An AIE Star Polymer with Enhanced Co‐Delivery of Drug and Gene for Synergistic Pest Control†

Abstract

Comprehensive SummaryPesticides, as the most common means of pest managements, have caused a series of problems such as pest resistance and environmental pollution. Aggregation‐induced emission (AIE) polymers exhibit great potential in biological applications because their fluorescent intensities significantly enhance in the aggregated state. In this paper, an AIE star polymer including a tetraphenyl ethylene (TPE) core and poly(2‐(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate) arms is designed and further developed as a multi‐functional nanocarrier for agricultural pest control. The nanocarrier shows high water solubility, good size stability and AIE imaging ability. Meanwhile, the twisted AIE core and positively charged polymer arms make the nanocarrier efficiently co‐load dinotefuran (DIN) and dsRNA via hydrogen bonds and electrostatic interactions, respectively. The AIE star polymer displays low toxicity and high fluorescence traceability. As a result, the nanocarrier co‐loading with DIN and dsRNA exhibits a highly synergistic insecticidal effect with higher pest mortality compared to the separate delivery of DIN and dsRNA. This study develops the AIE star polymer to improve the efficiency of co‐delivery of drug and dsRNA and proposes a new strategy toward efficient and synergistic pest control.