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Design of Biomolecular Interfaces Using Liquid Crystals Containing Oligomeric Ethylene Glycol
Author(s) -
Yang Zhongqiang,
Gupta Jugal K.,
Kishimoto Kenji,
Shoji Yoshiko,
Kato Takashi,
Abbott Nicholas L.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
advanced functional materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.069
H-Index - 322
eISSN - 1616-3028
pISSN - 1616-301X
DOI - 10.1002/adfm.201000367
Subject(s) - homeotropic alignment , materials science , aqueous solution , ethylene glycol , liquid crystal , bovine serum albumin , alkoxy group , adsorption , chemical engineering , organic chemistry , chromatography , chemistry , alkyl , optoelectronics , engineering
An investigation of nematic liquid crystals (LCs) formed from miscible mixtures of 4‐cyano‐4′‐pentylbiphenyl (5CB) and 2‐(2‐[2‐{2‐(2,3‐difluoro‐4‐{4‐(4‐ trans ‐pentylcyclohexyl)‐phenyl‐phenoxy)ethoxy}ethoxy]ethoxy)ethanol (EG4‐LC) is reported, the latter being a mesogen with a tetra(ethylene glycol) tail. Quantitative characterization of the ordering of this LC mixture at biologically relevant aqueous interfaces reveals that addition of EG4‐LC (1%–5% by weight) to 5CB causes a continuous transition in the ordering of the LC from a planar (pure 5CB) to a perpendicular (homeotropic) orientation. The homeotropic ordering is also seen in aqueous dispersions of micrometer‐sized droplets of the LC mixture, which exhibit enhanced stability against coalescence. These observations and others, all of which suggest partitioning of the EG4‐LC from the bulk of the LC to its aqueous interface, are complemented by measurements of the adsorption of bovine serum albumin to the aqueous–LC interface. Overall, the results demonstrate a general and facile approach to the design of LCs with interfaces that present biologically relevant chemical functional groups, assume well‐defined orientations at aqueous interfaces, and lower non‐specific protein adsorption. The bulk of the LC serves as a reservoir of EG4‐LC, thus permitting easy preparation of these interfaces and the potential for spontaneous repair of the EG4‐decorated interfaces during contact with biological systems.