Search results for "Bioengineering"

Combining oxyanionic polymerization and click-chemistry: a general strategy for the synthesis of polyether polyol macromonomers

2014

We describe a synthetic pathway to tailor-made amphiphilic macromonomers by a combination of anionic ring-opening polymerization and copper-catalyzed azide–alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC). Linear polyglycerol and poly(glyceryl glycerol) were synthesized in a controlled manner by anionic ring-opening polymerization of ethoxyethyl glycidyl ether or isopropylidene glyceryl glycidyl ether, respectively, with narrow and monomodal molecular weight distributions (Mw/Mn < 1.20) and molecular weights ranging from 850 g mol−1 to 2500 g mol−1. After end-capping with propargyl bromide and removal of the protecting groups, the hydrophilic precursors were quantitatively clicked to a series of hydrophobic az…

Oxidation-responsive polyether block copolymers lead to non-ionic polymer surfactants with multiple amine N-oxides

2019

Block copolymers consisting of a nonpolar poly(propylene oxide) block and a poly(glycidyl amine) block were prepared by anionic ring-opening polymerization (AROP). The tertiary amine groups of the block copolymers were quantitively transformed into the corresponding zwitterionic amine N-oxides, as confirmed by 1H NMR and 15N NMR spectroscopy. This leads to strongly amphiphilic polyether block copolymers with multiple N-oxides. Full oxidation of the amine groups was also possible in situ in an emulsion, demonstrating the oxidation-responsive character of this new class of non-ionic polymeric surfactants.

Multi-stimuli responsive polymers – the all-in-one talents

2014

Stimuli-responsive polymers have gained increasing attention, which is attributed to the manifold applications they can be used for. Several years' intensive research was invested in stimuli-responsive polymers. Their stimuli-responsiveness led not only to novel responsive groups, which enabled the translation of an external physical impact into a change of a material property, but also to polymers that are equipped with more than one responsive group. The integration of several responsive moieties within one polymer yields smart polymers exhibiting complex responsive behaviour of the polymers. This review summarises recent developments in the area of multi-stimuli responsive polymers, layi…

pH-sensitive hydrogel based on a novel photocross-linkable copolymer.

2004

A pH sensitive hydrogel has been prepared by a UV irradiation technique. Starting polymer was the PHM (poly hydroxyethylaspartamide methacrylated) obtained from polyaspartamide (PHEA) partially derivatized with methacrylic anhydride (MA). This new copolymer has been further derivatized with succinic anhydride (SA) to obtain PHM-SA that has been cross-linked by UV irradiation to form a pH sensitive hydrogel. The network, recovered after washing as a powder, has been been characterized by FT-IR spectrophotometry and particle size distribution analysis. Moreover, to have information about water affinity of the prepared sample, swelling measurements have been carried out in aqueous media mimick…

Introducing PeptoPlexes: Polylysine-block-Polysarcosine Based Polyplexes for Transfection of HEK 293T Cells

2014

A series of well-defined polypeptide-polypeptoid block copolymers based on the body's own amino acids sarcosine and lysine are prepared by ring opening polymerization of N-carboxyanhydrides. Block lengths were varied between 200-300 for the shielding polysarcosine block and 20-70 for the complexing polylysine block. Dispersity indexes ranged from 1.05 to 1.18. Polylysine is polymerized with benzyloxycarbonyl as well as trifluoroacetyl protecting groups at the ϵ-amine group and optimized deprotection protocols for both groups are reported. The obtained block ionomers are used to complex pDNA resulting in the formation of polyplexes (PeptoPlexes). The PeptoPlexes can be successfully applied i…

Insight into the synthesis of N-methylated polypeptides

2020

The ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of N-carboxy anhydrides (NCAs) is mostly divided into two classes: NCAs of α-substituted amino acids and N-methylated NCAs of α-unsubstituted glycine derivatives (NNCAs). The use of both monomer types offers different mechanistic features and results in a multitude of functional materials. To combine these properties, the synthesis and ROP of α-substituted and N-methylated NCAs (αNNCAs) of several amino acids were investigated. The current study provides insight into the influence of polymerization conditions and the limitations caused by the enhanced steric demand of the amino acid NCA monomers and their N-methylated derivatives. Namely, the effects of…

Ethanol production improvement in Zymomonas mobilis by supplementation of fructan-cleaving enzymes on sucrose containing substrates

2010

Syntrophy of Crypthecodinium cohnii and immobilized Zymomonas mobilis for docosahexaenoic acid production from sucrose-containing substrates

2021

Marine heterotrophic dinoflagellate Crypthecodinium cohnii is an aerobic oleaginous microorganism that accumulates intracellular lipid with high content of 4,7,10,13,16,19-docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a polyunsaturated ω-3 (22:6) fatty acid with multiple health benefits. C. cohnii can grow on glucose and ethanol, but not on sucrose or fructose. For conversion of sucrose-containing renewables to C. cohnii DHA, we investigated a syntrophic process, involving immobilized cells of ethanologenic bacterium Zymomonas mobilis for fermenting sucrose to ethanol. The non-respiring, NADH dehydrogenase-deficient Z. mobilis strain Zm6-ndh, with high ethanol yield both under anaerobic and aerobic condition…

Cyclodextrin–calixarene co-polymers as a new class of nanosponges

2014

Hyper-reticulated co-polymers jointly formed by cyclodextrin and calixarene units, which can be considered as a new class of nanosponges, were easily obtained by means of a click chemistry approach. In particular, we succeeded in preparing our materials by exploiting the copper-catalyzed 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition (CuAAC) reaction between heptakis-(6-deoxy)-(6-azido)-beta-cyclodextrin and (5,11,17,23-tetra-tert-butyl)-(25,26,27,28-tetra-propargyloxy)-calix-[4]-arene, mixed in different proportions. These materials were fully characterized by means of combined FT-IR, thermogravimetric, C-13 {H-1} CP-MAS NMR and nitrogen adsorption/desorption techniques. In particular, C-13 {H-1} CP-MAS spectr…

Predicted secondary structure of hydroperoxide lyase from green bell pepper cloned in the yeast Yarrowia lipolytica

2010

International audience; Fatty acid hydroperoxide lyase (HPL) is a member of the cytochrome P450 family acting on fatty acid hydroperoxides in many organisms. The active green bell pepper HPL, cloned and expressed in the yeast Yarrowia lipolytica, was purified by immobilized metal-ion affinity chromatography (IMAC) in the presence of 2% of Triton X-100R. The secondary structure prediction by bioinformatics servers of HPL was realized by ANTHEPROT software, using the GOR, DPM and Predator methods. The theoretical results which are average values obtained from three different calculation methods showed 33% α-helix, 18% β-sheet, 7% turn and 42% coil. On the other hand, the secondary structure a…