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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Polyglyoxylates: A New Class Of Triggerable Self-Immolative Polymers, Bo Fan Dec 2014

Polyglyoxylates: A New Class Of Triggerable Self-Immolative Polymers, Bo Fan

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Self-immolative polymers, which degrade by an end-to-end depolymerization mechanism in response to the cleavage of a stabilizing end-cap from the polymer terminus, are of increasing interest for a wide variety of applications ranging from sensors to controlled release. However, the preparation of these materials often requires expensive, multi-step monomer syntheses and the degradation products such as quinone methides or phthalaldehydes are potentially toxic to humans and the environment. We demonstrate here that polyglyxoylates can serve as a new and versatile class of self-immolative polymers. Polymerization of the commercially available monomer ethyl glyoxylate, followed by end-capping with a 6-nitroveratryl carbonate provides …


Poly(Ester Amide) And Poly(Ethyl Glyoxylate) Nanoparticles For Controlled Drug Release, Amira Mohamed Moustafa Dec 2014

Poly(Ester Amide) And Poly(Ethyl Glyoxylate) Nanoparticles For Controlled Drug Release, Amira Mohamed Moustafa

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The objective of this research was to develop polymeric nanoparticles (NPs) having improved drug release properties for drug delivery. Poly(ester amide)s (PEAs) are promising biodegradable polymers. PEA NPs were prepared via emulsification-evaporation and salting-out methods and optimized through by varying different processing parameters. Polymer-model drug conjugates based on PEAs containing L-aspartic acid and rhodamine B were synthesized and used for NP preparation. Release behavior was studied and compared to a control system with physically encapsulated rhodamine B. It was shown that the release of rhodamine B from the covalent system did not show the burst effect and exhibited a slower …


Tuning Responsiveness Of Polypeptide Based Block Copolymers For Drug Delivery, Ashley J. Johnson Dec 2014

Tuning Responsiveness Of Polypeptide Based Block Copolymers For Drug Delivery, Ashley J. Johnson

Dissertations

The goal of this dissertation was to tune the pH response and self-assembled morphologies of amphiphilic polypeptide block copolymers for use as drug delivery vehicles. Poly(L-lysine) and poly(L-glutamtic acid) are responsive, ionizable polypeptides that undergo secondary structure transitions, from α-helix to random coil, whereby the change in conformation of the peptide chain results in changes to the global morphology of a self-assembled system. The main focus of this work was to understand how changes in the polymer composition and the local environment can lead to control over the behavior of the overall system. First, the responsive behavior of poly(L-lysine) block …


Nanoparticle Building Blocks For Functional Structures, Youngdo Jeong Nov 2014

Nanoparticle Building Blocks For Functional Structures, Youngdo Jeong

Doctoral Dissertations

A major goal in material science is achieving a desired function using structures fabricated with designed building blocks. Advanced synthetic and self-assembly techniques allow various nanomaterials to become promising building blocks, providing the control of the interaction between building blocks. The unique properties of nanomaterials can be transferred to structured systems. Among nanomaterials, inorganic nanoparticles such as gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), magnetic particles, and quantum dots (QDs) provide useful physical properties stemming from their inorganic core, large surface areas, and oriented surface functionalities. My research has focused on fabricating functional systems using gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), manipulating the interaction between AuNPs, bio-entities, …


Functional Phosphorylcholine Polymers: Prodrugs And Biomaterials, Samantha B.M. Page Aug 2014

Functional Phosphorylcholine Polymers: Prodrugs And Biomaterials, Samantha B.M. Page

Doctoral Dissertations

This thesis describes the synthesis and applications of multifunctional, hydrophilic polymers consisting of a methacrylate backbone and zwitterionic phosphorylcholine (PC) pendent groups, prepared by free radical polymerization of the zwitterionic monomer, 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC). Advances in polymer chemistry, applied to PC polymers, allowed for the preparation of well-defined structures with controlled molecular weight, narrow polydispersity, and facile incorporation of functional comonomers, giving breadth to the range of materials accessible for different applications. Built-in functionality included fluorophores and reactive groups for post-polymerization transformations, such as drug conjugation or cross-linking. The ability to form well-defined structures based on the polyMPC backbone is …


Ligand-Receptor Interactions For Supramolecular Disassembly With Applications In Screening And Drug Delivery, Diego Amado Torres Aug 2014

Ligand-Receptor Interactions For Supramolecular Disassembly With Applications In Screening And Drug Delivery, Diego Amado Torres

Doctoral Dissertations

Proteins have the capacity to bind specific sets of compounds known as ligands, these are small molecules with a recurrent theme in their molecular design that is a characteristic exploited here to (i) identify particular affinities of small molecules for proteins with the aim of using them as ligands, inhibitors, or targeting moieties in more complex systems by means of a methodology that screens small molecules based on protein affinity; (ii) decorate a self-assembling supramolecular system at different positions, making it responsive to a complementary protein with the aim of exploring differences in disassembly and sensitivity of the release of …


Ligand-Receptor Interactions For Supramolecular Disassembly With Applications In Screening And Drug Delivery, Diego F. Amado Torres May 2014

Ligand-Receptor Interactions For Supramolecular Disassembly With Applications In Screening And Drug Delivery, Diego F. Amado Torres

Diego Amado Torres

Proteins have the capacity to bind specific sets of compounds known as ligands, these are small molecules with a recurrent theme in their molecular design that is a characteristic exploited here to (i) identify particular affinities of small molecules for proteins with the aim of using them as ligands, inhibitors, or targeting moieties in more complex systems by means of a methodology that screens small molecules based on protein affinity; (ii) decorate a self-assembling supramolecular system at different positions, making it responsive to a complementary protein with the aim of exploring differences in disassembly and sensitivity of the release of …


Design, Synthesis, And Exploration Of A Chimeric Antioxidant And New Crosslinkers For Molecular Imprinting, Danielle Songe Meador Jan 2014

Design, Synthesis, And Exploration Of A Chimeric Antioxidant And New Crosslinkers For Molecular Imprinting, Danielle Songe Meador

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The improvement and utility of crosslinkers are important topics of molecular imprinting. Crosslinker significance is evident when molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) composition related to performance as separation media is examined. Crosslinkers account for the bulk of MIP formulations made through traditional imprinting (80-90%) and is even greater when the One Monomer Molecularly Imprinted Polymer (OMNiMIP) approach is utilized (100%.) It is not surprising that alteration of the bulk component will result in different separation performances. Crosslinkers studied in this work were designed, synthesized, and evaluated toward improvement in OMNiMIP selectivity. In particular, functionality and number of polymerizable groups, addition of …


Synthesis And Characterization Of Ph Responsive D-Glucosamine Based Molecular Gelators, Navneet Goyal, Hari P.R. Mangunuru, Bargav Parikh, Sonu Shrestha, Guijun Wang Jan 2014

Synthesis And Characterization Of Ph Responsive D-Glucosamine Based Molecular Gelators, Navneet Goyal, Hari P.R. Mangunuru, Bargav Parikh, Sonu Shrestha, Guijun Wang

Chemistry & Biochemistry Faculty Publications

Small molecular gelators are a class of compounds with potential applications for soft biomaterials. Low molecular weight hydrogelators are especially useful for exploring biomedical applications. Previously, we found that 4,6-O-benzylidene acetal protected D-glucose and D-glucosamine are well-suited as building blocks for the construction of low molecular weight gelators. To better understand the scope of D-glucosamine derivatives as gelators, we synthesized and screened a novel class of N-acetylglucosamine derivatives with a p-methoxybenzylidene acetal protective group. This modification did not exert a negative influence on the gelation. On the contrary, it actually enhanced the gelation tendency for many derivatives. The …