Search results for "Macromolecular Substance"

A novel and ancient group of type I keratins with members in bichir, sturgeon and gar

2006

Abstract 1. Background Vertebrate epithelial cells typically express a specific set of keratins. In teleosts, keratins are also present in a variety of mesenchymal cells, which usually express vimentin. Significantly, our previous studies revealed that virtually all known teleost keratins evolved independently from those present in terrestrial vertebrates. To further elucidate the evolutionary scenario that led to the large variety of keratins and their complex expression patterns in present day teleosts, we have investigated their presence in bichir, sturgeon and gar. 2. Results We have discovered a novel group of type I keratins with members in all three of these ancient ray-finned fish, …

Interactions between proteins and poly(ethylene-glycol) investigated using molecular dynamics simulations

2017

Poly(ethylene-glycol) (PEG) is a polymer used to coat therapeutic preparations, like drugs or drug nanocarriers, and improve their efficacy. This effect is probably due to a reduction of the interactions of the coated species with the host organism. Nevertheless, experiments show that PEGylated materials do interact with the surrounding biological milieu, and in particular with blood proteins. Here, we use atomistic molecular dynamics simulations to characterize the interactions between the polymer and several blood proteins. In these simulations, the proteins are immersed in a mixture of PEG and water molecules. We observe how PEG distributes around the protein surface and measure PEG-prot…

Recognition of N-Alkyl- and N-Aryl-Acetamides by N-Alkyl Ammonium Resorcinarene Chlorides

2014

N-alkyl ammonium resorcinarene chlorides are stabilized by an intricate array of intra- and intermolecular hydrogen bonds that leads to cavitand-like structures. Depending on the upper-rim substituents, self-inclusion was observed in solution and in the solid state. The self-inclusion can be disrupted at higher temperatures, whereas in the presence of small guests the self-included dimers spontaneously reorganize to 1:1 host-guest complexes. These host compounds show an interesting ability to bind a series of N-alkyl acetamide guests through intermolecular hydrogen bonds involving the carbonyl oxygen (C=O) atoms and the amide (NH) groups of the guests, the chloride anions (Cl(-)) and ammoni…

Injectable in situ forming hydrogels based on natural and synthetic polymers for potential application in cartilage repair

2015

In this work we prepared two new hyaluronic acid (HA) based in situ forming hydrogels for the potential treatment of articular cartilage damages. In particular the amino derivative of HA (HA-EDA) and its graft copolymer with α-elastin (HA-EDA-g-α-elastin) were crosslinked, in mild physiological conditions via Michael-type addition, with α,β-poly(N-2-hydroxyethyl)-dl-aspartamide (PHEA) derivatized with divinylsulfone (DV). The swelling and degradation profile of the obtained hydrogels as well as the metabolic activity of incorporated bovine articular chondrocytes were investigated. Histological analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were performed to analyze the morphology of cells …

Identification of Novel Principles of Keratin Filament Network Turnover in Living Cells

2004

It is generally assumed that turnover of the keratin filament system occurs by exchange of subunits along its entire length throughout the cytoplasm. We now present evidence that a circumscribed submembranous compartment is actually the main site for network replenishment. This conclusion is based on the following observations in living cells synthesizing fluorescent keratin polypeptides: 1) Small keratin granules originate in close proximity to the plasma membrane and move toward the cell center in a continuous motion while elongating into flexible rod-like fragments that fuse with each other and integrate into the peripheral KF network. 2) Recurrence of fluorescence after photobleaching i…

Temperature- and light-responsive smart polymer materials.

2012

Stimuli-responsive polymers have been attracting great interest within the scientific community for several decades. The unique feature to respond to small changes in the environmental conditions has made this class of materials very promising for several applications in the field of nanoscience, nanotechnology and nanomedicine. So far, several different chemical, physical or biochemical stimuli have been investigated within natural or synthetic polymers. Very interesting and appealing seems to be the combination of several stimuli to tune the properties of these materials in manifold ways. Within this present review, we want to highlight the recent progress in the field of synthetic stimul…

Polymeric Micelles and Liposomes as Potential Drug Carriers

1986

In the past, a whole aray of polymeric carriers for biologically active substances have been reported. In this field the main interest has focused on the use of randomly solubilized polymers. Naturally occuring amphiphilic transport proteins can be modelled by synthetic micellar solubilized polymers. Poly(ethylene oxide)-polypeptide block copolymers with hydrophobic and cyclophosphamide-containing side groups are described. These micellar systems are able to transport different hydrophobic drugs.

1984

Different polymeric transport systems for biologically active substances are presented. In the past, most of the reviews on polymeric drugs dealt with pharmaca, fixed to conventional water-soluble polymers. Naturally occuring transport proteins with their complex features have recently been imitated by micellar solubilized polymers. Polymerized liposomes from polymerizable lipids can be regarded as vesicular solubilized polymers and are discussed as stable models for biomembranes. By insertion of glycolipids, these liposomes are rendered susceptible to specific recognition by proteins. When natural or cleavable synthetic lipids are incorporated into polymerizable membranes, phase-separation…

Correlations between Ion Conductivity and Polymer Dynamics in Hyperbranched Poly(ethylene oxide) Electrolytes for Lithium-Ion Batteries

2011

Poly(ethylene oxide)s with varying degrees of hyperbranching are effective at preventing the crystallization of PEO and lead to approximately a 100-fold increase in the Li-ion conductivity below 50 °C as compared with linear PEO. The Li-ion conductivities, which increase further upon permethylation of the hydroxyl termini, are found to correlate quantitatively with the fast segmental dynamics of PEO as measured by inelastic neutron scattering.

The Crystalline State of Macromolecular Substances

1974

Unlike low molecular weight substances, high polymers do not crystallize completely. However long the crystallization process is continued, they still consist of a mixture of crystalline and non crystalline regions. In the undrawn material, these regions form larger units which are known as spherulites. Questions that are of special interest concern the arrangement of the chains in the noncrystalline regions, the causes of chain folding, and the imperfections in the crystals. The incomplete crystallization is a consequence of kinetic inhibitions. This can be deduced from the fact that the crystalline fraction increases with rising crystallization temperature. If polymerization is carried ou…