Chemical syntheses of bioinspired and biomimetic polymers toward biobased materials

Sporopollenin is a ubiquitous and extremely chemically inert biopolymer that constitutes the outer wall of all land-plant spores and pollen grains. Sporopollenin protects the vulnerable plant gametes against a wide range of environmental assaults, and is considered as a prerequisite for the migration of early plants onto land. Despite its importance, the chemical structure of plant sporopollenin has remained elusive. Using a newly developed thioacidolysis degradative method together with state-of-the-art solid-state NMR techniques, we determined the detailed molecular structure of pine sporopollenin. We show that pine sporopollenin is primarily composed of aliphatic-polyketide-derived polyvinyl alcohol units and 7-O-p-coumaroylated C16 aliphatic units, crosslinked through a distinctive m-dioxane moiety featuring an acetal. Naringenin was also identified as a minor component of pine sporopollenin. This discovery answers the long-standing question about the chemical makeup of plant sporopollenin, laying the foundation for future investigations of sporopollenin biosynthesis and for design of new biomimetic polymers with desirable inert properties.

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BIOBASED ECONOMY AVAILABLE BIOMASS RESOURCES IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC

Journal of Business Economics and Management ◽

10.3846/16111699.2006.9636136 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 7 (3) ◽

pp. 155-162

Author(s):

Zdenek Wegscheider ◽

Mojmir Sabolovic

Keyword(s):

Human Population ◽

Crop Production ◽

Building Materials ◽

Agricultural Sector ◽

Value Added ◽

The United States ◽

Scale Production ◽

Waste Biomass ◽

Biobased Materials ◽

Biobased Economy

During the past two decades academia, industry and government have aimed more and more their attention to the phenomenon of a biobased economy providing society with non‐food biobased products. Now developing are biomass industries that make an array of commercial products, including fuels, electricity, chemicals, adhesives, lubricants and building materials, as well as new clothing fibers and plastics. Instead of fossil resources “green” biobased economy uses renewable grown or waste biomass. The lead supplying role to the biobased economy is held by a sector of agriculture, above all the crop production. In this manner an effective limitation of food surplus may occur in the EU market and enhance a value added to all vertical industry. Industrial‐scale production of biobased materials in time with consumers’ changing attitudes towards sustainable economic and social development may affect a wide array of consequences which nowadays can be tediously estimated. Food safety along with food security is one of the hottest issues especially in the United States, knowing that human population and biobased economy compete in using and processing a broad range of agricultural crops. An energy analysis aspect of this caloric relationship among agricultural sector on the supply side and human population and biobased economy on the other – demand side is assumed to represent the principal aim of this study. Consequently, there is the need to evaluate whether a quantity of Czech Crop Output Total is possible to nourish the Czech population and whether there is an available caloric surplus suitable as a biomass resource for biobased economy which is actually taking root.

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Biomimetic Polymers forIn VivoDrug Delivery

Bioinspired and Biomimetic Polymer Systems for Drug and Gene Delivery ◽

10.1002/9783527672752.ch5 ◽

2014 ◽

pp. 109-148 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Wenping Wang ◽

Kinam Park

Keyword(s):

Biomimetic Polymers

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Biobased materials for active food packaging: A review

Food Hydrocolloids ◽

10.1016/j.foodhyd.2021.107419 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 107419

Author(s):

Omar Mohammad Atta ◽

Sehrish Manan ◽

Ajmal Shahzad ◽

Mazhar Ul-Islam ◽

Muhammad Wajid Ullah ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Food Packaging ◽

Biobased Materials ◽

Active Food Packaging

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Preparation of Innovative Skin Compatible Films to Release Polysaccharides for Biobased Beauty Masks

Cosmetics ◽

10.3390/cosmetics5040070 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 5 (4) ◽

pp. 70 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Maria-Beatrice Coltelli ◽

Serena Danti ◽

Luisa Trombi ◽

Pierfrancesco Morganti ◽

Giovanna Donnarumma ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Immune Modulation ◽

Human Keratinocytes ◽

In Vitro Tests ◽

Biobased Materials ◽

Starting Point ◽

Good Starting Point ◽

Skin Compatibility ◽

The Impact ◽

Fast Release

The preparation and selection of biobased materials compatible with skin is essential for producing innovative and highly eco-friendly beauty masks. The use of a commercial elastomeric poly(hydroxyalkanoate) and starch was fundamental to select materials for bioplastic films with the necessary resistance in wet conditions, skin compatibility and capacity for a fast release of polysaccharides and similar active and functional molecules. Micrometric calcium carbonate was also used to control the stickiness of film during moulding. Starch release in water was investigated by gravimetric and infrared analyses. The compatibility with skin was investigated via two different in vitro tests based on human keratinocytes and human mesenchymal stromal cells. The materials were highly cytocompatible with skin, enabled immune modulation by keratinocytes and starch release in water up to 49% by weight in 30 min. These outcomes are a good starting point for boosting the production of biobased and biodegradable beauty masks, thus decreasing the impact onto environment of cosmetic products that are currently still mainly produced using petrol-based substrates.

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Biobased Materials for Skin-Contact Products Promoted by POLYBIOSKIN Project

Journal of Functional Biomaterials ◽

10.3390/jfb11040077 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (4) ◽

pp. 77 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Maria-Beatrice Coltelli ◽

Serena Danti

Keyword(s):

The Body ◽

Biobased Materials ◽

Skin Contact

The skin is the body outermost tissue and acts as a barrier and defense line to protect our organs [...]

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Lignin: A Biopolymer from Forestry Biomass for Biocomposites and 3D Printing

Materials ◽

10.3390/ma12183006 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 12 (18) ◽

pp. 3006 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Mihaela Tanase-Opedal ◽

Eduardo Espinosa ◽

Alejandro Rodríguez ◽

Gary Chinga-Carrasco

Keyword(s):

3D Printing ◽

Radical Scavenging Activity ◽

Matrix Material ◽

Thermo Gravimetric Analysis ◽

Radical Scavenging ◽

Fused Deposition Modelling ◽

Gravimetric Analysis ◽

Scanning Calorimetry ◽

Biobased Materials ◽

Fused Deposition

Biopolymers from forestry biomass are promising for the sustainable development of new biobased materials. As such, lignin and fiber-based biocomposites are plausible renewable alternatives to petrochemical-based products. In this study, we have obtained lignin from Spruce biomass through a soda pulping process. The lignin was used for manufacturing biocomposite filaments containing 20% and 40% lignin and using polylactic acid (PLA) as matrix material. Dogbones for mechanical testing were 3D printed by fused deposition modelling. The lignin and the corresponding biocomposites were characterized in detail, including thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), antioxidant capacity, mechanical properties, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Although lignin led to a reduction of the tensile strength and modulus, the reduction could be counteracted to some extent by adjusting the 3D printing temperature. The results showed that lignin acted as a nucleating agent and thus led to further crystallization of PLA. The radical scavenging activity of the biocomposites increased to roughly 50% antioxidant potential/cm2, for the biocomposite containing 40 wt % lignin. The results demonstrate the potential of lignin as a component in biocomposite materials, which we show are adequate for 3D printing operations.

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