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The KWS-1, which is operated by JCNS, Forschungszentrum Jülich, is a small-angle neutron scattering di ractometer dedicated to high resolution measurements.

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Fluid fatty alcohols are believed to be nanostructured but broadly amorphous (i.e., noncrystalline) fluids and solvents, including the most popular fatty tissue mimetic, hydrated n-octanol (i.e., hydro-octanol). To check this premise, we studied dry octanol and hydro-octanol as a model of relatively short fluid n-alkanols with small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). We also combined this alkanol with the matching alkane (i.e., octane) and with a common anti-inflammatory pain killer (ketoprofen). This revealed that (hydro-)octanol and arguably any other short fatty alcohol form a mesophase. Its basic structural motif are regularly packed polar nanoclusters, reflected in the inner peak in the SAXS diffractogram of (hydro-)octanol and other fluid n-alkanols. The nanoclusters arguably resemble tiny, (inverse) hydrated bilayer fragments, located on a thermally smeared para-crystalline lattice. Additives to hydro-octanol can change the nanoclusters only moderately, if at all. For example, octane and the drug ketoprofen added to hydro-octanol enlarge the nanoclusters only little because of the mixture's packing frustration. To associate with and to bring more water into hydro-octanol, an additive must hence transform the nanoclusters: it expands them into irregularly distributed aqueous lacunae that form a proto-microemulsion, reflected in the previously unknown Guinier's SAXS signal. A "weak" (i.e., a weakly polar or nonpolar) additive can moreover create only size-limited lacunae. Coexistence of nanoclusters and lacunae as well as size variability of the latter in hydro-octanol subvert the concept of octanol-water partition coefficient, which relies on the studied compartment homogeneity. In turn, it opens new possibilities for interfacial catalysis. Reinterpreting "octanol-water partition coefficient" data in terms of octanol-water association or binding constant(s) could furthermore diminish the variability of molecular lipophilicity description and pave the ground toward a more precise theoretical quantification and prediction of molecular properties.

Knowledge of the structure of a biomaterial is usually vital to control its function. This article provides a structural characterization of a hyaluronan scaffold that has demonstrated good biocompatibility and is used to induce bone regeneration. Hyaluronan hydrogels are appealing materials that can function as a matrix to incorporate both organic and inorganic substances to enhance tissue growth. Because of the intrinsic properties of this swollen matrix, one needs a very sensitive technique that can be applied in situ to determine the organization of the polymers in a gel. Small‐angle neutron scattering is used to determine the characteristics of the inhomogeneous structure of the hydrogel both with and without added particles. The results are interpreted using models of structure with two length scales that are beyond the traditional picture of homogeneous gels. The observed structure and the dimensions can explain the previously reported rheological properties of gels containing different amount of polymers. Hydroxyapatite nanoparticles added to the gel are frozen in the gel matrix. We are able to determine the distribution and shape of these particles as they aggregate around the polymer chains. We have also concluded, in this case, that the particle structure is concentration independent. Information about the nanostructure for an applicable biomaterial guides the formulation, preparation, and use that should lead to further understanding of its exploitation. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys, 2013

Adhesion and motility of cells on polyethylene glycol (PEG) engineered surfaces are of fundamental interest for the development of biotechnological devices. Here, the structure of PEG block copolymers physisorbed to surfaces by polyLlysine (PLL) or polypropylene oxide (PPO) is studied. Cell behavior on such surfaces incubated with fibronectin (FN) is analyzed via time-lapse microscopy, the amount and the location of FN is determined via neutron reflectivity. While FN does not adsorb onto PPOPEG, 0.4-0.7 mg m(-2) of FN is found in the vicinity of the PLL moiety of PLLPEG. Cells exhibit 21% increased motility on PLLPEG (5 kDa PEG chains) compared to pure FN layers, and 12% decreased motility for PLLPEG (2 kDa PEG chains). These findings suggest that by design of PEGylated surfaces cell migration can be controlled.

Hyaluronan based hydrogel coatings can mimic extracellular matrix components and incorporate growth factors that can be released during a progressive degradation while new tissue regenerates. This paper describes a structural characterization of a hydrogel coating made of modified hyaluronan polymers and how these coatings interact with bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2). Quartz crystal microbalance and neutron reflectivity measurements were used for in-situ, real-time measurements of the adsorption properties of polymers and proteins on smooth titanium oxide surfaces that mimic implant products in orthopedics. The adsorption of BMP-2 on a bare titanium oxide surface is compared to that on titanium oxide coated with different chemically modified hyaluronan, the most important being hyaluronan with bisphosphonate groups (HA-BP). The subsequent release of the BMP-2 from these hydrogel coatings could be triggered by calcium ions. The amount of adsorbed protein on the surfaces as well as the amount of released protein both depend on the type of hyaluronan coating. We conclude that HA-BP coated titanium oxide surfaces provide an excellent material for growth factor delivery in-vivo.