Magnetic and fluorescent glycopolymer hybrid nanoparticles for intranuclear optical imaging.

The synthesis of galactose-displaying core-shell nanospheres exhibiting both fluorescent and magnetic properties by grafting a glycocopolymer consisting of 6-O-methacryloylgalactopyranose (MAGal) and 4-(pyrenyl)butyl methacrylate (PyMA) onto magnetic silica particles via thiol-ene chemistry is reported. Magnetization measurements indicated that neither the encapsulation of the iron oxide particles into silica nor the grafting of the glycocopolymer chains had a significant influence on the superparamagnetic properties. This not only simplifies the purification of the particles but may facilitate the use of the particles in applications such as hyperthermia or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Furthermore, the hydrophilic glycopolymer shell provided solubility of the particles in aqueous medium and enabled the uptake of the particles into the cytoplasm and nucleus of lung cancer cells via carbohydrate-lectin recognition effects.

Fluorescent vesicles consisting of galactose-based amphiphilic copolymers with a π-conjugated sequence self-assembled in water.

Fluorescent vesicles considered as a mimic of natural primitive cells are prepared from poly(3-hexylthiophene)-block-poly(3-O-methacryloyl-D-galactopyranose) P3HT-b-PMAGP copolymers. The unique characteristic of such vesicular nanostructures is their architecture, which comprises a hydrophobic π-conjugated P3HT wall stabilized by a hydrophilic PMAGP interface featuring glucose units. The results of this work offer a very efficient and straightforward method for engineering well-controlled fluorescent nanoparticles (without the addition of dyes), which provide an excellent support to the study of carbohydrate-protein interactions.

Stimuli-responsive spherical brushes based on D-galactopyranose and 2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate.

Stimuli-responsive spherical brushes composed of 6-O-methacryloyl-1,2:3,4-di-O-isopropylidene-D-galactopyranose (MAIGal) and 2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) are prepared via atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) using cross-linked polystyrene nanoparticles covered with a thin layer of 2-(2-bromoisobutyryloxy)ethyl methacrylate (BIEM) as ATRP initiator by the "grafting from" approach. The stimuli-responsive behavior of the deprotected spherical PMAGal-b-PDMAEMA block copolymer brushes is investigated by dynamic light scattering and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy. A brush with arms containing 160 MAGal and 170 DMAEMA monomer units shows a significant contraction of the hydrodynamic radius from 20 to 70 °C at pH = 8 with a cloud point at ≈40 °C, whereas no LCST is detected at pH = 6 and 7 due to the protonation of the DMAEMA units. Aggregates occur at low temperatures and pH 8 due to intermolecular interactions between the chains of different brushes, which disappear above LCST, when the PDMAEMA chains fold back to the core of the brushes, exposing the glycopolymer chains to the outside.

Glycopolymer functionalization of engineered spider silk protein-based materials for improved cell adhesion.

Silk protein-based materials are promising biomaterials for application as tissue scaffolds, due to their processability, biocompatibility, and biodegradability. The preparation of films composed of an engineered spider silk protein (eADF4(C16)) and their functionalization with glycopolymers are described. The glycopolymers bind proteins found in the extracellular matrix, providing a biomimetic coating on the films that improves cell adhesion to the surfaces of engineered spider silk films. Such silk-based materials have potential as coatings for degradable implantable devices.

Structural analysis of fructans produced by acetic acid bacteria reveals a relation to hydrocolloid function.

Some strains of acetic acid bacteria (Gluconobacter frateurii TMW 2.767, Gluconobacter cerinus DSM 9533T, Neoasaia chiangmaiensis NBRC 101099, Kozakia baliensis DSM 14400) produce high amounts of fructans, which can be exploited in food applications as previously demonstrated empirically for dough systems. In order to get insight into the structure and functionality of these polymers, we investigated the fructans isolated from these strains with respect to their linkage types and molecular weights/shapes using NMR spectroscopy and AF4-MALS-RI. Each fructan was identified as levan. The isolated levan fractions were highly similar according to their basic linearity and linkage types, but differed significantly in terms of their individual molecular weight distributions. In aqueous solutions the size of levan molecules present in all isolated levans continuously increased with their molecular weight and they tended to adopt a more compact molecular shape. Our data suggest that the increasing molecular weight of a levan particle enforces intramolecular interactions to reach the structural compactness of a microgel with hydrocolloid properties.

Glycopolymer-grafted polystyrene nanospheres.

The synthesis and characterization of spherical sugar-containing polymer brushes consisting of PS cores onto which chains of sugar-containing polymers have been grafted via two different techniques are described. Photopolymerization in aqueous dispersion using the functional monomer MAGlc and crosslinked or non-crosslinked PS particles covered with a thin layer of photo-initiator yielded homogeneous glycopolymer brushes attached to spherical PS cores. As an alternative, ATRP was used to graft poly-(N-acetylglucosamine) arms from crosslinked PS cores. Deprotection of the grafted brushes led to water-soluble particles that act as carriers for catalytically active gold nanoparticles. These glycopolymer chains show a high affinity to adsorb WGA whereas no binding to BSA or PNA could be detected.