Professor Michael Monteiro
Professor

Michael Monteiro

Email: 
Phone: 
+61 7 334 64164

Background

Professor Michael Monteiro has established an international reputation in the field of 'living' radical polymerization to create complex polymer architectures. He is now building designer polymers for various biomedical applications, including vaccines, drug delivery and stem cells. He is dedicated to translating research into commercial outcomes, with 7 PCT and provisional patents since 2005 and start-up company DendriMed Pty Ltd. He was awarded an ARC QEII Fellowship in 2004 and an ARC Future Fellowship in 2009. He has attracted ARC and NHMRC grants; and Queensland State Government funding in excess of $7 million.

International links

Professor Monteiro has built a strong collaboration with Professor Virgil Percec from the University of Pennsylvania to develop and understand the new SET-LRP. He has developed a collaboration with Professor Rachel O'Reilly from the University of Warwick to develop nanoreactors that mimic enzyme activity. In collaboration with Professor Eugenia Kumacheva from the University of Toronto, they developed temperature responsive micron-sized particles from encapsulation of cells.

Availability

Professor Michael Monteiro is:
Available for supervision
Media expert

Fields of research

Chemical Sciences Engineering Macromolecular and materials chemistry Materials engineering Polymerisation mechanisms Polymers and plastics

Research impacts

Research

Designer polymers: Synthesis of complex polymer architectures.

Professor Monteiro's research aims to develop methods of synthesising complex polymer architectures in water, with controlled particle size, molecular weight and morphology. By understanding the structure-property relations of these novel nanomaterials, targeted properties can be manufactured for vaccine and drug delivery. Easily recycled polymers that could be used in a variety of products have been synthesised.

Memberships, funding and patents

  • Editorial Advisory Boards: Biomacromolecules (ACS Journal) (2013- ), Macromolecules (ACS Journal) (2008-2010), Journal of Polymer Science Part A Polymer Chemistry (2009-)
  • ARC Funding: DP120100973 Prof MJ Monteiro; Dr TP Munro, On-demand scaffolds for directed stem cell differentiation
  • Selected Patents: (i) Release Media Prov. AU2012902396, (ii) Polymeric dendrimers for siRNA delivery Prov. AU2012903138

Awards and plenaries

2013 UNESCO, Stellenbosch, SA Plenary 2013 ACS, New Orleans., USA – Invited lecture 2013 IPCG, Shanghi, China, Invited and Co-chair 2012 Australian Polymer Symposium, Hobart, Keynote 2012 IUAPC POC14, Qatar, Keynote 2011 Australian Leadership Award (ADC)

Search Professor Michael Monteiro’s works on UQ eSpace

321 works between 1994 and 2025
All (321) Journal Article (254) Book Chapter (7) Conference Publication (45) Book (1) Other Outputs (14)

21 - 40 of 321 works

2021

Other Outputs

Waterborne nanocoatings for rapid inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses

Monteiro, Michael and Bobrin, V. (2021). Waterborne nanocoatings for rapid inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses. 21-1098-US-PSP.

Waterborne nanocoatings for rapid inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses

2021

Book Chapter

Synthetic strategies and methods for redox polymers

Shi, Yanlin, Monteiro, Michael J. and Jia, Zhongfan (2021). Synthetic strategies and methods for redox polymers. Redox Polymers for Energy and Nanomedicine. (pp. 27-92) edited by Nerea Casado and David Mecerreyes. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Royal Society of Chemistry. doi: 10.1039/9781788019743-00027

Synthetic strategies and methods for redox polymers

2020

Journal Article

Perfecting self-organization of covalent and supramolecular mega macromolecules via sequence-defined and monodisperse components

Percec, Virgil, Xiao, Qi, Lligadas, Gerard and Monteiro, Michael J. (2020). Perfecting self-organization of covalent and supramolecular mega macromolecules via sequence-defined and monodisperse components. Polymer, 211 123252, 1-19. doi: 10.1016/j.polymer.2020.123252

Perfecting self-organization of covalent and supramolecular mega macromolecules via sequence-defined and monodisperse components

2020

Journal Article

Polymer colloids: synthesis fundamentals to applications

Monteiro, Michael J. and Cunningham, Michael F. (2020). Polymer colloids: synthesis fundamentals to applications. Biomacromolecules, 21 (11), 4377-4378. doi: 10.1021/acs.biomac.0c01462

Polymer colloids: synthesis fundamentals to applications

2020

Journal Article

Analysis of cyclic polymer purity by size exclusion chromatography: a model system

Shi, Yanlin, Chen, Sung-Po R., Jia, Zhongfan and Monteiro, Michael J. (2020). Analysis of cyclic polymer purity by size exclusion chromatography: a model system. Polymer Chemistry, 11 (46), 7354-7361. doi: 10.1039/d0py01277g

Analysis of cyclic polymer purity by size exclusion chromatography: a model system

2020

Journal Article

Monodisperse macromolecules by self-interrupted living polymerization

Holerca, Marian N., Peterca, Mihai, Partridge, Benjamin E., Xiao, Qi, Lligadas, Gerard, Monteiro, Michael J. and Percec, Virgil (2020). Monodisperse macromolecules by self-interrupted living polymerization. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 142 (36) jacs.0c07912, 15265-15270. doi: 10.1021/jacs.0c07912

Monodisperse macromolecules by self-interrupted living polymerization

2020

Journal Article

Precise and accelerated polymer synthesis via mixed-ligand and mixed-RAFT agents

Monteiro, Michael J., Sherman, Samuel E. and Percec, Virgil (2020). Precise and accelerated polymer synthesis via mixed-ligand and mixed-RAFT agents. Chem, 6 (6), 1203-1204. doi: 10.1016/j.chempr.2020.05.022

Precise and accelerated polymer synthesis via mixed-ligand and mixed-RAFT agents

2020

Journal Article

Therapeutic delivery of polymeric tadpole nanostructures with high selectivity to triple negative breast cancer cells

Bobrin, Valentin A., Lin, Yanling, He, Jianwei, Qi, Yan, Gu, Wenyi and Monteiro, Michael J. (2020). Therapeutic delivery of polymeric tadpole nanostructures with high selectivity to triple negative breast cancer cells. Biomacromolecules, 21 (11) acs.biomac.0c00302, 4457-4468. doi: 10.1021/acs.biomac.0c00302

Therapeutic delivery of polymeric tadpole nanostructures with high selectivity to triple negative breast cancer cells

2020

Journal Article

Temperature-induced formation of uniform polymer nanocubes directly in water

Grandes Reyes, Carlos Fitzgerald, Chen, Sung-Po R., Bobrin, Valentin A., Jia, Zhongfan and Monteiro, Michael J. (2020). Temperature-induced formation of uniform polymer nanocubes directly in water. Biomacromolecules, 21 (5) acs.biomac.9b01637, 1700-1708. doi: 10.1021/acs.biomac.9b01637

Temperature-induced formation of uniform polymer nanocubes directly in water

2020

Journal Article

Cancer stemness contributes to cluster formation of colon cancer cells and high metastatic potentials

Kapeleris, Joanna, Zou, Hong, Qi, Yan, Gu, Yushu, Li, Jingyun, Schoning, Jennifer, Monteiro, Michael J. and Gu, Wenyi (2020). Cancer stemness contributes to cluster formation of colon cancer cells and high metastatic potentials. Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology, 47 (5) 1440-1681.13247, 838-847. doi: 10.1111/1440-1681.13247

Cancer stemness contributes to cluster formation of colon cancer cells and high metastatic potentials

2019

Journal Article

UV-cross-linked polymer nanostructures with preserved asymmetry and surface functionality

Chen, Sung-Po R., Jia, Zhongfan, Bobrin, Valentin A. and Monteiro, Michael J. (2019). UV-cross-linked polymer nanostructures with preserved asymmetry and surface functionality. Biomacromolecules, 21 (1) acs.biomac.9b01088, 133-142. doi: 10.1021/acs.biomac.9b01088

UV-cross-linked polymer nanostructures with preserved asymmetry and surface functionality

2019

Journal Article

Fibronectin-conjugated thermoresponsive nanobridges generate three dimensional human pluripotent stem cell cultures for differentiation towards the neural lineages

Harkness, Linda, Chen, Xiaoli, Jia, Zhongfan, Davies, Anthony M., Monteiro, Michael, Gray, Peter and Pera, Martin (2019). Fibronectin-conjugated thermoresponsive nanobridges generate three dimensional human pluripotent stem cell cultures for differentiation towards the neural lineages. Stem Cell Research, 38 101441, 101441. doi: 10.1016/j.scr.2019.101441

Fibronectin-conjugated thermoresponsive nanobridges generate three dimensional human pluripotent stem cell cultures for differentiation towards the neural lineages

2019

Journal Article

Programmable disassembly of polymer nanoparticles through surfactant interactions

Tran, Nguyen T. D., Jia, Zhongfan and Monteiro, Michael J. (2019). Programmable disassembly of polymer nanoparticles through surfactant interactions. Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, 58 (46) acs.iecr.9b01991, 21003-21013. doi: 10.1021/acs.iecr.9b01991

Programmable disassembly of polymer nanoparticles through surfactant interactions

2019

Journal Article

Conjugated nitroxide radical polymers: synthesis and application in flexible energy storage devices

Xie, Yuan, Zhang, Kai, Monteiro, Michael J. and Jia, Zhongfan (2019). Conjugated nitroxide radical polymers: synthesis and application in flexible energy storage devices. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 11 (7) acsami.8b21073, 7096-7103. doi: 10.1021/acsami.8b21073

Conjugated nitroxide radical polymers: synthesis and application in flexible energy storage devices

2019

Journal Article

GRGD-decorated three-dimensional nanoworm hydrogels for culturing human embryonic stem cells

Kessel, Stefanie, Thakar, Nilay, Jia, Zhongfan, Wolvetang, Ernst J. and Monteiro, Michael J. (2019). GRGD-decorated three-dimensional nanoworm hydrogels for culturing human embryonic stem cells. Journal of Polymer Science Part A: Polymer Chemistry, 57 (18), 1956-1963. doi: 10.1002/pola.29342

GRGD-decorated three-dimensional nanoworm hydrogels for culturing human embryonic stem cells

2019

Journal Article

Insluin and epithelial growth factor (EGF) promote programmed death ligand 1(PD-L1) production and transport in colon cancer stem cells

Chen, Mingshui, Sharma, Aditi, Lin, Yanling, Wu, Yanheng, He, Qi, Gu, Yushu, Xu, Zhi Ping, Monteiro, Michael and Gu, Wenyi (2019). Insluin and epithelial growth factor (EGF) promote programmed death ligand 1(PD-L1) production and transport in colon cancer stem cells. BMC Cancer, 19 (1) 153, 153. doi: 10.1186/s12885-019-5364-3

Insluin and epithelial growth factor (EGF) promote programmed death ligand 1(PD-L1) production and transport in colon cancer stem cells

2019

Journal Article

Replacing Cu(II)Br2 with Me6-TREN in biphasic Cu(0)/TREN catalyzed SET-LRP reveals the mixed-ligand effect

Feng, Xiaojing, Maurya, Devendra S, Bensabeh, Nabil, Moreno, Adrian, Oh, Takahiro, Luo, Yuqing, Lejnieks, Janis, Galià, Marina, Miura, Yoshiko, Monteiro, Michael J., Lligadas, Gerard and Percec, Virgil (2019). Replacing Cu(II)Br2 with Me6-TREN in biphasic Cu(0)/TREN catalyzed SET-LRP reveals the mixed-ligand effect. Biomacromolecules, 21 (1) acs.biomac.9b01282, 250-261. doi: 10.1021/acs.biomac.9b01282

Replacing Cu(II)Br2 with Me6-TREN in biphasic Cu(0)/TREN catalyzed SET-LRP reveals the mixed-ligand effect

2019

Conference Publication

Polymer nanostructures for bioapplications: From stem cells enrichment to drug delivery

Monteiro, Michael (2019). Polymer nanostructures for bioapplications: From stem cells enrichment to drug delivery. Fall National Meeting and Exposition of the American-Chemical-Society (ACS), San Diego, CA, United States, 25-29 August 2019. Washington, DC, United States: American Chemical Society.

Polymer nanostructures for bioapplications: From stem cells enrichment to drug delivery

2019

Conference Publication

Temperature-directed morphology transformation method to produce well-defined complex multifunctional polymer particles

Bobrin, Valentin, Chen, Sung-Po, Jia, Zhongfan and Monteiro, Michael (2019). Temperature-directed morphology transformation method to produce well-defined complex multifunctional polymer particles. Fall National Meeting and Exposition of the American-Chemical-Society (ACS), San Diego, CA, United States, 25-29 August 2019. Washington, DC, United States: American Chemical Society.

Temperature-directed morphology transformation method to produce well-defined complex multifunctional polymer particles

2019

Other Outputs

Antimicrobial nanoworm coated surface

Monteiro, Michael (2019). Antimicrobial nanoworm coated surface. 19-1286-WO-PCT.

Antimicrobial nanoworm coated surface

Current funding

  • 2025 - 2028
    Next Generation Engineered Antiviral Coatings
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant

Past funding

  • 2019 - 2023
    Precision-built dynamic and functional polymer vesicles
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2019 - 2020
    Thin film microfluidic systems facility (ARC LIEF Project administered by Flinders University)
    Flinders University
    Open grant
  • 2019 - 2022
    Cellular mechanics in unusual systems
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2019
    A versatile accurate mass, high resolution QTOF mass spectrometer for chemistry and proteomic applications
    UQ Major Equipment and Infrastructure
    Open grant
  • 2016 - 2017
    Development of polymer coated surface with a significantly greater surface area & functionality to capture and kill microbes - Phase 2
    Boeing Defence Australia Ltd
    Open grant
  • 2016 - 2019
    Designer Dendrimer Nanodevices with Biomimetic Function
    Vice-Chancellor's Research and Teaching Fellowship
    Open grant
  • 2016
    Exosome and Bio/Nanoparticle Characterisation Facility
    UQ Major Equipment and Infrastructure
    Open grant
  • 2015 - 2016
    Reaching new heights in high-resolution electron microscopy
    ARC Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities
    Open grant
  • 2014 - 2016
    Precision-Engineered Polymer Nanomaterials
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2013 - 2016
    Highly productive and selective bio-organic hybrid membrane water filters
    Murdoch University
    Open grant
  • 2013 - 2016
    Improving the processing of low quality iron ores by the modification of particle interactions
    ARC Linkage Projects
    Open grant
  • 2012 - 2013
    A general platform technology for functional nanocomposites with advanced applications
    UWA-UQ Bilateral Research Collaboration Award
    Open grant
  • 2012 - 2014
    On-Demand 3-Dimensional Polymer Scaffolds for Directed Stem Cell Differentiation
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2011 - 2013
    Highly productive and selective bio-organic hybrid membrane water filters - National Centre of Excellence in Desalination
    Murdoch University
    Open grant
  • 2010
    Fabrication and Testing Facilites for Mono-Dispersed Nanoporous Spheres in Advanced Bio-applications
    UQ Major Equipment and Infrastructure
    Open grant
  • 2010
    Rapid and high-resolution nanocharacterisation of proteins, nanoparticles and polymers
    UQ Major Equipment and Infrastructure
    Open grant
  • 2009 - 2013
    Transformer 3D Nanostructures: Stimuli Responsive Polymers
    ARC Future Fellowships
    Open grant
  • 2009 - 2011
    Designer Nanoreactors: An Environmentally Friendly Solution for Polymer Synthesis
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2009
    Enabling Software and Equipment for Computational Bio- and Nano-technology
    UQ School/Centre Co-Funding
    Open grant
  • 2009 - 2011
    Engineered Polymer Nanoparticles: A Potent Weapon Against Cancer
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2009
    High Resolution LC/MS and MALDI for Molecular and Macromolecular Characterisation (ARC LIEF Administered by Univeristy of New South Wales)
    University of New South Wales
    Open grant
  • 2009 - 2014
    The Toxicology of Nanomaterials
    NHMRC Project Grant
    Open grant
  • 2008
    Amphiphilic multi-arm block copolymers for solvent-polarity switchable micelles
    UQ Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Strategic Initiatives
    Open grant
  • 2008
    Automated Microvave Reactor for Polymer Chemistry, Materials Development and Nanotechnology
    UQ Major Equipment and Infrastructure
    Open grant
  • 2008
    Quantitative Particle and Cell Size Distribution Facility: Accelerating the Development of Advanced Materials, Water Treamtnet and Mineral Processing at UQ
    UQ Major Equipment and Infrastructure
    Open grant
  • 2006
    Form Fundamentals to complex Architecture in Free-Radical Polymerisation
    ARC LIEF Collaborating/Partner Organisation Contributions
    Open grant
  • 2006 - 2008
    Next Generation Polymer Nanostructures
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2004 - 2005
    Ultra high molecular weight polymers with uniform chain length
    UQ New Staff Research Start-Up Fund
    Open grant
  • 2004 - 2005
    Next Generation Nanostructures
    UQ Foundation Research Excellence Awards - DVC(R) Funding
    Open grant
  • 2004 - 2008
    QEII FELLOWSHIP: Synthesis of nanocomposite polymers with targeted properties
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant

Availability

Professor Michael Monteiro is:
Available for supervision

Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.

Available projects

  • Synthesis of well-defined thermoresponsive polymer structures.

    A general strategy through the use of direct azidation of alcohols allowed the sequence control of macromers via both the iterative sequential growth and iterative exponential growth methods. The chemistry was highly efficient in building polymers from a sequence of compositionally different macromers tethered together in close proximity. Using the DPPA/DBU method for near quantitative azidation of the benzyl alcohol moiety, sequence controlled polymers were made via a direct and one-step procedure for CuAAC activation. With four different macromers, spherical miktoarm star-like polymers of 50 000 molecular weight were prepared with a low dispersity, and the polymer coil size depended on the type of added macromer. Polymers made via the iterative methods opens the way for the design of advanced materials with predictable properties.

  • Water-borne nanocoating for rapid inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses

    The rise in coronavirus variants has resulted in surges of the disease across the globe. The mutations in the spike protein on the surface of the virion membrane not only allow for greater transmission but also raise concerns about vaccine effectiveness. Preventing the spread of SARS-CoV-2, its variants, and other viruses from person to person via airborne or surface transmission requires effective inactivation of the virus. Here, we report a water-borne spray-on coating for the complete inactivation of viral particles and degradation of their RNA. Our nanoworms efficiently bind and, through subsequent large nanoscale conformational changes, rupture the viral membrane and subsequently bind and degrade its RNA. Our coating completely inactivated SARS-CoV-2 (VIC01) and an evolved SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern (B.1.1.7 (alpha)), influenza A, and a surrogate capsid pseudovirus expressing the influenza A virus attachment glycoprotein, hemagglutinin. The functional nanoworms can be easily modified to target viruses in future pandemics, and is compatible with large scale manufacturing processes.

  • Temperature-directed morphology transformation method to produce well-defined complex multifunctional polymer particles

    Producing synthetic soft worm and rod structures with multiple chemical functionalities on the surface would provide potential utility in drug delivery, nanoreactors, tissue engineering, diagnostics, rheology modifiers, enzyme mimics, and many other applications. Here, we have synthesized multifunctional worms and rods directly in water using a one-step reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT)-mediated dispersion polymerization at high weight fractions of polymer (>10 wt %). The chain-end functionalities included alkyne, pyridyl disulfide, dopamine, β-thiolactone, and biotin groups. These groups could further be converted or coupled with biomolecules or polymers. We further demonstrated a nanorod colorimetric system with good control over the attachment of fluorescent probes

  • Shape Control over the Polymer Molecular Weight Distribution and Influence on Rheological Properties

    The shape, breadth, and average molecular weight of the overall molecular weight distribution (MWD) largely define polymer properties. In conventional free-radical polymerization, control over this distribution is through the many competing kinetic pathways dominated by radical termination events. “Living” radical polymerization mechanistically minimizes these termination events, providing a facile route to a desired Gaussian distribution with the distribution breadth dependent upon the activity of the catalyst or modulating agent. However, producing unusually shaped distributions can only be achieved through modeling of the complex polymerization kinetics and invoking feeding and other methods. Here, we construct square, slanted, and chair-like MWDs by blending two to four polymers made using a low-reactive RAFT agent with dispersities close to 2. The blending method described here overcomes many of the difficulties in producing unusually shaped MWDs and allows control over the shape and breadth of the MWD. The concept further provides a general synthetic strategy for studying important structure–property relationships of polymers with desired processing and performance characteristics.

Supervision history

Current supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Synthesis of polymeric vessicles

    Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Precision-built dynamic and functional polymer dendrimers

    Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Translational meaning of the efficacy of immunotherapies as neoadjuvants to treat Head and Neck cancers.

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Wenyi Gu, Dr Merja Joensuu

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Triblock copolymer nanoparticles for anti-cancer delivery

    Principal Advisor

Completed supervision

Enquiries

Contact Professor Michael Monteiro directly for media enquiries about:

  • Dendrimers
  • Dendrons
  • Drug delivery
  • Emulsion polymerisation
  • Immunisation - delivery of
  • Living radical ploymerisation
  • Nanostructures
  • Polymer dendrimers
  • Polymer nanoparticles
  • Polymerisation
  • Vaccine delivery

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