Dresden 2006 – scientific programme

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CPP: Chemische Physik und Polymerphysik

CPP 17: Thin Films and Surfaces II

CPP 17.5: Talk

Wednesday, March 29, 2006, 16:45–17:00, ZEU Lich

Modulation of physico-chemical surface properties of binary polyelectrolyte brushes and its influence on protein adsorption — •Petra Uhlmann, Nikolay Houbenov, Nina Brenner, and Manfred Stamm — Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research, Hohe Strasse 6, D-01069 Dresden

Binary brushes constituted from two incompatible polymers can be used in the form of ultrathin polymeric layers as a versatile tool for surface engineering to tune physico-chemical surface characteristics as wettability, surface charge, chemical composition or morphology, and furthermore to create responsive surface properties. Mixed brushes of oppositely charged polyelectrolytes are representing a special case of responding surfaces which are sensitive to changes of the pH value in aqueous environment. The polyelectrolyte brushes used were composed of the two oppositely charged polyelelctrolytes poly (2-vinylpyridine) (P2VP) and polyacrylic acid (PAA) and the in-situ properties and surface characteristics, as surface charge, surface tension, extent of swelling of these brush layers are described . To test the behaviour of the polylelctrolyte brushes when coming into contact with biosystems, protein adsorption experiments with globular model proteins were performed at different pH values and salt concentrations of the buffer solutions. The influence of the pH value and the buffer salt concentration on the adsorbed amount, the structure of the protein layers and the interfacial tension during protein adsorption as well as the protein adsorption mechanism in reference to recently developed theories about protein adsorption on polyelctrolyte brushes will be discussed.