The chemokine CXCL12 and its G-protein-coupled receptor CXCR4 control the migration, invasiveness and metastasis of breast cancer cells. Binding of CXCL12 to CXCR4 triggers activation of heterotrimeric Gi proteins that regulate actin polymerization and migration. However, the pathways linking chemokine G-protein-coupled receptor/Gi signalling to actin polymerization and cancer cell migration ar...

Amphiphilic polypeptide-containing hybrid dual brush block copolymers with controlled molecular weights and narrow molecular weight distributions were synthesized in one pot via ring-opening metathesis polymerization of sequentially added norbornyl-PEG and N-(2-((trimethylsilyl)amino)ethyl)-5-norbornene-endo-2,3-dicarboximide (M1) followed by ring-opening polymerization of amino acid N-carboxya...

This paper describes the controlled radical polymerization of an ionic-liquid monomer by RAFT polymerization. This allows the control over the molecular weight of ionic liquid blocks in the range of 8000 and 22000 and of the block-copolymer synthesis. In this work we focus on block copolymers with an anchor block. They can be used to control the formation of TiO2 nanoparticles, which are functi...

Large area highly uniform and ordered polypyrrole nanowire and nanotube arrays were fabricated by chemical oxidation polymerization with the help of a porous anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) template. Under 0.2 moL/L pyrrole (H2O) and 0.2 moL/L FeCl3 (H2O) pattern, polypyrrole nanowire arrays were obtained after 2.0 hours polymerization reaction in a two-compartment reaction cell. When the reaction...

In this work, molecularly imprinted nanospheres for controlled/sustained release of quercetin were synthesized employing methacrylic acid and ethylene glycoldymethacrylate as functional monomer and crosslinking agent, respectively. One pot precipitation polymerization was chosen as polymerization technique to obtain nanosized materials with spherical shape. Morphological and hydrophilic propert...

Silicon wafers and glass surfaces were functionalized with facially amphiphilic antimicrobial copolymers using the "grafting from" technique. Surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) was used to grow poly(butylmethacrylate)-co-poly(Boc-aminoethyl methacrylate) from the surfaces. Upon Boc-deprotection, these surfaces became highly antimicrobial and killed S. aureus and E. co...

A low-intensity (6 W) light-emitting diode (LED) effectively activated an organotellurium chain transfer agent and the dormant species, promoting well-controlled radical polymerization. The use of the LED provided many advantages over the previously reported high-intensity Hg lamp, including high energy efficiency during the polymerization, and easy availability of the low-cost light source. St...

Frontal polymerization involves the conversion of monomer to polymer in a localized reaction zone that propagates due to the interplay of thermal conduction and temperature-dependent reaction rates. The localization of reactions and the fast increase in temperature are the key features that allow for the rapid synthesis of a wealth of polymer systems with spatially controlled microstructures an...

Polystyrene-silica core-shell nanocomposite particles are successfully prepared via one-step Pickering emulsion polymerization. Possible mechanisms of Pickering emulsion polymerization are addressed in the synthesis of polystyrene-silica nanocomposite particles using 2,2-azobis(2-methyl-N-(2-hydroxyethyl)propionamide (VA-086) and potassium persulfate (KPS) as the initiator. Motivated by potenti...

A new approach to synthesis of cross-linked colloidosomes (microcapsules with a shell from colloidal particles) was developed on the basis of a peroxidized Pickering emulsion (an emulsion stabilized exclusively by peroxidized colloidal particles). Peroxidized latex particles were employed to ensure formation of Pickering emulsion. Free radical polymerization was used to convert droplets of a pe...