Functional Metalloblock Copolymers for the Preparation and In Situ Functionalization of Porous Silica Films

A high-performance polymer composite column for coronavirus nucleic acid purification

Here, we report the development of a novel polymer composite (PC) purification column and kit. The performance of the PC columns was compared to conventional silica gel (SG) columns for the purification of nucleic acids from coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2, in 82 clinical samples. The results shows that PC-based purification outperforms silica gel (SG)-based purification by enabling a higher sensitivity (94%), accuracy (97%), and by eliminating false positives (100% specificity). The high specificity is critical for efficient patient triage and resource management during pandemics. Furthermore, PC-based purification exhibits three times higher analytical precision than a commonly used SG-based nucleic acid purification thereby enabling a more accurate quantification of viral loads and higher reproducibility.

Pushing the limits of nanopore transport performance by polymer functionalization

Inspired by the design and performance of biological pores, polymer functionalization of nanopores has emerged as an evolving field to advance transport performance within the last few years. This feature article outlines developments in nanopore functionalization and the resulting transport performance including gating based on electrostatic interaction, wettability and ligand binding, gradual transport controlled by polymerization as well as functionalization-based asymmetric nanopore and nanoporous material design going towards the transport direction. Pushing the limits of nanopore transport performance and thus reducing the performance gap between biological and technological pores is strongly related to advances in polymerization chemistry and their translation into nanopore functionalization. Thereby, the effect of the spatial confinement has to be considered for polymer functionalization as well as for transport regulation, and mechanistic understanding is strongly increased by combining experiment and theory. A full mechanistic understanding together with highly precise nanopore structure design and polymer functionalization is not only expected to improve existing application of nanoporous materials but also opens the door to new technologies. The latter might include out of equilibrium devices, ionic circuits, or machine learning based sensors.

A block copolymer templated approach for the preparation of nanoporous polymer structures and cellulose fiber hybrids by ozone treatment

Porous nanostructures were derived after self-assembly of amphiphilic block copolymers and subsequent ozone-mediated block segment degradation. Highly ordered pores were obtained for BCP films and for coatings at cellulose fibers’ surfaces.

For Whom a Puddle Is the Sea? Adsorption of Organic Guests on Hydrated MCM-41 Silica

Thermal and hydration effects on the mobility of compact and branched organic molecules and a bulky pharmaceutical substance loaded in submonolayer amounts onto mesoporous silica have been elucidated using ¹H and ³¹P solid-state NMR. In all cases, the ambient hydration has a stronger effect than an increase in temperature to 370 K for water-free silica. The effect of hydration depends on the guest and ranges from complete solvation to a silica-water-guest sandwich structure to a silica-guest/silica-water pattern. The mobility of the guests under different conditions has been described. The specific structure of the MCM-41 surface allows one to study very slow surface diffusion, a diffusivity of about 10^-15-10^-16 m²/s. The data reported are relevant to any nonfunctionalized silica, while the method used is applicable to any phosphor-containing guest on any host.