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Xiong Y, Hu X, Ding J, Wang X, Xue Z, Niu Y, Zhang S, Sun C, Xu W. Mechanical Properties of Low-Molecular-Weight Peptide Hydrogels Improved by Thiol-Ene Click Chemistry. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2023; 39:16750-16759. [PMID: 37963300 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c01906] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2023]
Abstract
Low-molecular-weight peptide hydrogels can be formed by self-assembly through weak interactions, but the application of the hydrogel is influenced by its weak mechanical properties. Therefore, it is important to construct low-molecular-weight peptide hydrogels with excellent mechanical properties. In this work, we designed the pentapeptide molecule Fmoc-FFCKK-OH (abbreviated as FFCKK) with a sulfhydryl group, and another low-molecular-weight cross-linker N,N'-methylenebis(acrylamide) (MBA) was introduced to construct a hydrogel with excellent mechanical properties. The secondary structure change process of FFCKK and the assembly mechanism of hydrogel were analyzed using theoretical calculations and experimental characterizations. The occurrence of thiol-ene click chemistry provides covalent interaction in the hydrogel, and the synergistic effect ofcovalent interaction and hydrogen bonding improves the mechanical properties of the hydrogel by nearly 10-fold. The hydrogel was observed to be able to withstand a stress of 368 Pa and to break in a layer-by-layer manner by compression testing. The micromechanics of the hydrogels were characterized, and the excellent mechanical properties of the hydrogels were confirmed. The synergistic approach provides a new idea for the preparation of low-molecular-weight peptide hydrogels and facilitates the expansion of their potential applications in biomedical fields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yingshuo Xiong
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Ludong University, Yantai 264025, China
| | - Xiaohan Hu
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Ludong University, Yantai 264025, China
| | - Junjie Ding
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Ludong University, Yantai 264025, China
| | - Xinze Wang
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Ludong University, Yantai 264025, China
| | - Zhongxin Xue
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Ludong University, Yantai 264025, China
| | - Yuzhong Niu
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Ludong University, Yantai 264025, China
| | - Shaohua Zhang
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Ludong University, Yantai 264025, China
| | - Changmei Sun
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Ludong University, Yantai 264025, China
| | - Wenlong Xu
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Ludong University, Yantai 264025, China
- Shandong Laboratory of Advanced Materials and Green Manufacturing at Yantai, Yantai 264000, China
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Zhang H, Zhang D, Luan H, Wang Z, Zhang P, Xi G, Ji X. Multifunctional, Self-Adhesive MXene-Based Hydrogel Flexible Strain Sensors for Hand-Written Digit Recognition with Assistance of Deep Learning. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2023; 39:16199-16207. [PMID: 37906584 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c02666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2023]
Abstract
The conductive hydrogel as a flexible sensor not only has certain mechanical flexibility but also can be used in the field of human health detection and human-computer interaction. Herein, by introduction of tannic acid (TA) with MXene into the polyacrylamide (PAM)/carboxymethyl chitosan (CMC) double-network hydrogel, a hydrogel with high stretchability, self-adhesion, and high sensitivity was prepared. CMC and PAM form a semi-interpenetrating double-network of high toughness and durability through electrostatic interactions and multiple hydrogen bonding networks. The abundant hydrophilic functional groups on TA and MXene form multiple hydrogen bonds simultaneously with the polymer network, ensuring high stretchability and sensitivity of the hydrogel. The hydrogel can display an accurate response to a variety of stimulus signals and can monitor both human joint movements and small physiological signal changes. It can also be combined with deep learning algorithms to classify handwritten digits with an accuracy rate of 98%. This work can promote the application of hydrogel sensors with durability and high sensitivity. The combination of algorithms and flexible sensors provides important ideas for the further development of flexible devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hao Zhang
- College of Control Science and Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao 266580, China
| | - Dongzhi Zhang
- College of Control Science and Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao 266580, China
| | - Huixin Luan
- College of Control Science and Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao 266580, China
| | - Zihu Wang
- College of Control Science and Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao 266580, China
| | - Pengfei Zhang
- College of Control Science and Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao 266580, China
| | - Guangshuai Xi
- College of Control Science and Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao 266580, China
| | - Xinyi Ji
- College of Control Science and Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao 266580, China
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3
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Musicò A, Bergamaschi G, Strada A, Frigerio R, Gagni P, Cretich M, Gori A. Hybrid Peptide-Agarose Hydrogels for 3D Immunoassays. Methods Mol Biol 2023; 2578:53-62. [PMID: 36152280 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2732-7_5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Recent advances in biosensing analytical platforms have brought relevant outcomes for novel diagnostic and therapy-oriented applications. In this context, 3D droplet microarrays, where hydrogels are used as matrices to stably entrap biomolecules onto analytical surfaces, potentially provide relevant advantages over conventional 2D assays, such as increased loading capacity, lower nonspecific binding, and enhanced signal-to-noise ratio. Here, we describe a hybrid hydrogel composed of a self-assembling peptide and commercial agarose (AG) as a suitable matrix for 3D microarray bioassays. The hybrid hydrogel is printable and self-adhesive and allows analyte diffusion. As a showcase example, we describe its application in a diagnostic immunoassay for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angelo Musicò
- National Research Council of Italy, Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche (SCITEC-CNR), Milan, Italy.
- Department of Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
| | - Greta Bergamaschi
- National Research Council of Italy, Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche (SCITEC-CNR), Milan, Italy
| | - Alessandro Strada
- National Research Council of Italy, Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche (SCITEC-CNR), Milan, Italy
| | - Roberto Frigerio
- National Research Council of Italy, Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche (SCITEC-CNR), Milan, Italy
| | - Paola Gagni
- National Research Council of Italy, Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche (SCITEC-CNR), Milan, Italy
| | - Marina Cretich
- National Research Council of Italy, Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche (SCITEC-CNR), Milan, Italy
| | - Alessandro Gori
- National Research Council of Italy, Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche (SCITEC-CNR), Milan, Italy
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4
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Xing H, Rodger A, Comer J, Picco AS, Huck-Iriart C, Ezell EL, Conda-Sheridan M. Urea-Modified Self-Assembling Peptide Amphiphiles That Form Well-Defined Nanostructures and Hydrogels for Biomedical Applications. ACS APPLIED BIO MATERIALS 2022; 5:4599-4610. [PMID: 35653507 DOI: 10.1021/acsabm.2c00158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Hydrogen bonding plays a critical role in the self-assembly of peptide amphiphiles (PAs). Herein, we studied the effect of replacing the amide linkage between the peptide and lipid portions of the PA with a urea group, which possesses an additional hydrogen bond donor. We prepared three PAs with the peptide sequence Phe-Phe-Glu-Glu (FFEE): two are amide-linked with hydrophobic tails of different lengths and the other possesses an alkylated urea group. The differences in the self-assembled structures formed by these PAs were assessed using diverse microscopies, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and dichroism techniques. We found that the urea group influences the morphology and internal arrangement of the assemblies. Molecular dynamics simulations suggest that there are about 50% more hydrogen bonds in nanostructures assembled from the urea-PA than those assembled from the other PAs. Furthermore, in silico studies suggest the presence of urea-π stacking interactions with the phenyl group of Phe, which results in distinct peptide conformations in comparison to the amide-linked PAs. We then studied the effect of the urea modification on the mechanical properties of PA hydrogels. We found that the hydrogel made of the urea-PA exhibits increased stability and self-healing ability. In addition, it allows cell adhesion, spreading, and growth as a matrix. This study reveals that the inclusion of urea bonds might be useful in controlling the morphology, mechanical, and biological properties of self-assembled nanostructures and hydrogels formed by the PAs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huihua Xing
- College of Pharmacy, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska 68198, United States
| | - Alison Rodger
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales 2109, Australia
| | - Jeffrey Comer
- Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas 66506, United States
| | - Agustín S Picco
- Instituto de Investigaciones Fisicoquímicas Teóricas y Aplicadas, INIFTA-CONICET-UNLP, Diagonal 113 and Calle 64, La Plata 1900, Argentina
| | - Cristián Huck-Iriart
- Instituto de Tecnologías Emergentes y Ciencias Aplicadas (ITECA), UNSAM-CONICET, Escuela de Ciencia y Tecnología (ECyT), Laboratorio de Cristalografía Aplicada (LCA), Campus Miguelete, San Martín, Buenos Aires 1650, Argentina
| | - Edward L Ezell
- Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska 68198, United States
| | - Martin Conda-Sheridan
- College of Pharmacy, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska 68198, United States
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Masterson AN, Sardar R. Selective Detection and Ultrasensitive Quantification of SARS-CoV-2 IgG Antibodies in Clinical Plasma Samples Using Epitope-Modified Nanoplasmonic Biosensing Platforms. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2022; 14:26517-26527. [PMID: 35639080 PMCID: PMC9173676 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.2c06599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2022] [Accepted: 05/16/2022] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Monitoring the human immune response by assaying (detection and quantification) the antibody level against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is important in conducting epidemiological surveillance and immunization studies at a population level. Herein, we present the design and fabrication of a solid-state nanoplasmonic biosensing platform that is capable of quantifying SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibody IgG with a limit of detection as low as 30.0 attomolar (aM) and a wide dynamic range spanning seven orders of magnitude. Based on IgG binding constant determination for different biological motifs, we show that the covalent attachment of highly specific SARS-CoV-2 linear epitopes with an appropriate ratio, in contrast to using SARS-CoV-2 spike protein subunits as receptor molecules, to gold triangular nanoprisms (Au TNPs) results in a construction of a highly selective and more sensitive, label-free IgG biosensor. The biosensing platform displays specificity against other human antibodies and no cross reactivity against MERS-CoV antibodies. Furthermore, the nanoplasmonic biosensing platform can be assembled in a multi-well plate format to translate to a high-throughput assay that allowed us to conduct SARS-CoV-2 IgG assays of COVID-19 positive patient (n = 121) and healthy individual (n = 65) plasma samples. Most importantly, performing a blind test in an additional cohort of 30 patient plasma samples, our nanoplasmonic biosensing platform successfully identified COVID-19 positive samples with 90% specificity and 100% sensitivity. Very recent studies show that our selected epitopes are conserved in the highly mutated SARS-CoV-2 variant "Omicron"; therefore, the demonstrated high-throughput nanoplasmonic biosensing platform holds great promise for a highly specific serological assay for conducting large-scale COVID-19 testing and epidemiological studies and monitoring the immune response and durability of immunity as part of the global immunization programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrianna N. Masterson
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, 402 N. Blackford Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46202, United States
| | - Rajesh Sardar
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, 402 N. Blackford Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46202, United States
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