Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Design, Synthesis And Applications Of Polymer Biomaterials, Frankie Costanza

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The emergence of antibiotic resistant bacteria has prompted the research into novel kinds of antibacterial small molecules and polymers. Nature has solved this issue with the use of cationic antimicrobial peptides, which act as nonspecific antibiotics against invading species. Herein, we have tried to mimic this general mechanism in a biocompatible and biodegradable polymer micelle based on the polymerization of naturally occurring amino acids lysine and phenylalanine linked to a PEG tether. This amphiphilic structure allows for the spontaneous collapse into stable nanoparticles in solution, which contains a hydrophilic outer layer and a hydrophobic core. Our polymers have shown activity …