Molecular design of cytocompatible amphiphilic redox-active polymers for efficient extracellular electron transfer.

For electrochemical regulations of the intracellular metabolisms, lipophilic electron mediators with cell membrane permeability have been conventionally used. We have recently developed amphiphilic, cell-membrane permeable polymer composed of hydrophilic 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine and hydrophobic redox-active units as a new category of electron mediator. The advantage of the redox active polymer is that we can obtain appropriate molecules in a synthetic bottom-up manner. Here we report that the rate of the extracellular electron transfer (EET) through the redox active polymer can be regulated by sophisticated molecular design of the polymers. It was also shown that the cellular metabolism of yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae was regulated by using the polymer with the highest EET rate.