Self-assembly of macromolecules on multilayered polymer surfaces

• US 20110114244A1
• Filed: 02/06/2007
• Published: 05/19/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Original Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Inventors: Lee, Soo-Kwan, Park, Juhyun, Nam, Ki Tae, Qi, Jifa, Belcher, Angela M., Yoo, Pil J., Hammond-Cunningham, Paula T.
• Granted Patent: US 9,274,108 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 156/60
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/545 Synthetic resin
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 156/10 Methods of surface bonding and/or assembly therefor
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/273 of coating
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31855 Of addition polymer from unsaturated monomers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31971 Of carbohydrate

Abstract

The invention is directed toward systems and methods for the formation of two dimensional monolayer structures of ordered biomacromolecules, such as viruses, atop cohesive polyelectrolyte multilayers to create functional thin films. Methods for the formation of such thin films are disclosed that involve an interdiffusion-induced assembly process of the biomacromolecules. The inventive systems provide a general platform for the systematic incorporation and assembly of organic, biological and inorganic materials and will enable many potential technological applications such as, for example, chemical and biological sensors, power devices and catalytic membranes.

Claims

1. A composition comprising:

a plurality of biomacromolecules; and

a polyelectrolyte multilayer film,

wherein the polyelectrolyte multilayer film comprises a positively-charged polyelectrolyte and a negatively-charged polyelectrolyte, and wherein the plurality of biomacromolecules form a two-dimensional monolayer on the surface of the polyelectrolyte multilayer film.

2. The composition of claim 1, wherein the biomacromolecules are selected from the group consisting of proteins, polynucleotides, lipids, polysaccharides, and viruses.

3. The composition of claim 1, wherein the plurality of biomacromolecules comprises a virus.

9. The composition of claim 3, wherein the virus is a rod-shaped virus.

10. The composition of claim 9, wherein the virus is a rigid rod-shaped virus.

11. The composition of claim 9, wherein the virus has a cross-sectional diameter of about 3 nm to about 20 nm and a length of about 60 nm to about 6,000 nm.

12. The composition of claim 3, wherein the virus comprises at least one recognition site capable of a selective binding to or nucleating of a conjugate moiety.

13. The composition of claim 12, wherein the virus comprises a first recognition site capable of a first selective binding to or nucleating of a first conjugate moiety, and a second recognition site located differently from the first recognition site capable of a second selective binding to or nucleating of a second conjugate moiety.

14. The composition of claim 12, wherein the virus further comprises a third recognition site located differently from the first and second recognition sites capable of a third selective binding to or nucleating of a third conjugate moiety.

15. The composition of claim 12, wherein the virus has been genetically engineered to comprise the at least one recognition site.

16. The composition of claim 15, wherein the recognition site comprises an expressed protein, peptide or peptide oligomer.

17. The composition of claim 12, wherein the conjugate moiety is a member of the group consisting of an inorganic material, an organic material, and a biomolecular material.

18. The composition of claim 12, wherein the conjugate moiety comprises a semiconductor, metallic, magnetic, polymeric, particulate, nanoparticulate, single crystalline, polycrystalline, amorphous, electronically conducting, optically active, conducting polymeric, light-emitting, phosphorescent, fluorescent, glass or ceramic moiety.

19. The composition of claim 1, wherein the plurality of biomacromolecules are all identical.

20. The composition of claim 1, wherein the plurality of biomacromolecules comprise different biomacromolecules.

21. The composition of claim 1, wherein the plurality of biomacromolecules form a dense, ordered two dimensional monolayer of biomacromolecules.

22. The composition of claim 1, wherein the plurality of biomacromolecules form a sparse two dimensional monolayer of biomacromolecules.

23. The composition of claim 1, wherein the two dimensional monolayer of biomacromolecules has a density of about 1 to about 100 biomacromolecules/μ

m².

25. The composite of claim 1, wherein the positively-charged polyelectrolyte is a weak positively-charged polyelectrolyte.

26. The composite of claim 1, wherein the negatively-charged polyelectrolyte is a weak negatively-charged polyelectrolyte.

27. The composition of claim 1, wherein the positively-charged polyelectrolyte is a weak positively-charged polyelectrolyte and the negatively-charged polyelectrolyte is a weak negatively-charged polyelectrolyte, and they form a pair of weak oppositely charged polyelectrolytes.

31. The composition of claim 27, wherein the polyelectrolytes have a surface charge density that is higher than the surface charge density of the biomacromolecules.

33. The composition of claim 1, wherein the positively-charged polyelectrolyte and/or the negatively-charged polyelectrolyte is/are biocompatible.

34. The composition of claim 1, wherein the positively-charged polyelectrolyte and/or the negatively-charged polyelectrolyte is/are degradable.

41. A method of preparing a composition of claim 1, the method comprising steps of:

providing a plurality of negatively charged biomacromolecules;

providing a polyelectrolyte multilayer thin film produced by layer-by-layer assembly using a weak positively-charged polyelectrolyte and a weak negatively-charged polyelectrolyte, wherein the surface of the film is positively charged;

contacting the surface of the film with the biomacromolecules to obtain a thin film comprising biomacromolecules electrostatically bound to its surface; and

forming, on top of the obtained thin film, a second polyelectrolyte multilayer by layer-by-layer assembly using the weak positively-charged polyelectrolyte and the weak negatively-charged polyelectrolyte.

42. A method of preparing a composition of claim 1, the method comprising steps of:

providing a plurality of negatively charged biomacromolecules;

providing a polyelectrolyte multilayer film produced by layer-by-layer assembly using a weak positively-charged polyelectrolyte and a weak negatively-charged polyelectrolyte, wherein the film is thick and the surface of the film is positively charged; and

contacting the surface of the film with the biomacromolecules.

75. The method of claim 41, wherein the step of providing a plurality of biomacromolecules comprises providing an aqueous solution comprising the plurality of biomacromolecules.

78. The method of claim 41, wherein the aqueous solution of biomacromolecules has a pH that is selected such that strong repulsion takes place between the negatively-charged biomacromolecules.

79. The method of claim 41, wherein the aqueous solution of biomacromolecules has a pH that is selected such that weak repulsion takes place between the negatively-charged biomacromolecules.

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