Surface functionalization by smart binary polymer brushes to tune physico-chemical characteristics at biointerfaces

e-Polymers ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Petra Uhlmann ◽  
Nikolay Houbenov ◽  
Sergiy Minko ◽  
Manfred Stamm
Keyword(s):  
Polymer Brushes ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Surface Engineering ◽  
Surface Characteristics ◽  
Polymer Chains ◽  
Aqueous Environment ◽  
Binary Polymer ◽  
Physico Chemical ◽  
Versatile Tool ◽  
Model Protein

AbstractPolymer brushes consist of an assembly of polymer chains that are attached by one end to the surface with sufficient grafting density. Binary brushes constituted from two incompatible polymers can be used in the form of ultrathin polymeric layers as a versatile tool for surface engineering to tune physicochemical surface characteristics as wettability, surface charge, chemical composition or morphology, and furthermore to create responsive surface properties. It is also possible to fix surface structures obtained in this way by (photo)crosslinking of the layers. Mixed brushes of oppositely charged polyelectrolytes are representing a special case of responding surfaces, which are sensitive to changes of the pH in aqueous environment. It is shown that structural changes occur in the plateau region of the adsorption isotherm of a model protein and that changes of the pH also cause changes in the structure of the adsorbed protein layer.

scholarly journals Self-restoring polymer brushes under tribological stress and the biomedical applications

MRS Advances ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (27) ◽  
pp. 1971-1976
Author(s):  
Troels Røn ◽  
Irakli Javakhishvili ◽  
Søren Hvilsted ◽  
Katja Jankova ◽  
Seunghwan Lee
Keyword(s):  
Polymer Brushes ◽  
Diblock Copolymers ◽  
Polymer Chains ◽  
Aqueous Environment ◽  
Pdms Film ◽  
Pdms Surface ◽  
Tribological Application ◽  
Optimal Functions ◽  
Amphiphilic Diblock Copolymers

ABSTRACTFor biological and mechanical systems involving moving parts, surface slipperiness is often a critical attribute for their optimal functions. Surface grafting with hydrophilic polymers is a powerful means to render materials slippery in aqueous environment. In “inverted grafting-to approach”, the hydrophilic polymer chains of amphiphilic diblock copolymers dispersed within a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) network are selectively segregated upon exposure to aqueous solution. This allows formation of extremely stable brush-like polymer layers. Tribological application of inverted grafting-to approach was successfully demonstrated with PDMS-block-poly(acrylic acid) (PDMS-b-PAA) dispersed within thin PDMS films on PDMS blocks by showing friction coefficients (µ) of ca 10-2 to 10-3, depending on the load, pH and buffer salinity in the absence of other external re-supply of PAA chains. Further manipulations of the thin PDMS film incorporating PDMS-b-PAA to optimize the tribological properties are presented. Lastly, first trials to employ PAA-grafted PDMS surface to generate in-vitro mucosae model are also presented and discussed.

Hydrogels: A Versatile Drug Delivery Carrier Systems

1970 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 1745-1756
Author(s):  
L H Baldaniya ◽  
Sarkhejiya N A
Keyword(s):  
Drug Delivery ◽  
Protein Delivery ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Healing Process ◽  
Polymer Chains ◽  
Wound Healing Process ◽  
Aqueous Environment ◽  
Preparation Methods ◽  
Control Drug

Hydrogels are the material of choice for many applications in regenerative medicine due to their unique properties including biocompatibility, flexible methods of synthesis, range of constituents, and desirable physical characteristics. Hydrogel (also called Aquagel) is a network of polymer chains that are hydrophilic, sometimes found as a colloidal gel in which water is the dispersion medium. Hydrogels are highly absorbent (contain ~99.9% water), natural or synthetic polymers. Hydrogel also possess a degree of flexibility very similar to natural tissue, due to its significant water content. It can serve as scaffolds that provide structural integrity to tissue constructs, control drug and protein delivery to tissues and cultures. Also serve as adhesives or barriers between tissue and material surfaces. The positive effect of hydrogels on wounds and enhanced wound healing process has been proven. Hydrogels provide a warm, moist environment for wound that makes it heal faster in addition to its useful mucoadhesive properties. Moreover, hydrogels can be used as carriers for liposomes containing variety of drugs, such as antimicrobial drugs. Hydrogels are water swollen polymer matrices, with a tendency to imbibe water when placed in aqueous environment. This ability to swell, under biological conditions, makes it an ideal material for use in drug delivery and immobilization of proteins, peptides, and other biological compounds. Hydrogels have been extensively investigated for use as constructs to engineer tissues in vitro. This review describes the properties, classification, preparation methods, applications, various monomer used in formulation and development of hydrogel products.

scholarly journals Investigation of Hydrothermally Stressed Silicone Rubber/Silica Micro and Nanocomposite for the Coating High Voltage Insulation Applications

Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (13) ◽  
pp. 3567
Author(s):  
Faiza Faiza ◽  
Abraiz Khattak ◽  
Safi Ullah Butt ◽  
Kashif Imran ◽  
Abasin Ulasyar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Silicone Rubber ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Polymer Chains ◽  
Hydrothermal Conditions ◽  
Silica Filler ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Aging Conditions ◽  
The Stability ◽  
Micro Silica ◽  
Applied Stresses

Silicone rubber is a promising insulating material that has been performing well for different insulating and dielectric applications. However, in outdoor applications, environmental stresses cause structural and surface degradations that diminish its insulating properties. This effect of degradation can be reduced with the addition of a suitable filler to the polymer chains. For the investigation of structural changes and hydrophobicity four different systems were fabricated, including neat silicone rubber, a micro composite (with 15% micro-silica filler), and nanocomposites (with 2.5% and 5% nanosilica filler) by subjecting them to various hydrothermal conditions. In general, remarkable results were obtained by the addition of fillers. However, nanocomposites showed the best resistance against the applied stresses. In comparison to neat silicone rubber, the stability of the structure and hydrophobic behavior was better for micro-silica, which was further enhanced in the case of nanocomposites. The inclusion of 5% nanosilica showed the best results before and after applying aging conditions.

Vapor sorption in binary polymer brushes: The effect of the polymer–polymer interface

2021 ◽  
Vol 155 (5) ◽  
pp. 054904
Author(s):  
Leon A. Smook ◽  
Guido C. Ritsema van Eck ◽  
Sissi de Beer
Keyword(s):  
Polymer Brushes ◽  
Vapor Sorption ◽  
Polymer Interface ◽  
Binary Polymer ◽  
Binary Polymer Brushes

scholarly journals Changes in surface characteristics and adsorption properties of 2,4,6-trichlorophenol following Fenton-like aging of biochar

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Liqiang Cui ◽  
Qinya Fan ◽  
Jianxiong Sun ◽  
Guixiang Quan ◽  
Jinlong Yan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Adsorption Capacity ◽  
Surface Properties ◽  
Aging Process ◽  
Surface Characteristics ◽  
Natural Soil ◽  
Peanut Shell ◽  
Soil Environment ◽  
Polluted Soils ◽  
Physico Chemical

AbstractFenton-like system formed in a natural soil environment deemed to be significant in the aging process of biochar. Aged biochars have distinct physico-chemical and surface properties compared to non-aged biochar. The aged biochar proved to be useful soil amendment due to its improved elements contents and surface properties. The biochar aging process resulted in increased surface area and pore volume, as well as carbon and oxygen-containing functional groups (such as C=O, –COOH, O–C=O etc.) on its surface, which were also associated with the adsorption behavior of 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (2,4,6-TCP). The biochar aging increased the adsorption capacity of 2,4,6-TCP, which was maximum at pH 3.0. The 2,4,6-TCP adsorption capacity of aged-bush biochar (ABB) and aged-peanut shell biochar (APB) was increased by 1.0–11.0% and 7.4–38.8%, respectively compared with bush biochar (BB) and peanut shell biochar (PB) at the same initial concentration of 2,4,6-TCP. All biochars had similar 2,4,6-TCP desorption rates ranging from 33.2 to 73.3% at different sorption temperatures and times. The desorbed components were mainly 2,4,6-TCP and other degraded components, which were low in concentration with small molecule substance. The results indicated that the aged-biochar could be effective for the long-term remediation of naturally organic polluted soils.

Effects of Metal Stress on Visible/Near-Infrared Reflectance Spectra of Vegetation

2011 ◽  
Vol 347-353 ◽  
pp. 2735-2738 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guang Yu Chi ◽  
Yi Shi ◽  
Xin Chen ◽  
Jian Ma ◽  
Tai Hui Zheng
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metal ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Leaf Surface ◽  
Spectral Response ◽  
Spectral Characteristics ◽  
Surface Characteristics ◽  
Heavy Metal Stress ◽  
Metal Stress ◽  
Near Infrared Reflectance

Vegetation which suffers from heavy metal stresses can cause changes of leaf color, shape and structural changes. The spectral characteristics of vegetation leaves is related to leaf thickness, leaf surface characteristics, the content of water, chlorophyll and other pigments. So the eco-physiology changes of plants can be reflected by spectral reflectance. Studies on the spectral response of vegetation to heavy metal stress can provide a theoretical basis for remote sensing monitoring of metal pollution in soils. In recent decades, there are substantial amounts of literature exploring the effects of heavy metals on vegetation spectra.

scholarly journals Surface Engineering of Top7 to Facilitate Structure Determination

2022 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 701
Author(s):  
Yuki Ito ◽  
Takuya Araki ◽  
Shota Shiga ◽  
Hiroyuki Konno ◽  
Koki Makabe
Keyword(s):  
Structure Determination ◽  
Surface Engineering ◽  
De Novo ◽  
Crystal Packing ◽  
Structure Model ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Hexahistidine Tag ◽  
Model Protein ◽  
Β Sheet ◽  
Packing Interactions

Top7 is a de novo designed protein whose amino acid sequence has no evolutional trace. Such a property makes Top7 a suitable scaffold for studying the pure nature of protein and protein engineering applications. To use Top7 as an engineering scaffold, we initially attempted structure determination and found that crystals of our construct, which lacked the terminal hexahistidine tag, showed weak diffraction in X-ray structure determination. Thus, we decided to introduce surface residue mutations to facilitate crystal structure determination. The resulting surface mutants, Top7sm1 and Top7sm2, crystallized easily and diffracted to the resolution around 1.7 Å. Despite the improved data, we could not finalize the structures due to high R values. Although we could not identify the origin of the high R values of the surface mutants, we found that all the structures shared common packing architecture with consecutive intermolecular β-sheet formation aligned in one direction. Thus, we mutated the intermolecular interface to disrupt the intermolecular β-sheet formation, expecting to form a new crystal packing. The resulting mutant, Top7sm2-I68R, formed new crystal packing interactions as intended and diffracted to the resolution of 1.4 Å. The surface mutations contributed to crystal packing and high resolution. We finalized the structure model with the R/Rfree values of 0.20/0.24. Top7sm2-I68R can be a useful model protein due to its convenient structure determination.

scholarly journals Copper Containing Glass-Based Bone Adhesives for Orthopaedic Applications: Glass Characterization and Advanced Mechanical Evaluation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sahar. Mokhtari ◽  
Anthony.W. Wren
Keyword(s):  
Mechanical Properties ◽  
Photoelectron Spectroscopy ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Viscoelastic Behavior ◽  
Polymer Chains ◽  
Nano Particles ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Compression Data

AbstractThis study addresses issues with currently used bone adhesives, by producing novel glass based skeletal adhesives through modification of the base glass composition to include copper (Cu) and by characterizing each glass with respect to structural changes. Bioactive glasses have found applications in fields such as orthopedics and dentistry, where they have been utilized for the restoration of bone and teeth. The present work outlines the formation of flexible organic-inorganic polyacrylic acid (PAA) – glass hybrids, commercial forms are known as glass ionomer cements (GICs). Initial stages of this research will involve characterization of the Cu-glasses, significant to evaluate the properties of the resulting adhesives. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of annealed Cu glasses indicates the presence of partial crystallization in the glass. The structural analysis of the glass using Raman suggests the formation of CuO nanocrystals on the surface. X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) further confirmed the formation of crystalline CuO phases on the surface of the annealed Cu-glass. The setting reaction was studied using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR). The mechanical properties of the Cu containing adhesives exhibited gel viscoelastic behavior and enhanced mechanical properties when compared to the control composition. Compression data indicated the Cu glass adhesives were efficient at energy dissipation due to the reversible interactions between CuO nano particles and PAA polymer chains.

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