Ce sujet s'inscrit dans le domaine de la vectorisation de médicaments et de la nanomédecine, un domaine en pleine expansion. Les nanovecteurs destinés à la santé doivent être stables, non-toxiques et furtifs vis-à-vis du système immunitaire pour pouvoir circuler librement dans le sang. C'est pourquoi il est nécessaire d'élaborer des polymères pouvant former des nanoparticules possédant un caractère furtif. Le poly(acide lactique) (PLA) est un polyester hydrophobe et biodégradable couramment utilisé pour former des nanoparticules (NPs) capables d'encapsuler des composés apolaires. Le poly(2-méthyl-2-oxazoline) (PMeOx) est un polymère hydrophile, biocompatible et non toxique. Il peut être synthétisé par polymérisation cationique par ouverture de cycle (CROP), ce qui permet la préparation de polymères avec un bon contrôle de la masse molaire et une faible polymolécularité. Différentes architectures de copolymères PMeOx-co-PLA (di-,triblocs ou greffés) ont été développées en couplant la CROP et la chimie « clic ». Des NPs sont obtenues par nanoprécipitation de ces copolymères et caractérisées par un large éventail de techniques expérimentales dont, notamment, la diffusion dynamique de la lumière, la cryo-microscopie électronique à transmission, et la diffusion de neutrons aux petits angles. Ces techniques complémentaires ont permis de mettre en évidence l'obtention de NPs possédant des structures internes variées, telles que des polymersomes, des nanoparticules cœur-couronne ou multicouches. L'évaluation de la furtivité a été menée par l'étude de l'adsorption d'une protéine modèle, l'albumine de sérum bovin (BSA), sur la surface des nanoparticules. Enfin l'encapsulation de l'α-tocophérol et de quantum dots a démontré les nombreuses possibilités d'application de ces nouvelles NPs / This subject falls within the fields of drug delivery and nanomedecine, a topic of growing interest over the last years. Nanosystems dedicated to health must be stable, non-toxic and stealthy in the immune system in order to move freely in the blood. For this purpose, the design of elaborate polymers that can form stealthy nanoparticles is required. Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) is a hydrophobic and biodegradable polyester usually used to form nanoparticles able to encapsulate apolar compounds. Poly(2-methyl-2-oxazoline) (PMeOx) is a hydrophilic, biocompatible and non toxic polymer. PMeOx can be synthesized via cationic ring opening polymerization (CROP), which allows the design of polymers with a good control of the molecular weights and a low dispersity. Thus, in this context, we have developed several strategies to design different architectures of amphiphilic PMeOx-co-PLA copolymers such as di-, triblock or graft copolymers. Such strategies relied on the combined use of CROP and « click »chemistry ». Nanoparticles were obtained by nanoprecipitation, and characterized by a wide range of experimental techniques including dynamic light scattering, cryogenic transmission electron microscopy and small angle neutron scattering. These complementary approaches evidenced that nanoparticles could be obtained with a large variety of internal structure, such as polymersomes, core-shell or multilayer nanoparticles. The evaluation of the stealthiness was performed by considering the adsorption behavior of a model protein, bovin serum albumine (BSA), on the surface of the nanoparticles. The encapsulation of α-tocopherol and quantum dots demonstrated the numerous applicative possibilities offered by these new NPs

Poly(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline) (PEOX) is a nonionic, synthetic polymer which is soluble in both a variety organic solvents and water. The negative entropy of mixing of this polymer in aqueous solution suggested that it adopts a rigid conformation such as a helix in aqueous solution. Hydrogen bonding between PEOX and water molecules is thought to facilitate a special conformation that is specific to aqueous solution. The intent of this work is to investigate the conformation of PEOX in aqueous solution and consequently propose the mechanism by which it would adsorb onto cellulose and make it a valuable additive in paper processing. This work ultimately contributes to the greater matter of understanding the mechanisms by which water solvates nonionic polymers. Viscometry measurements of PEOX in water show that its shape scales similar to a random coil and that its molecules collapse in the presence of sodium chloride. Investigation into the molecular structure of PEOX through molecular scale simulations have revealed that although a rigid helical conformation does not exist, the potential exists for PEOX to have secondary helical structure in both water and other solvents. Without the rigid predicted structure, however, it is not surprising that PEOX does not adsorb well on cellulose. Comparing this folded helical conformation to a random coil conformation reveals that the random coil produces a lower energy system in water.