@article{CharanGlebeAnandetal.2017, author = {Charan, Himanshu and Glebe, Ulrich and Anand, Deepak and Kinzel, Julia and Zhu, Leilei and Bocola, Marco and Garakani, Tayebeh Mirzaei and Schwaneberg, Ulrich and B{\"o}ker, Alexander}, title = {Nano-thin walled micro-compartments from transmembrane protein-polymer conjugates}, series = {Soft matter}, volume = {13}, journal = {Soft matter}, publisher = {Royal Society of Chemistry}, address = {Cambridge}, issn = {1744-683X}, doi = {10.1039/c6sm02520j}, pages = {2866 -- 2875}, year = {2017}, abstract = {The high interfacial activity of protein-polymer conjugates has inspired their use as stabilizers for Pickering emulsions, resulting in many interesting applications such as synthesis of templated micro-compartments and protocells or vehicles for drug and gene delivery. In this study we report, for the first time, the stabilization of Pickering emulsions with conjugates of a genetically modified transmembrane protein, ferric hydroxamate uptake protein component A (FhuA). The lysine residues of FhuA with open pore (FhuA Delta CVFtev) were modified to attach an initiator and consequently controlled radical polymerization (CRP) carried out via the grafting-from technique. The resulting conjugates of FhuA Delta CVFtev with poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) and poly((2-dimethylamino) ethyl methacrylate) (PDMAEMA), the so-called building blocks based on transmembrane proteins (BBTP), have been shown to engender larger structures. The properties such as pH-responsivity, temperature-responsivity and interfacial activity of the BBTP were analyzed using UV-Vis spectrophotometry and pendant drop tensiometry. The BBTP were then utilized for the synthesis of highly stable Pickering emulsions, which could remain non-coalesced for well over a month. A new UV-crosslinkable monomer was synthesized and copolymerized with NIPAAm from the protein. The emulsion droplets, upon crosslinking of polymer chains, yielded micro-compartments. Fluorescence microscopy proved that these compartments are of micrometer scale, while cryo-scanning electron microscopy and scanning force microscopy analysis yielded a thickness in the range of 11.1 +/- 0.6 to 38.0 +/- 18.2 nm for the stabilizing layer of the conjugates. Such micro-compartments would prove to be beneficial in drug delivery applications, owing to the possibility of using the channel of the transmembrane protein as a gate and the smart polymer chains as trigger switches to tune the behavior of the capsules.}, language = {en} } @article{LiebeckHidalgoRothetal.2017, author = {Liebeck, Bernd Michael and Hidalgo, Natalia and Roth, Georg and Popescu, Crisan and B{\"o}ker, Alexander}, title = {Synthesis and characterization of Methyl Cellulose/Keratin Hydrolysate Composite Membranes}, series = {Polymers / Molecular Diversity Preservation International}, volume = {9}, journal = {Polymers / Molecular Diversity Preservation International}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2073-4360}, doi = {10.3390/polym9030091}, pages = {13}, year = {2017}, abstract = {It is known that aqueous keratin hydrolysate solutions can be produced from feathers using superheated water as solvent. This method is optimized in this study by varying the time and temperature of the heat treatment in order to obtain a high solute content in the solution. With the dissolved polypeptides, films are produced using methyl cellulose as supporting material. Thereby, novel composite membranes are produced from bio-waste. It is expected that these materials exhibit both protein and polysaccharide properties. The influence of the embedded keratin hydrolysates on the methyl cellulose structure is investigated using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD). Adsorption peaks of both components are present in the spectra of the membranes, while the X-ray analysis shows that the polypeptides are incorporated into the semi-crystalline methyl cellulose structure. This behavior significantly influences the mechanical properties of the composite films as is shown by tensile tests. Since further processing steps, e.g., crosslinking, may involve a heat treatment, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) is applied to obtain information on the thermal stability of the composite materials.}, language = {en} } @misc{NguyenRichertParketal.2017, author = {Nguyen, Vu Hoa and Richert, S. and Park, Hyunji and B{\"o}ker, Alexander and Schnakenberg, Uwe}, title = {Single interdigital transducer as surface acoustic wave impedance sensor}, series = {Biosensors}, volume = {27}, journal = {Biosensors}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Amsterdam}, issn = {2212-0173}, doi = {10.1016/j.protcy.2017.04.032}, pages = {70 -- 71}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Surface acoustic wave (SAW) devices are well-known for gravimetric sensor applications. In biosensing applications, chemical-and biochemically evoked adsorption processes at surfaces are detected in liquid environments using delay-line or resonator sensor configurations, preferably in combination with appropriate microfluidic devices. In this paper, a novel SAW-based impedance sensor type is introduced which uses only one interdigital electrode transducer (IDT) simultaneously as SAW generator and sensor element. It is shown that the amplitude of the reflected S-11 signal directly depends on the input impedance of the SAW device. The input impedance is strongly influenced by mass adsorption which causes a characteristic and measurable impedance mismatch.}, language = {en} } @article{TebaldiCharanMavliutovaetal.2017, author = {Tebaldi, Marli Luiza and Charan, Himanshu and Mavliutova, Liliia and B{\"o}ker, Alexander and Glebe, Ulrich}, title = {Dual-Stimuli Sensitive Hybrid Materials: Ferritin-PDMAEMA by Grafting-From Polymerization}, series = {Macromolecular chemistry and physics}, volume = {218}, journal = {Macromolecular chemistry and physics}, publisher = {Wiley-VCH}, address = {Weinheim}, issn = {1022-1352}, doi = {10.1002/macp.201600529}, pages = {6}, year = {2017}, abstract = {The combination of stimuli-responsive polymers and proteins that can transport drugs is a promising approach for drug delivery. The formation of ferritin-poly(2-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate) (PDMAEMA) conjugates by atom-transfer radical polymerization from the protein macroinitiator is described. PDMAEMA is a dual-stimuli-responsive polymer and the thermo- and pH-responsive properties of the resulting conjugates are studied in detail with dynamic light scattering (DLS). Additionally, it is demonstrated that the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of the protein-polymer conjugates can be further adjusted by the ionic strength of the solution. The conjugates are also characterized by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight (MALDI-ToF) mass spectrometry, and NMR spectroscopy. The obtained MALDI-ToF mass spectra are exceptional for protein-polymer conjugates and have not been so often reported.}, language = {en} } @article{WagnerOdedShenharetal.2017, author = {Wagner, Tom and Oded, Meirav and Shenhar, Roy and B{\"o}ker, Alexander}, title = {Two-dimensionally ordered AuNP array formation via microcontact printing on lamellar diblock copolymer films}, series = {Polymers for advanced technologies}, volume = {28}, journal = {Polymers for advanced technologies}, publisher = {Wiley}, address = {Hoboken}, issn = {1042-7147}, doi = {10.1002/pat.3853}, pages = {623 -- 628}, year = {2017}, abstract = {The construction of nano-sized, two-dimensionally ordered nanoparticle (NP) superstructures is important for various advanced applications such as photonics, sensing, catalysis, or nano-circuitry. Currently, such structures are fabricated using the templated organization approach, in which the templates are mainly created by photo-lithography or laser-lithography and other invasive top-down etching procedures. In this work, we present an alternative bottom-up preparation method for the controlled deposition of NPs into hierarchical structures. Lamellar polystyrene-block-poly(2-vinylpyridinium) thin films featuring alternating stripes of neutral PS and positively charged P2VP domains serve as templates, allowing for the selective adsorption of negatively charged gold NPs. Dense NP assembly is achieved by a simple immersion process, whereas two-dimensionally ordered arrays of NPs are realized by microcontact printing (mu CP), utilizing periodic polydimethylsiloxane wrinkle grooves loaded with gold NPs. This approach enables the facile construction of hierarchical NP arrays with variable geometries. Copyright (C) 2016 John Wiley \& Sons, Ltd.}, language = {en} } @article{WuGlebeBoeker2017, author = {Wu, Lei and Glebe, Ulrich and B{\"o}ker, Alexander}, title = {Fabrication of Thermoresponsive Plasmonic Core-Satellite Nanoassemblies with a Tunable Stoichiometry via Surface-Initiated Reversible Addition-Fragmentation Chain Transfer Polymerization from Silica Nanoparticles}, series = {Advanced materials interfaces}, volume = {4}, journal = {Advanced materials interfaces}, publisher = {Wiley}, address = {Hoboken}, issn = {2196-7350}, doi = {10.1002/admi.201700092}, pages = {10}, year = {2017}, abstract = {This work presents a fabrication of thermoresponsive plasmonic core-satellite nanoassemblies. The structure has a silica nanoparticle core surrounded by gold nanoparticle satellites using thermoresponsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) chains as scaffolds. The thiol-terminated PNIPAM shell is densely grafted on the silica core via surface-initiated reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer polymerization and used to anchor numerous gold nanoparticle satellites with a tunable stoichiometry. Below and above lower critical solution temperature, the chain conformation of PNIPAM reversibly changes between swollen and shrunken state. The reversible change of the polymer size varies the refractive index of the local medium surrounding the satellites and the distance between them. The two effects together lead to the thermoresponsive plasmonic properties of the nanoassemblies. Under different satellite densities, two distinctive plasmonic features appear.}, language = {en} } @article{ZhangBisterfeldBramskietal.2017, author = {Zhang, Shuhao and Bisterfeld, Carolin and Bramski, Julia and Vanparijs, Nane and De Geest, Bruno G. and Pietruszka, J{\"o}rg and B{\"o}ker, Alexander and Reinicke, Stefan}, title = {Biocatalytically Active Thin Films via Self-Assembly of 2-Deoxy-D-ribose-5-phosphate Aldolase-Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) Conjugates}, series = {Bioconjugate chemistry}, volume = {29}, journal = {Bioconjugate chemistry}, number = {1}, publisher = {American Chemical Society}, address = {Washington}, issn = {1043-1802}, doi = {10.1021/acs.bioconjchem.7b00645}, pages = {104 -- 116}, year = {2017}, abstract = {2-Deoxy-D-ribose-5-phosphate aldolase (DERA) is a biocatalyst that is capable of converting acetaldehyde and a second aldehyde as acceptor into enantiomerically pure mono- and diyhydroxyaldehydes, which are important structural motifs in a number of pharmaceutically active compounds. However, substrate as well as product inhibition requires a more-sophisticated process design for the synthesis of these motifs. One way to do so is to the couple aldehyde conversion with transport processes, which, in turn, would require an immobilization of the enzyme within a thin film that can be deposited on a membrane support. Consequently, we developed a fabrication process for such films that is based on the formation of DERA-poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) conjugates that are subsequently allowed to self-assemble at an air-water interface to yield the respective film. In this contribution, we discuss the conjugation conditions, investigate the interfacial properties of the conjugates, and, finally, demonstrate a successful film formation under the preservation of enzymatic activity.}, language = {en} }