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Researchers at the University of Texas Austin have conducted a study on the use of polyethylene glycol (PEG)-based hydrogel coatings to minimize biological responses in medical devices, such as bacterial infection and thrombosis. The research explores two coating methods and their effects on coating thickness, providing a toolbox for designing hydrogel coatings for a variety of medical devices. This study was supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and DSM Biomedical, and the findings have been published in the Annals of Biomedical Engineering. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the modification of a gelatin hydrogel interface through amination to improve mechanical properties for musculoskeletal interface tissue engineering. By selectively aminating carboxylic acid subunits on the gelatin backbone, researchers were able to enhance the mechanical performance and reduce strain concentrations in a stratified biomaterial. The study highlights the potential benefits of modifying gelatin macromers through controlled amination and thiolation for tuning the mechanical performance of hydrogel interfaces within biomaterials. This preprint has not yet undergone peer review and can be accessed for further information at biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.10.14.618299v1. [Extracted from the article]

Researchers at the University of Texas Austin have made advancements in tissue engineering by developing a method to create supersoft bottlebrush networks with tunable mechanical properties. Bottlebrush polymers are highly desired for their tissue-like properties, but previous methods required multiple reactions and the creation of difficult-to-remove impurities. The new method eliminates the need for postfunctionalization or additional cross-linking agents, resulting in ultrahigh-molecular-weight bottlebrush polymers and solvent-free elastomers with moduli similar to biological tissues. This streamlined approach has potential applications in tissue engineering and adhesives. The research has been peer-reviewed and provides valuable insights into the preparation and utility of bottlebrush polymers. [Extracted from the article]

Nanjing, People's Republic of China, Asia, Biotechnology, Drug Delivery Systems, Drugs and Therapies, Health and Medicine, Liposomes Keywords: Nanjing; People's Republic of China; Asia; Biotechnology; Drug Delivery Systems; Drugs and Therapies; Health and Medicine; Liposomes EN Nanjing People's Republic of China Asia Biotechnology Drug Delivery Systems Drugs and Therapies Health and Medicine Liposomes 630 630 1 10/03/23 20231006 NES 231006 2023 OCT 6 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Drug Week -- Investigators publish new report on Biotechnology - Liposomes. [Extracted from the article]

The article informs researchers from Monash University has developed an efficient enantioselective membrane for chiral separations using poly(2-oxazoline)s (POx) functionalized with S-poly(2,4-dimethyl-2-oxazoline) (S-PdMeOx) macromonomers and graphene oxide (GO) nanosheets, resulting in a membrane with high enantiomeric excess and flux for the separation of a racemic limonene mixture, establishing a new route for the scalable fabrication of membranes with potential applications.

The method of claim 16, wherein the at least one first functional group comprises a thiol group or an amine group, and the plurality of second functional groups comprise N-hydroxysuccinimide groups or maleimide groups. The at least one first functional group may comprise a thiol group or an amine group, for example, and/or the plurality of second functional groups may comprise N-hydroxysuccinimide groups or maleimide groups. The method of claim 2, wherein one of the at least one first functional moiety or the at least one second functional moiety comprises a vinyl group, an allyl group, an acrylate group, or a norbornene group, and the other of the at least one first functional moiety or the at least one second functional moiety comprises a thiol group. [Extracted from the article]

Gels are comprised of polymer networks swelled by some interstitial solvent. They are under wide investigation by material scientists and engineers for their broad applicability in fields ranging from adhesives to tissue engineering. Gels' mechanical properties greatly influence their efficacy in such applications and are largely dictated by their underlying microstructures and constituent-scale properties. Yet predictively mapping the local-to-global property functions of gels remains difficult due - in part - to the complexity introduced by solute-solvent interactions. We here introduce a novel, discrete mesoscale modeling method that preserves local solute concentration-dependent gradients in osmotic pressure through the Flory-Huggins mixing parameter, χ. The iteration of the model used here replicates gels fabricated from telechelically crosslinked star-shaped polymers and intakes χ , macromer molecular weight (M w), crosslink functionality (f), and as-prepared solute concentration (ϕ *) as its inputs, all of which are analogues to the control parameters of experimentalists. Here we demonstrate how this method captures solvent-dependent homogenization (χ ≤ 0.5) or phase separation (χ > 0.5) of polymer suspensions in the absence of phenomenological pairwise potentials. We then demonstrate its accurate, ab initio prediction of gel topology, isotropic swelling mechanics, and uniaxial tensile stress for a 10k tetra-PEG gel. Finally, we use the model to predict trends in the mechanical response and failure of multi-functional PEG-based gels over a range of M w and f , while investigating said trends' micromechanical origins. The model predicts that increased crosslink functionality results in higher initial chain stretch (as measured at the equilibrated swollen state) for gels of the same underlying chain length, which improves modulus and failure stress but decreases failure strain and toughness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]