Polymeric fluorophores, compositions comprising the same, and methods of preparing and using the same

A compound having a structure represented by:

• A-B-C, or
• C-A-B
• wherein
• A is a dye;
• B is a polymer having a polymer backbone comprising one or more hydrophobic unit(s) and one or more hydrophilic unit(s), wherein the polymer backbone comprises a first terminus and a second terminus, wherein the first terminus and the second terminus are opposing ends of the polymer backbone;
• and
• optionally C, wherein C comprises a bioconjugate group,
• wherein the dye is covalently attached to the first terminus or the second terminus of the polymer backbone,
• wherein the one or more hydrophobic unit(s) have a structure represented by Formula III:
• wherein:
• R is hydrogen or CH3;
• R1 is —O— or —NH—;
• A is a C1-C20 alkyl, C2-C20 alkenyl, or C2-C20 alkynyl;
• R2 is hydrogen or a halo, hydroxyl, carboxyl, amino, formyl, vinyl, epoxy, mercapto, ester, azido, maleimido, isocyanato, or isothiocyanato group;
• and
• p is an integer from 1 to 10, 100, 1,000, 5,000, 10,000, 50,000, or 100,000, and
• wherein the one or more hydrophilic unit(s) have a structure represented by Formula IV:
• wherein:
• R is hydrogen or CH3;
• R1 is —O— or —NH—;
• R3 is selected from the group consisting of —(CH2CH2O)n—, —C1-C6alkyl, and —C1-C6alkyl-SO3— or a salt thereof, wherein n is an integer from 1 or 5 to 10, 25, 50, 75, 100, 1,000, 5,000, or 10,000;
• R4 is absent or is a hydrogen, alkyl, phosphono, sulfono, phosphatidyl choline, phosphoryl, halo, hydroxyl, carboxyl, amino, ammonio, formyl or ester group;
• and
• p is an integer from 1 to 10, 100, 1,000, 5,000, 10,000, 50,000, or 100,000.