl) itaconimide/N‐(2‐methoxy‐5‐chlorophenyl) itaconimide/N‐(3‐methoxy‐5‐chlorophenyl) itaconimide monomers by bulk copolymerization using azobisisobutyronitrile as an initiator. The effect of incorporation of varying mole fractions of N‐arylsubstituted itaconimides in poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) backbone on the thermal, optical and physicomechanical properties of cast acrylic sheets were evaluated. The glass transition temperature and the thermal stability increased with increasing amounts of itaconimides in the polymer backbone. An increase in tensile strength, flexural strength, and storage modulus was also observed. The impact strength decreased marginally upon incorporation of imides into the polymer backbone. A slight decrease in the transparency and a significant increase (4–50%) in the haze was observed. The chemical resistance of PMMA remains unaffected by copolymerization. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy studies of water-induced surface reorganization of amphiphilic poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate-g-dimethylsiloxane) copolymers using cryogenic sample handling techniques

A series of amphiphilic graft copolymers having a hydrophilic poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (HEMA) backbone and hydrophobic polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) side chains were studied by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) in both dry and hydrated states using cryogenic sample handling techniques. The polymers were synthesized using anionic methods for the PDMS side chains, yielding a tightly controlled PDMS graft chain length in a polymer brush surface configuration. The effects of hydration time and polymer bulk structure (e.g., PDMS graft length) and composition on surface reorganization were examined. XPS studies provided direct quantitative data on the extent of polymer surface reorganization between dry and hydrated states. The dry surface was enriched with PDMS while the hydrated surface was enriched with HEMA. The surface reorganization reaches equilibrium when copolymers were hydrated for 24 h. In the dry state, PDMS graft length and bulk composition have a strong effect on surface composition; while in the hydrated state, the polymer surface composition was nearly independent of bulk structure or composition.

An efficient process for synthesizing and hydrolyzing a phosphonated methacrylate: Investigation of the adhesive and anticorrosive properties

AbstractA new phosphonated methacrylate, namely dimethyl(methacryloyloxy)methyl phosphonate (MAPC1), has been synthesized using paraformaldehyde and potassium carbonate according to the Pudovik reaction. The quantitative synthesis of MAPC1 was followed by selective hydrolysis of the ester group with sodium bromide to replace NaI (imparting non‐negligible ecological impact). Pure MAPC1(OH) was obtained in high yield and efficiently copolymerized with MMA. The r1 for MAPC1(OH)) and r2 (for MMA) values are 0.99 and 1.02, respectively, which indicates that the monophosphonic groups are statistically linked to the methacrylate backbone. When blended with PVDF, MMA/MAPC1(OH) copolymers show very good adhesion promoters in both dry and wet conditions and subsequently provide good anticorrosive properties. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: 4794–4803, 2008

New N, N-amino-diphosphonate-containing methacrylic derivatives, their syntheses and radical copolymerizations with MMA

Hydroxy-amino-diphosphonates HO–C n –NH 2, with 2 ⩽ n ⩽ 11, have been successfully synthesized via the Kabachnick-Field reaction at 70 °C with high yields. These hydroxy compounds are then reacted with methacryloyl chloride to lead to novel amino-diphosphonate methacrylates MAC n NP 2 (with 2 ⩽ n ⩽ 11). These highly pure methacrylate monomers were obtained with yields higher than 75%. Radical copolymerizations of MAC n NP 2 (with 2 ⩽ n ⩽ 11) with MMA have been conducted and the r 1 values (related to MAC n NP 2) are in the range of 1.1–1.3, and r 2 values (related to MMA) about 0.8; this shows that the diphosphonate groups are statistically bonded to the methacrylic backbone.

Polymethacrylate polymers with appended aluminum(III)-tetraphenylporphyrins: Synthesis, characterization and evaluation as macromolecular ionophores for electrochemical and optical fluoride sensors

The synthesis and characterization of a novel polymethacylate polymer with covalently linked Al(III)-tetraphenylporphyrin (Al(III)-TPP) groups is reported. The new polymer is examined as a potential macromolecular ionophore for the preparation of polymeric membrane-based potentiometric and optical fluoride selective sensors. To prepare the polymer, an Al(III) porphyrin monomer modified with a methacrylate functionality is synthesized, allowing insertion into a polymethacrylate block copolymer (methyl methacrylate and decyl methacrylate) backbone. The resulting polymer can then be incorporated, along with appropriate additives, into conventional plasticized poly(vinyl chloride) films for testing electrochemical and optical fluoride response properties. The covalent attachment of the Al(III)-TPP ionophore to the copolymer matrix provides potentiometric sensors that exhibit significant selectivity for fluoride ion with extended lifetimes (compared to ion-selective membrane electrodes formulated with conventional free Al(III)-TPP structure). However, quite surprisingly, the attachment of the ionophore to the polymer does not eliminate the interaction of Al(III)-TPP structures to form dimeric species within the membrane phase in the presence of fluoride ion. Such interactions are confirmed by UV/visible spectroscopy of the blended polymeric films. Use of the new polymer-Al(III)-TPP conjugates to prepare optical fluoride sensors by co-incorporating a lipophilic pH indicator (4′,5′-dibromofluorescein octadecyl ester; ETH7075) is also examined and the resulting optical sensing films are shown to exhibit excellent selectivity for fluoride, with the potential for prolonged operational lifetime.

Crystallization and thermal properties of PLLA comb polymer

AbstractPoly(L‐lactide) (PLLA) on poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) backbone was prepared by a combination of atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and ring‐opening polymerization (ROP). The structure of the comb polymer was analyzed by wide angle X‐ray diffraction (WAXD), small angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). WAXD result indicates that the comb polymer has α crystalline modification with a 103helical conformation. Lamellar parameters of the crystalline structure were obtained by one‐dimension correlation function (1DCF) calculated from SAXS results. The calculations show that the thickness of crystalline layer is controlled by annealing temperature and comb structure. DSC was applied to study kinetics of the crystallization and melting behavior. Two melting peaks on melting curves of the comb polymer at different crystallization temperature were detected, and the peak at higher temperature is attributed to the melt‐recrystallization. The equilibrium melting temperature is found to be influenced by the comb structure. In this article the effects of the comb structure on Avrami exponent, equilibrium melting point and melting peak of the comb polymer were discussed. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 46: 589–598, 2008

A cell-repellent sulfonated PEG comb-like polymer for highly resolved cell micropatterns

This paper investigates the chemical modification of a cell-repellent poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-based polymer to enhance its hydrophilicity with sulfonate groups, and its application in the fabrication of a cell microarray. First, a polymer comprised of a methyl methacrylate (MMA) backbone with PEG side-chains (PMMA-b-PEG) was synthesized from three monomers by radical polymerization and purified. Despite the hydrophilic side-groups in the amphiphilic polymer, the backbone structure's hydrophobicity allows for local adsorption of biomolecules in incubation media with or without serum. To enhance the hydrophilicity of the polymer, we tethered sulfonate groups to the hydroxyl groups on the PEG side chains (PMMA-b-PEG-SO3). The sulfate groups' physical and mechanical movement competitively repels biomolecules approaching the PMMA-b-PEG surface. Polymers modified with sulfonate were characterized by contact angle measurement, FT-IR, NMR, AFM and GPC. PMMA-b-PEG and PMMA-b-PEG-SO3 were successfully micropatterned on polystyrene and glass surfaces, and cell attachment was performed in either serum-free or serum-containing media, resulting in highly resolved cell micropatterns.

Functionalization of Poly(oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylate) Films on Gold and Si/SiO2 for Immobilization of Proteins and Cells: SPR and QCM Studies

Thin films of a biocompatible and nonbiofouling poly(oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylate) ( pOEGMA) with various thicknesses were formed on gold and Si/SiO 2 substrates by a combination of the formation of self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) terminating in bromoester-an initiator of atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP)-and surface-initiated ATRP. After the formation of the pOEGMA films, terminal hydroxyl groups of side chains divergent from the methacrylate backbones were activated with N, N'-disuccinimidyl carbonate (DSC), and the DSC-activated pOEGMA films were reacted with (+)-biotinyl-3,6,9-trioxaundecanediamine (Biotin-NH 2) to form biotinylated pOEGMA films. By surface plasmon resonance experiments with the target protein (streptavidin) and model proteins (fibrinogen and lysozyme), we verified that the resulting films showed the enhanced signal-to-noise ratio ( approximately 10-fold enhancement) for the biospecific binding of streptavidin compared with the biotinylated substrate prepared from carboxylic acid-terminated SAMs. Quartz crystal microbalance measurements were also carried out to obtain the surface coverage of streptavidin and fibrinogen adsorbed onto the biotinylated pOEGMA films with various thicknesses and to investigate the effect of film thicknesses on the biospecific binding of streptavidin. Both the binding capacity of streptavidin and the signal-to-noise ratio of streptavidin/fibrinogen were found to be saturated at the 20 nm thick pOEGMA film. In addition, to demonstrate a wide applicability of the pOEGMA films, we constructed micropatterns of streptavidin and cells by microcontact-printing biotin-NH 2 and poly- l-lysine onto the DSC-activated pOEGMA films, respectively.

Spectroscopic properties and amplified spontaneous emission of a new derivative of fluorescein

The new laser dye, 2-(6-acryloyloxy-3-oxo-3H-xanthen-9-yl)-benzoic acid ethyl ester [AOXBE] has been synthesized. Its chemical structure was confirmed by 1HNMR, IR, MS and elemental analysis. This new dye was covalently bonded with methyl methacrylate (MMA) and 2-hydroxy ethyl-methacrylate (HEMA) copolymer backbone. Its optical properties were experimentally investigated. Amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) and photostability were studied by pumping the dye polymeric sample with a 355 nm (8 ns) pulsed Nd:YAG laser.