Self-Assembly-Assisted Biomolecule-Enriched Surface and High Selectivity Performance of Simple Solution-Coatable Biomimicking Brush Copolymers

Abstract

Poly(oxy(11-(biotinyl)undecylthiomethyl)ethylene-co-oxy(11-phosphoryl-cholineundecylthiomethyl)ethylene)s (PECH-BTmPCn: m = 0-100 mol % biotin (BT)-containing bristle; n = 100-0 mol % phosphorylcholine (PC)-containing bristle) were newly synthesized. All polymers exhibited excellent solution processability. They favorably self-assembled horizontal multibilayer structures in thin films with BT- and PC-enriched surfaces, which were driven by the lateral ordering of the fully extended upright bristles and the partial interdigitation between the BT and PC end groups of the bristles. Both hydrophilicity and water sorption of the films increased with the PC content. The PECH-BT100 films revealed remarkably distinctive sensitivity, selectivity, and adsorption ability for avidin against other proteins. Such remarkable performance was further significantly enhanced on the PECH-BTmPCn films in which PC moieties were incorporated to the BT-rich surface; in particular, the PECH-BT75PC25 films demonstrated the highest performance. Overall, the self-assembly brush copolymers of this study are very suitable for use in the high performance detection, adsorption, and separation of proteins and receptors, including avidin, which can reveal high affinity and selectivity to BT moiety.

Self-assembling characteristics of amphiphilic zwitterionic brush random copolymers at the air–water interface

“…We have successfully demonstrated this strategy and, indeed, newly introduced several polymeric biomaterial systems. [16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27] Their thin lm morphologies were well investigated, conrming that they self-assembled favorably as horizontally-oriented multibilayer structures with fully extended chain conformation, always providing biomolecule-rich lm surface. In fact, these biomaterials can be used in aqueous solutions including buffers or in contact with water or buffers, in addition to the lm and bulk state.…”