Electrostatically gated membrane permeability in inorganic protocells.

Although several strategies are now available to produce functional microcompartments analogous to primitive cell-like structures, little progress has been made in generating protocell constructs with self-controlled membrane permeability. Here we describe the preparation of water-dispersible colloidosomes based on silica nanoparticles and delineated by a continuous semipermeable inorganic membrane capable of self-activated, electrostatically gated permeability. We use crosslinking and covalent grafting of a pH-responsive copolymer to generate an ultrathin elastic membrane that exhibits selective release and uptake of small molecules.

One-pot, single-component synthesis of functional emulsion-templated hybrid inorganic-organic polymer capsules.

Multi-purpose amphiphilic branched copolymer surfactants can be used to simultaneously stabilise and cross-link emulsion droplets to produce encapsulated spheres and hollow capsules.