@article{RackwitzKopyraDabkowskaetal.2016, author = {Rackwitz, Jenny and Kopyra, Janina and Dabkowska, Iwona and Ebel, Kenny and Rankovic, MiloS Lj. and Milosavljevic, Aleksandar R. and Bald, Ilko}, title = {Sensitizing DNA Towards Low-Energy Electrons with 2-Fluoroadenine}, series = {Angewandte Chemie : a journal of the Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker ; International edition}, volume = {55}, journal = {Angewandte Chemie : a journal of the Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker ; International edition}, publisher = {Wiley-VCH}, address = {Weinheim}, issn = {1433-7851}, doi = {10.1002/anie.201603464}, pages = {10248 -- 10252}, year = {2016}, abstract = {2-Fluoroadenine ((2F)A) is a therapeutic agent, which is suggested for application in cancer radiotherapy. The molecular mechanism of DNA radiation damage can be ascribed to a significant extent to the action of low-energy (<20 eV) electrons (LEEs), which damage DNA by dissociative electron attachment. LEE induced reactions in (2F)A are characterized both isolated in the gas phase and in the condensed phase when it is incorporated into DNA. Information about negative ion resonances and anion-mediated fragmentation reactions is combined with an absolute quantification of DNA strand breaks in (2F)A-containing oligonucleotides upon irradiation with LEEs. The incorporation of (2F)A into DNA results in an enhanced strand breakage. The strand-break cross sections are clearly energy dependent, whereas the strand-break enhancements by (2F)A at 5.5, 10, and 15 eV are very similar. Thus, (2F)A can be considered an effective radiosensitizer operative at a wide range of electron energies.}, language = {en} } @article{MeilingCywinskiBald2016, author = {Meiling, Till T. and Cywinski, Piotr J. and Bald, Ilko}, title = {White carbon: Fluorescent carbon nanoparticles with tunable quantum yield in a reproducible green synthesis}, series = {Scientific reports}, volume = {6}, journal = {Scientific reports}, publisher = {Nature Publ. Group}, address = {London}, issn = {2045-2322}, doi = {10.1038/srep28557}, pages = {9}, year = {2016}, abstract = {In this study, a new reliable, economic, and environmentally-friendly one-step synthesis is established to obtain carbon nanodots (CNDs) with well-defined and reproducible photoluminescence (PL) properties via the microwave-assisted hydrothermal treatment of starch and Tris-acetate-EDTA (TAE) buffer as carbon sources. Three kinds of CNDs are prepared using different sets of above mentioned starting materials. The as-synthesized CNDs: C-CND (starch only), N-CND 1 (starch in TAE) and N-CND 2 (TAE only) exhibit highly homogenous PL and are ready to use without need for further purification. The CNDs are stable over a long period of time (> 1 year) either in solution or as freeze-dried powder. Depending on starting material, CNDs with PL quantum yield (PLQY) ranging from less than 1\% up to 28\% are obtained. The influence of the precursor concentration, reaction time and type of additives on the optical properties (UV-Vis absorption, PL emission spectrum and PLQY) is carefully investigated, providing insight into the chemical processes that occur during CND formation. Remarkably, upon freeze-drying the initially brown CND-solution turns into a non-fluorescent white/slightly brown powder which recovers PL in aqueous solution and can potentially be applied as fluorescent marker in bio-imaging, as a reduction agent or as a photocatalyst.}, language = {en} } @article{SunCernochVoelkeletal.2016, author = {Sun, Jing and Cernoch, Peter and V{\"o}lkel, Antje and Wei, Yuhan and Ruokolainen, Janne and Schlaad, Helmut}, title = {Aqueous Self-Assembly of a Protein-Mimetic Ampholytic Block Copolypeptide}, series = {Macromolecules : a publication of the American Chemical Society}, volume = {49}, journal = {Macromolecules : a publication of the American Chemical Society}, publisher = {American Chemical Society}, address = {Washington}, issn = {0024-9297}, doi = {10.1021/acs.macromol.6b00817}, pages = {5494 -- 5501}, year = {2016}, abstract = {This report describes the aggregation behavior of an ABC-type ampholytic block copolypeptide, poly(ethylene oxide)-block-poly(L-lysine)-block-poly(L-glutamate), in aqueous media in dependence of pH. Polypeptide secondary structures and self-assemblies are investigated by circular dichroism (CD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and NMR spectroscopy, zeta potential measurements, analytical ultracentrifugation (AUC), dynamic/static light scattering (DLS/SLS), and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryoTEM). The polymer chains tend to form vesicles when the hydrophobic polypeptide helix is located at the chain end (acidic pH) and are existing as single chains when it is located in the center and flanked by the two hydrophilic segments (basic pH). Precipitation occurs in the intermediate pH range due to polyion complexation of the charged polypeptide segments.}, language = {en} } @article{HardyTorresRendonLealEganaetal.2016, author = {Hardy, John G. and Torres-Rendon, Jose Guillermo and Leal-Egana, Aldo and Walther, Andreas and Schlaad, Helmut and Coelfen, Helmut and Scheibel, Thomas R.}, title = {Biomineralization of Engineered Spider Silk Protein-Based Composite Materials for Bone Tissue Engineering}, series = {Materials}, volume = {9}, journal = {Materials}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {1996-1944}, doi = {10.3390/ma9070560}, pages = {93 -- 108}, year = {2016}, abstract = {Materials based on biodegradable polyesters, such as poly(butylene terephthalate) (PBT) or poly(butylene terephthalate-co-poly(alkylene glycol) terephthalate) (PBTAT), have potential application as pro-regenerative scaffolds for bone tissue engineering. Herein, the preparation of films composed of PBT or PBTAT and an engineered spider silk protein, (eADF4(C16)), that displays multiple carboxylic acid moieties capable of binding calcium ions and facilitating their biomineralization with calcium carbonate or calcium phosphate is reported. Human mesenchymal stem cells cultured on films mineralized with calcium phosphate show enhanced levels of alkaline phosphatase activity suggesting that such composites have potential use for bone tissue engineering.}, language = {en} } @article{PrinzMatkovicPesicetal.2016, author = {Prinz, Julia and Matkovic, Aleksandar and Pesic, Jelena and Gajic, Rados and Bald, Ilko}, title = {Hybrid Structures for Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering: DNA Origami/Gold Nanoparticle Dimer/Graphene}, series = {Small}, volume = {12}, journal = {Small}, publisher = {Wiley-VCH}, address = {Weinheim}, issn = {1613-6810}, doi = {10.1002/smll.201601908}, pages = {5458 -- 5467}, year = {2016}, abstract = {A combination of three innovative materials within one hybrid structure to explore the synergistic interaction of their individual properties is presented. The unique electronic, mechanical, and thermal properties of graphene are combined with the plasmonic properties of gold nanoparticle (AuNP) dimers, which are assembled using DNA origami nanostructures. This novel hybrid structure is characterized by means of correlated atomic force microscopy and surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). It is demonstrated that strong interactions between graphene and AuNPs result in superior SERS performance of the hybrid structure compared to their individual components. This is particularly evident in efficient fluorescence quenching, reduced background, and a decrease of the photobleaching rate up to one order of magnitude. The versatility of DNA origami structures to serve as interface for complex and precise arrangements of nanoparticles and other functional entities provides the basis to further exploit the potential of the here presented DNA origami-AuNP dimer-graphene hybrid structures.}, language = {en} } @article{VacogneSchopfererSchlaad2016, author = {Vacogne, Charlotte D. and Schopferer, Michael and Schlaad, Helmut}, title = {Physical Gelation of alpha-Helical Copolypeptides}, series = {Biomacromolecules : an interdisciplinary journal focused at the interface of polymer science and the biological sciences}, volume = {17}, journal = {Biomacromolecules : an interdisciplinary journal focused at the interface of polymer science and the biological sciences}, publisher = {American Chemical Society}, address = {Washington}, issn = {1525-7797}, doi = {10.1021/acs.biomac.6b00427}, pages = {2384 -- 2391}, year = {2016}, abstract = {Owing to its rod-like alpha-helical secondary structure, the synthetic polypeptide poly(gamma-benzyl-L-glutamate) (PBLG) can form physical and thermoreversible gels in helicogenic solvents such as toluene. The versatility of PBLG can be increased by introducing functionalizable comonomers, such as allylglycine (AG). In this work we examined the secondary structure of PBLG and a series of statistical poly(gamma-benzyl-L-glutamate-co-allylglycine) copolypeptides, varying in composition and chain length, by circular dichroism (CD), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopy, and wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS). The secondary structure of PBLG and the copolypeptides presented dissimilarities that increased with increasing AG molar fraction, especially when racemic AG units were incorporated. The physical gelation behavior of these copolypeptides was analyzed by temperature-sweep H-1 NMR and rheological measurements. The study revealed that both copolypeptide composition and chain length affected secondary structure, gelation temperature, and gel stiffness.}, language = {en} } @article{GuietUnmuessigGoebeletal.2016, author = {Guiet, Amandine and Unm{\"u}ssig, Tobias and G{\"o}bel, Caren and Vainio, Ulla and Wollgarten, Markus and Driess, Matthias and Schlaad, Helmut and Polte, J{\"o}rg and Fischer, Anna}, title = {Yolk@Shell Nanoarchitectures with Bimetallic Nanocores - Synthesis and Electrocatalytic Applications}, series = {Earth \& planetary science letters}, volume = {8}, journal = {Earth \& planetary science letters}, publisher = {American Chemical Society}, address = {Washington}, issn = {1944-8244}, doi = {10.1021/acsami.6b06595}, pages = {28019 -- 28029}, year = {2016}, language = {en} } @article{DemirelGunerVerbraekenetal.2016, author = {Demirel, A. Levent and Guner, Pinar Tatar and Verbraeken, Bart and Schlaad, Helmut and Schubert, Ulrich S. and Hoogenboom, Richard}, title = {Revisiting the Crystallization of Poly(2-alkyl-2-oxazoline)s}, series = {Journal of polymer science : B, Polymer physics}, volume = {54}, journal = {Journal of polymer science : B, Polymer physics}, publisher = {Wiley-Blackwell}, address = {Hoboken}, issn = {0887-6266}, doi = {10.1002/polb.23967}, pages = {721 -- 729}, year = {2016}, abstract = {Poly(2-alkyl-2-oxazoline)s (PAOx) exhibit different crystallization behavior depending on the length of the alkyl side chain. PAOx having methyl, ethyl, or propyl side chains do not show any bulk crystallization. Crystallization in the heating cycle, that is, cold crystallization, is observed for PAOx with butyl and pentyl side chains. For PAOx with longer alkyl side chains crystallization occurs in the cooling cycle. The different crystallization behavior is attributed to the different polymer chain mobility in line with the glass transition temperature (T-g) dependency on alkyl side chain length. The decrease in chain mobility with decreasing alkyl side chain length hinders the relaxation of the polymer backbone to the thermodynamic equilibrium crystalline structure. Double melting behavior is observed for PButOx and PiPropOx which is explained by the melt-recrystallization mechanism. Isothermal crystallization experiments of PButOx between 60 and 90 degrees C and PiPropOx between 90 and 150 degrees C show that PAOx can crystallize in bulk when enough time is given. The decrease of Tg and the corresponding increase in chain mobility at T > T-g with increasing alkyl side chain length can be attributed to an increasing distance between the polymer backbones and thus decreasing average strength of amide dipole interactions. (C) 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.}, language = {en} } @article{TritschlerZlotnikovFratzletal.2016, author = {Tritschler, Ulrich and Zlotnikov, Igor and Fratzl, Peter and Schlaad, Helmut and Gruener, Simon and Coelfen, Helmut}, title = {Gas barrier properties of bio-inspired Laponite-LC polymer hybrid films}, series = {PLoS one}, volume = {11}, journal = {PLoS one}, publisher = {IOP Publ. Ltd.}, address = {Bristol}, issn = {1748-3182}, doi = {10.1088/1748-3190/11/3/035005}, pages = {12}, year = {2016}, abstract = {Bio-inspired Laponite (clay)-liquid crystal (LC) polymer composite materials with high clay fractions (>80\%) and a high level of orientation of the clay platelets, i.e. with structural features similar to the ones found in natural nacre, have been shown to exhibit a promising behavior in the context of reduced oxygen transmission. Key characteristics of these bio-inspired composite materials are their high inorganic content, high level of exfoliation and orientation of the clay platelets, and the use of a LC polymer forming the organic matrix in between the Laponite particles. Each single feature may be beneficial to increase the materials gas barrier property rendering this composite a promising system with advantageous barrier capacities. In this detailed study, Laponite/LC polymer composite coatings with different clay loadings were investigated regarding their oxygen transmission rate. The obtained gas barrier performance was linked to the quality, respective Laponite content and the underlying composite micro-and nanostructure of the coatings. Most efficient oxygen barrier properties were observed for composite coatings with 83\% Laponite loading that exhibit a structure similar to sheet-like nacre. Further on, advantageous mechanical properties of these Laponite/LC polymer composites reported previously give rise to a multifunctional composite system.}, language = {en} } @article{SchuermannBald2016, author = {Sch{\"u}rmann, Robin Mathis and Bald, Ilko}, title = {Decomposition of DNA Nucleobases by Laser Irradiation of Gold Nanoparticles Monitored by Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering}, series = {The journal of physical chemistry : C, Nanomaterials and interfaces}, volume = {120}, journal = {The journal of physical chemistry : C, Nanomaterials and interfaces}, publisher = {American Chemical Society}, address = {Washington}, issn = {1932-7447}, doi = {10.1021/acs.jpcc.5b10564}, pages = {3001 -- 3009}, year = {2016}, abstract = {Different approaches have been proposed to treat cancer cells using gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) in combination with radiation ranging from infrared lasers to high-energy ion beams. Here we study the decomposition of the DNA/RNA nucleobases thymine (T) and uracil (U) and the well-known radiosensitizer 5-bromouracil (BrU) in close vicinity to AuNPs, which are irradiated with a nanosecond pulsed laser (532 nm) matching the surface plasmon resonance of the AuNPs. The induced damage of nucleobases is analyzed by UV-vis absorption spectroscopy and surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). A clear DNA damage is observed upon laser irradiation. SERS spectra indicate the fragmentation of the aromatic ring system of T and U as the dominant form of damage, whereas with BrU mainly the cleavage of the Br-C bond and formation of Br- ions is observed. This is accompanied by a partial transformation of BrU into U. The observed damage is at least partly ascribed to the intermediate formation of low energy electrons from the laser-excited AuNPs and subsequent dissociative electron attachment to T, U, and BrU. These reactions represent basic DNA damage pathways occurring on the one hand in plasmon-assisted cancer therapy and on the other hand in conventional cancer radiation therapy using AuNPs as sensitizing agents.}, language = {en} }