Showing papers by "Stefan Zauscher published in 2021"
TL;DR: In this article, the authors demonstrate that SI-TcEP can site-specifically pattern DNA origami nanostructures with brushes containing both natural and non-natural nucleotides.
Abstract: Combining surface-initiated, TdT (terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase) catalyzed enzymatic polymerization (SI-TcEP) with precisely engineered DNA origami nanostructures (DONs) presents an innovative pathway for the generation of stable, polynucleotide brush-functionalized DNA nanostructures. We demonstrate that SI-TcEP can site-specifically pattern DONs with brushes containing both natural and non-natural nucleotides. The brush functionalization can be precisely controlled in terms of the location of initiation sites on the origami core and the brush height and composition. Coarse-grained simulations predict the conformation of the brush-functionalized DONs that agree well with the experimentally observed morphologies. We find that polynucleotide brush-functionalization increases the nuclease resistance of DONs significantly, and that this stability can be spatially programmed through the site-specific growth of polynucleotide brushes. The ability to site-specifically decorate DONs with brushes of natural and non-natural nucleotides provides access to a large range of functionalized DON architectures that would allow for further supramolecular assembly, and for potential applications in smart nanoscale delivery systems.
7 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the modification of hyaluronic acid (HA) to exhibit self-healing properties is described, and its physical and biological function both in vitro and in vivo is studied.
Abstract: Convergent advances in the field of soft matter, macromolecular chemistry, and engineering have led to the development of biomaterials that possess autonomous, adaptive, and self-healing characteristics similar to living systems. These rationally designed biomaterials can surpass the capabilities of their parent material. Herein, the modification of hyaluronic acid (HA) to exhibit self-healing properties is described, and its physical and biological function both in vitro and in vivo is studied. The in vitro findings showed that self-healing HA designed to undergo self-repair improves lubrication, enhances free radical scavenging, and attenuates enzymatic degradation compared to unmodified HA. Longitudinal imaging following intraarticular injection of self-healing HA shows improved in vivo retention despite its low molecular weight. Concomitant with these functions, intraarticular injection of self-healing HA mitigates anterior cruciate ligament injury-mediated cartilage degeneration in rodents. This proof-of-concept study shows how incorporation of functional properties such as self-healing can be used to surpass the existing capabilities of biolubricants.
6 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a series of RLP-b-ELP diblock copolypeptides were examined by small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS).
3 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe the modification of hyaluronic acid (HA) molecules to exhibit self-healing properties and studied its physical and biological function both in vitro and in vivo.
Abstract: Convergent advances in the field of soft matter, macromolecular chemistry, and engineering have led to the development of biomaterials that possess autonomous, adaptive, and self-healing characteristics similar to living systems. These rationally designed biomaterials could surpass the capabilities of their parent material. Herein, we describe the modification of hyaluronic acid (HA) molecules to exhibit self-healing properties and studied its physical and biological function both in vitro and in vivo. Our in vitro findings showed that self-healing HA designed to undergo autonomous repair improved lubrication, enhanced free radical scavenging, and resisted enzymatic degradation compared to unmodified HA. Longitudinal imaging following intra-articular injection of self-healing HA showed improved in vivo retention despite the low molecular weight. Concomitant with these functions, intra-articular injection of self-healing HA mitigated anterior cruciate ligament injury-mediated cartilage degeneration in rodents. This proof-of-concept study shows how incorporation of functional properties like self-healing can be used to surpass the existing capabilities of biolubricants.
1 citations