Transmembrane transport of polymer brush-grafted nanoparticles into giant vesicles

doi:10.1088/1674-1056/ae24ed

Abstract Polymer brush-grafted nanoparticles have significant application value in fields such as gene therapy and targeted drug delivery. A profound understanding of the interaction mechanisms between these particles and cell membranes represents a critical scientific challenge in biophysics. Using the self-consistent field theory (SCFT), this work systematically explores the transmembrane transport of polymer brush-grafted nanoparticles into giant vesicles. The impacts of critical parameters-polymer brush grafting density, nanoparticle size, and giant vesicle membrane thickness-on transport behavior are comprehensively elucidated. The findings reveal two distinct transmembrane transport mechanisms for polymer brush-grafted nanoparticles, which are governed by membrane thickness and grafting density. At high grafting density, the nanoparticles undergo direct transmembrane translocation; at low grafting density, transport occurs via endocytosis. Thermodynamic analysis identifies entropy as the dominant driving force for this process.

Keywords: polymer brushes giant vesicles self-consistent field transmembrane transport

Received: 12 September 2025
Revised: 20 November 2025
Accepted manuscript online: 27 November 2025

PACS:	87.16.D-	(Membranes, bilayers, and vesicles)
	82.70.Uv	(Surfactants, micellar solutions, vesicles, lamellae, amphiphilic systems, (hydrophilic and hydrophobic interactions))
	31.15.xr	(Self-consistent-field methods)
	87.15.A-	(Theory, modeling, and computer simulation)

Fund: Project supported by the Construction of a Shanxi Normal University Teaching Reform Project (Grant No. 2025JGXM- 20).

Corresponding Authors: Junxing Pan, Jinjun Zhang
E-mail: panjx@sxnu.edu.cn;zhangjinjun@sxnu.edu.cn

Cite this article:

Shuai He(贺帅), Junxing Pan(潘俊星), and Jinjun Zhang(张进军) Transmembrane transport of polymer brush-grafted nanoparticles into giant vesicles 2026 Chin. Phys. B 35 078701

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Transmembrane transport of polymer brush-grafted nanoparticles into giant vesicles

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