Impact of double cryogelation process on a macroporous dye-affinity hydrogel.

Cryogels with interconnected channels allow high flow-through properties and mass transfer when dealing with complex mixtures such as non-clarified crude extracts. However, their mechanical strength can be challenged due to a large void volume inside the polymeric network. We have addressed this problem by forming a double-layer cryogel applied as a dye-affinity chromatography gel.

Interaction of haemin with albumin-based macroporous cryogel: Adsorption isotherm and fluorescence quenching studies.

Albumin-based cryogels for capturing haemin were synthesised by crosslinking different biomolecules, bovine serum albumin (BSA) and ovalbumin (OVA). The impact of the protein and coupling agent concentrations on cryogel's mechanical properties, swelling ratios and polymerisation yields, as well as autoclaving as a post-treatment on the cryogel, were studied. We found that BSA (50 mg/ml) and the crosslinker (-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)--ethylcarbodiimide hydrochloride, 46 mg/ml) formed a cryogel with optimum physical characteristics at a comparatively low protein concentration.

Imprinted Polymer Beads Loaded with Silver Nanoparticles for Antibacterial Applications.

After the emergence of multidrug-resistant strains, antibiotic resistance in bacteria has become an important problem. Thus, materials for combating multidrug-resistant bacteria are of vital importance. In this work, we developed an antibacterial material that can selectively capture and destruct bacteria on the basis of their physical characteristics.

Rapid Separation of Human Hemoglobin on a Large Scale From Non-clarified Bacterial Cell Homogenates Using Molecularly Imprinted Composite Cryogels.

The production of a macroporous hydrogel column, known as cryogel, has been scaled up (up to 150 mL) in this work for the purification of human hemoglobin from non-clarified bacterial homogenates. Composite cryogels were synthesized in the presence of adult hemoglobin (HbA) to form a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP)network where the affinity sites for the targeted molecule were placed directly on an acrylamide cryogel by protein imprinting during the cryogelation. The MIP composite cryogel column was first evaluated in a well-defined protein mixture.

Synthesizing a Hybrid Nanocomposite as an Affinity Adsorbent through Surface-Initiated Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization Catalyzed by Myoglobin.

A hybrid bifunctional core-shell nanostructure was synthesized for the first time via surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP) using myoglobin as a biocatalyst (ATRPase) in an aqueous solution. -Isopropyl acrylamide (NIPA) and -(3-aminopropyl)methacrylamide (APMA) were applied to graft flexible polymer brushes onto initiator-functionalized silica nanoparticles. Two different approaches were implemented to form the core-shell nanocomposite: (a) random copolymerization, Si@p(NIPA--APMA) and (b) sequential block copolymerization, Si@pNIPA--pAPMA.

Preparation of Boronic Acid-Functionalized Cryogels Using Modular and Clickable Building Blocks for Bacterial Separation.

Composite cryogels containing boronic acid ligands are synthesized for effective separation and isolation of bacteria. The large and interconnected pores in cryogels enable fast binding and release of microbial cells. To control bacterial binding, an alkyne-tagged boronic acid ligand is conjugated to azide-functionalized cryogel the Cu(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition reaction.

Nanoparticle-supported polymer brushes for temperature-regulated glycoprotein separation: investigation of structure-function relationship.

In this work, we synthesized a series of nanoparticle-supported boronic acid polymer brushes for affinity separation of glycoproteins. Polymer brushes were prepared by surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization of glycidyl methacrylate and N-isopropylacrylamide, followed by stepwise modification of the pendant as well as the end functional groups to introduce boronic acid moieties through a Cu(i)-catalyzed alkyne-azide cycloaddition reaction. We investigated the impact of the polymer structure on glycoprotein binding under different pH and temperature conditions, and established new methods that allow glycoproteins to be more easily isolated and recovered with minimal alteration in solvent composition.

Composite imprinted macroporous hydrogels for haemoglobin purification from cell homogenate.

Purification of haemoglobin (Hb) has been studied for many years due to its ability to act as an oxygen carrier and its possible use in urgent clinical treatment. In this study, different types of chromatography columns were developed for Hb purification. Two of them showed satisfactory results as affinity chromatography columns and were thus studied more extensively.

Dynamic assembly of molecularly imprinted polymer nanoparticles.

Manipulation of specific binding and recycling of materials are two important aspects for practical applications of molecularly imprinted polymers. In this work, we developed a new approach to control the dynamic assembly of molecularly imprinted nanoparticles by surface functionalization. Molecularly imprinted polymer nanoparticles with a well-controlled core-shell structure were synthesized using precipitation polymerization.

Cryogels with affinity ligands as tools in protein purification.

Affinity chromatography is one of the well-known separation techniques especially if high purity is desired. Introducing ligands on monolithic structure gives the possibility for purifying complex media such as plasma and crude extract. This chapter is focusing on the preparation of cryogels as monolithic column and immobilization of concanavalin A on its surface as ligand for capturing the glycoprotein horseradish peroxidase.

Cryogelation of molecularly imprinted nanoparticles: a macroporous structure as affinity chromatography column for removal of β-blockers from complex samples.

In this work, a new macroporous molecularly imprinted cryogel (MIP composite cryogel) was synthesized by glutaraldehyde cross-linking reaction of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) particles and amino-modified molecularly imprinted core-shell nanoparticles. The MIP core-shell nanoparticles were prepared using propranolol as a template by one-pot precipitation polymerization with sequential monomer addition. The characteristics of the MIP composite cryogel were studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and texture analyzer.

Composite cryogel with immobilized concanavalin A for affinity chromatography of glycoproteins.

Composite cryogels containing porous adsorbent particles were prepared under cryogelation conditions. The composites with immobilized concanavalin A (Con A) were used for capturing glycoproteins. Adsorbent particles were introduced into the structure in order to improve the capacity and to facilitate the handling of the particles.

Cross-linking cellulose nanofibrils for potential elastic cryo-structured gels.

Cellulose nanofibrils were produced from P. radiata kraft pulp fibers. The nanofibrillation was facilitated by applying 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinyl-1-oxyl-mediated oxidation as pretreatment.

Evaluation of selective composite cryogel for bromate removal from drinking water.

Bromate, which is a potential carcinogen, should be removed from drinking water to levels of less than 10 microg/L. A chitosan-based molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) and a sol-gel ion-exchange double hydrous oxide (Fe(2)O(3) x Al(2)O(3) x xH(2)O) adsorbent (inorganic adsorbent) were prepared for this purpose. The sorption behavior of each adsorbent including sorption kinetics, isotherms, effect of pH and selective sorption were investigated in detail.

Preparation and evaluation of polymer-coated adsorbents for the expanded bed recovery of protein products from particulate feedstocks.

A novel prototype polymer-coated adsorbent (PCA) has been developed for the effective expanded bed recovery of protein products from particulate feedstocks. The adsorbents were manufactured using the three-phase emulsification process by which the selected core phases (anion- and cation-exchangers and a custom-assembled pseudo-affinity adsorbent) were coated by an agarose gel. This new non-stick exterior coating acts as a sieve reducing the non-specific binding of cell and cell debris without diminution of selective capture of target protein from complex feedstocks such as whole microbial broths and cell disruptates.