Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Thu Thao Pham, Rintaro Takahashi, Tien Duc Pham, Shin-ichi Yusa
Summary: Stable PIC micelles with a small hydrodynamic radius of approximately 20 nm were prepared in water by mixing double hydrophilic oppositely charged diblock copolymers. The stability of these micelles is attributed to the combined driving forces of electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions.
Article
Polymer Science
Esra Aydinlioglu, Mona Abdelghani, Gaelle Le Fer, Jan C. M. van Hest, Olivier Sandre, Sebastien Lecommandoux
Summary: Two pairs of oppositely charged PEO-b-poly(amino acid) copolymers were synthesized and self-assembled into stable polyion complexes (PICsomes) with high potential as biocompatible nanocarriers for RNA interference. These PICsomes exhibited good stability even in high salinity media due to hydrophobic interactions between the phenylalanine residues. They successfully loaded small interfering RNA (siRNA) and showed minimal cell cytotoxicity while demonstrating superior gene silencing efficacy compared to free siRNA and a standard lipofectamine-siRNA complex.
MACROMOLECULAR CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Armira Azuar, Harrison Y. R. Madge, Jennifer C. Boer, Jazmina L. Gonzalez Cruz, Jingwen Wang, Zeinab G. Khalil, Cyril Deceneux, Georgia Goodchild, Jieru Yang, Prashamsa Koirala, Waleed M. Hussein, Robert J. Capon, Magdalena Plebanski, Istvan Toth, Mariusz Skwarczynski
Summary: Adjuvants and delivery systems are crucial for enhancing immunogenicity of peptide-based vaccines. A poly(hydrophobic amino acids) delivery system self-assembles into nanoparticles with self-adjuvating ability, which can be further integrated into liposomes to boost immunological responses. Anchoring polyleucine-based conjugates to cationic liposomes induces significant mucosal and systemic immunity in mice.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Radostina Kalinova, Ivaylo Dimitrov
Summary: This study aimed to construct novel functional PIC micelles with cell targeting ligands on the surface and evaluate the possibility of encapsulating hydrophobic drugs. The results showed that PIC micelles can successfully be used as carriers for hydrophobic drugs, expanding their potential applications in nanomedicine.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Sumit Kumar, Anamika Sindhu, Thoti Vasantha, Ianatul Khoiroh, Nagaraju Devunuri, Pannuru Venkatesu
Summary: In this study, the impact of hydrophilicity of amino acid based ionic liquids (AAILs) on the activity and structure stability of papain was investigated. It was found that AAILs with more hydrophilic cations, such as cholinium, can enhance the activity and stability of papain, while AAILs with less hydrophilic cations, such as tetraethylammonium, have detrimental effects. Additionally, higher concentrations of AAILs can denature papain regardless of the hydrophilic or hydrophobic nature of the cation.
JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR LIQUIDS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Teyfik Celen, Christian Anumudu, Taghi Miri, Helen Onyeaka, Paco Fernandez-Trillo
Summary: This study demonstrates the use of Carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) as a protective agent to enhance the antimicrobial activity of nisin, a natural food preservative. The optimized nisin:CMC nanoparticles achieved high encapsulation efficiency (>90%) and maintained a nisin content of over 60% w/w. These nanoparticles effectively inhibited the growth of Staphylococcus aureus in milk at one-tenth of the concentration currently used in dairy products. The affordability, simplicity of preparation, and ability to control foodborne pathogens make nisin:CMC PIC nanoparticles a promising platform for developing new nisin formulations.
CARBOHYDRATE POLYMERS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Dan Zhu, Jiang Li, Lianhui Wang, Qian Li, Lihua Wang, Bo Song, Ruhong Zhou, Chunhai Fan
Summary: The strong adhesion between DNA with consecutive adenines and Au nanoparticles is attributed to the hydrophobic collapse caused by the consecutive adenines, which plays a crucial role in determining the high adhesion affinity and specificity.
CHEMICAL COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Huiyi Liang, Yibo Du, Chenxu Zhu, Zhaoqiang Zhang, Guiqing Liao, Lixin Liu, Yongming Chen
Summary: Cancer metastasis that is resistant to conventional therapies has become a major cause of patient death. Recent reports indicate that the neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) is closely associated with cancer distant metastases, and the cell-free DNA of NETs has been identified as the ligand of the transmembrane protein CCDC25 of cancer cells, acting as a chemokine to induce cancer cell migration to distant organs. A strategy using poly(aspartic acid) based-cationic materials is presented to interfere with the interaction between NET-DNA and CCDC25, inhibiting NET-DNA-mediated cancer cell chemotaxis and migration. Nanoparticulate poly(aspartic acid) derivatives efficiently reduce hepatic NET-DNA infiltration and suppress cancer metastases in mice and human metastatic models without toxicity to organs.
Article
Biophysics
Zhuang Hu, Gongshu Wang, Rui Zhang, Lijuan Wang, Jiwei Wang, Jianshe Hu, Aikebaier Reheman
Summary: A series of novel poly(amino acid)s materials were designed to prepare drug-loaded nanoparticles by physical encapsulation and chemical bonding. The polymer's side chain contains a large number of amino groups, effectively increasing the loading rate of doxorubicin (DOX). The structure contains disulfide bonds that respond strongly to the redox environment, achieving targeted drug release in the tumor microenvironment. Nanoparticles exhibit spherical morphology and suitable size for systemic circulation. Cell experiments demonstrate the non-toxicity and good cellular uptake behavior of the polymers. In vivo anti-tumor experiments show that the nanoparticles can inhibit tumor growth and effectively reduce the side effects of DOX.
COLLOIDS AND SURFACES B-BIOINTERFACES
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Jong Hun Kang, Lynne B. McCusker, Michael W. Deem, Christian Baerlocher, Mark E. Davis
Summary: The synthesis of large single crystals of pure-silica STW-type molecular sieves using different types and amounts of amino acids, with 12345PMI fitting better into the STW cage than 2E134TMI. Furthermore, the achievement of an enantioenriched R-STW-type molecular sieve with a Si/Ge ratio of 2.2 using a chiral, dicationic OSDA with two stereocenters.
CHEMISTRY OF MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Materials Science, Composites
Hui Ding, Weijun Yang, Wenhao Yu, Tianxi Liu, Haigang Wang, Pengwu Xu, Liangliang Lin, Piming Ma
Summary: The hydrophobic lignin nanoparticles (LNP) were synthesized through a synchronous modification process and used to prepare bio-based PLA foams with high hydrophobicity and porosity. These composite foams showed strong absorption capacities towards various oil/organic solvents and exhibited good recyclability.
COMPOSITES COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Zhuang Hu, Gongshu Wang, Shengyun Zhao, Shizhi Jiang, Jianshe Hu, Aikebaier Reheman
Summary: Amphiphilic poly (amino acid)s materials were designed to prepare drug-loaded nanoparticles, which can reduce the adverse effects of antitumor drugs and have good biosafety. The introduction of cholesterol makes the material exhibit liquid crystal properties, facilitating the self-assembly of macro-molecules. Different morphologies, such as spheres or rods, were observed in different environments. The synthesized material showed low toxicity to normal cells and significant targeting and proliferation inhibition of cancer cells. The nanoparticles entered cells slowly through endocytosis and interacted with lysosomes to release drugs. In vitro drug release experiments demonstrated temperature/pH dual responsiveness of the nanoparticles.
JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR LIQUIDS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Michiko Kimoto, Hui Pen Tan, Ken-ichiro Matsunaga, Nur Afiqah Binte Mohd Mislan, Gota Kawai, Ichiro Hirao
Summary: XenoAptamers are DNA fragments with additional letters that can specifically bind to target proteins with high affinities. The hydrophobic base 7-(2-thienyl)imidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (Ds) greatly enhances the binding affinities of XenoAptamers. By replacing Ds with different variants, the affinities of XenoAptamers to target proteins can be further optimized.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Mark Cornebise, Elisabeth Narayanan, Yan Xia, Edward Acosta, Lei Ci, Hillary Koch, Jaclyn Milton, Staci Sabnis, Timothy Salerno, Kerry E. Benenato
Summary: Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) efficiently deliver messenger RNA systemically due to their composition and architecture. Interactions between components in self-assembly establish stable equilibrium. A new squaramide lipid with specific interactions with mRNA enhances particle stability and efficiency.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Apollinariia Yu. Dzhuzha, Irina I. I. Tarasenko, Leonard Ionut Atanase, Antonina Lavrentieva, Evgenia G. G. Korzhikova-Vlakh
Summary: Synthetic poly(amino acids) are macromolecules that mimic natural polypeptides and are commonly used as carriers for drug and gene delivery. In this study, we synthesized and characterized amphiphilic copolymers by modifying poly(alpha,L-glutamic acid) with hydrophobic and basic L-amino acids and D-glucosamine. The resulting glycopolypeptides formed nanoparticles that showed reduced macrophage uptake and were non-toxic to human lung epithelial cells. These nanoparticles were also capable of loading hydrophobic drugs, such as paclitaxel, and demonstrated high cytostatic efficacy against human lung adenocarcinoma.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
