We demonstrate the formation of polyethylene glycol (PEG) based hydrogels via oxime ligation and the photo-initiated thiol-ene 3D patterning of peptides within the hydrogel matrix post-gelation. The gelation process and final mechanical strength of hydrogels can be tuned using pH and the catalyst concentration. The time scale to reach the gel point and complete gelation can be shortened from hours to seconds using both pH and aniline catalyst, which facilitates the tuning of the storage modulus from 0.3 kPa to over 15 kPa. Azide and alkene functionalized hydrogels were also synthesized and we have shown the post gelation “click” type Husigen 1,3 cycloaddition and thiolene-based radical reactions for spatially defined peptide incorporation. These materials are the initial demonstration for translationally relevant hydrogel materials that possess tunable mechanical regimes attractive to soft tissue engineering and possess atom neutral chemistries attractive for post gelation patterning in the presence or absence of cells.

Amino acid-based poly(ester urea) (PEU) copolymers functionalized with pendant catechol groups that address the need for strongly adhesive yet degradable biomaterials have been developed. Lap-shear tests with aluminum adherends demonstrated that these polymers have lap-shear adhesion strengths near 1 MPa. An increase in lap-shear adhesive strength to 2.4 MPa was achieved upon the addition of an oxidative cross-linker. The adhesive strength on porcine skin adherends was comparable with commercial fibrin glue. Interfacial energies of the polymeric materials were investigated via contact angle measurements and Johnson-Kendall-Roberts (JKR) technique. The JKR work of adhesion was consistent with contact angle measurements. The chemical and physical properties of PEUs can be controlled using different diols and amino acids, making the polymers candidates for the development of biological glues for use in clinical applications.

Surface-sensitive spectroscopy and contact mechanics reveal ice-like confined water between surfactant-covered charged surfaces.

The contact of two hydrophobic surfaces in water is of importance in biology, catalysis, material science, and geology. A tenet of hydrophobic attraction is the release of an ordered water layer, leading to a dry contact between two hydrophobic surfaces. Although the waterfree contact has been inferred from numerous experimental and theoretical studies, this has not been directly measured. Here, we use surface sensitive sum frequency generation spectroscopy to directly probe the contact interface between hydrophobic poly-(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) and two hydrophobic surfaces (a selfassembled monolayer, OTS, and a polymer coating, PVNODC). We show that the interfacial structures for OTS and PVNODC are identical in dry contact but that they differ dramatically in wet contact. In water, the PVNODC surface partially rearranges at grain boundaries, trapping water at the contact interface leading to a 50% reduction in adhesion energy compared to OTS−PDMS contact. The Young−Dupréequation, used extensively to calculate the thermodynamic work of adhesion, predicts no differences between the adhesion energy for these two hydrophobic surfaces, indicating a failure of this well-known equation when there is a heterogeneous contact. This study exemplifies the importance of interstitial water in controlling adhesion and wetting. ■ INTRODUCTIONHydrophobic interactions are used to explain many phenomena prevalent in physical and biological sciences, such as protein folding, 1 self-assembly, 2−6 dewetting, 7 adhesion, 8 friction, 9 adsorption, 10 water transport, 11,12 and chemical reactions. 13 The hydrophobic adhesion is defined as the difference in interfacial energy between two hydrophobic surfaces before and after contact underwater. 14 Experimentally, direct force measurements 15−17 or contact angle measurements 18 have been used to measure adhesion energy where the contact between two hydrophobic surfaces is assumed to be dry. This drying phenomenon has been supported by molecular simulations between hydrophobic surfaces 6,19,20 but never experimentally verified.Recent findings are challenging the concept of dry hydrophobic contact. X-ray crystallography has observed the presence of water within protein cavities of varying hydrophobicity which can affect the strength of protein−ligand binding. 21,22 Simulations have also shown that water can be sequestered between hydrophobic plates with a relatively small centralized hydrophilic patch. 23 Ambiguity also remains as to how dry contact is established underwater. The entropy gained by releasing interstitial water between hydrophobic surfaces prior to contact could be facilitated by a depleted density profile at the hydrophobic water interface, 24,25 the presence of nanobubbles, 26 or the concept of increased fluctuations in interfacial water. 27 To understand the role of water in adhesion and contact angles, we have used surface sensitive sum frequency generation spectroscopy (SFG) to directly study the contact interface between two hydrophobic surfaces underwater....

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