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Feature Papers in Macromolecules

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Macromolecules".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (17 December 2021) | Viewed by 11720

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Bamin Khomami

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA
Interests: macromolecular dynamics; structure and rheology of complex fluids; self and directed assembly in multi-component block polymers and surfactants, nano particles and membrane proteins surfactant solutions; multiscale modeling and simulation of complex systems; processing science of micro-and-nano-structured materials; nano and micro-scale interfacial phenomenon

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue entitled “Feature Papers in Macromolecules” aims to collect high-quality research articles, communications, and review articles in the cutting-edge field of macromolecules science. We encourage Editorial Board Members of the Section of International Journal of Molecular Sciences to contribute feature papers reflecting the latest progress in their research field or to invite relevant experts and colleagues to do so.

Prof. Dr. Bamin Khomami
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 3678 KiB  
Article
A Direct Comparison of rAAV5 Variants Derived from the Baculovirus Expression System Using LC-MS Workflows Demonstrates Key Differences in Overall Production Yield, Product Quality and Vector Efficiency
by Felipe Guapo, Nicholas Donohue, Lisa Strasser, Stefano Boi, Florian Füssl, Alana Rainbow-Fletcher, Paul Getty, Ian Anderson, Niall Barron and Jonathan Bones
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(5), 2785; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25052785 - 28 Feb 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1818
Abstract
Gene therapy holds great promise for the treatment of severe diseases, and adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors have emerged as valuable tools in this field. However, challenges such as immunogenicity and high production costs complicate the commercial viability of AAV-based therapies. To overcome these [...] Read more.
Gene therapy holds great promise for the treatment of severe diseases, and adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors have emerged as valuable tools in this field. However, challenges such as immunogenicity and high production costs complicate the commercial viability of AAV-based therapies. To overcome these barriers, improvements in production yield, driven through the availability of robust and sensitive characterization techniques that allow for the monitoring of critical quality attributes to deepen product and process understanding are crucial. Among the main attributes affecting viral production and performance, the ratio between empty and full capsids along with capsid protein stoichiometry are emerging as potential parameters affecting product quality and safety. This study focused on the production of AAV vectors using the baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS) in Sf9 cells and the complete characterization of AAV5 variants using novel liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry techniques (LC-MS) that, up to this point, had only been applied to reference commercially produced virions. When comparing virions produced using ATG, CTG or ACG start codons of the cap gene, we determined that although ACG was the most productive in terms of virus yield, it was also the least effective in transducing mammalian cells. This correlated with a low VP1/VP2 ratio and a higher percentage of empty capsids. Overall, this study provides insights into the impact of translational start codon modifications during rAAV5 production using the BEVS, the associated relationship with capsid packaging, capsid protein stoichiometry and potency. The developed characterization workflow using LC-MS offers a comprehensive and transferable analysis of AAV-based gene therapies, with the potential to aid in process optimization and facilitate the large-scale commercial manufacturing of these promising treatments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers in Macromolecules)
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15 pages, 1259 KiB  
Article
Neurochemical Effects of 4-(2Chloro-4-Fluorobenzyl)-3-(2-Thienyl)-1,2,4-Oxadiazol-5(4H)-One in the Pentylenetetrazole (PTZ)-Induced Epileptic Seizure Zebrafish Model
by Seong Soon Kim, Hyemin Kan, Kyu-Seok Hwang, Jung Yoon Yang, Yuji Son, Dae-Seop Shin, Byung Hoi Lee, Se Hwan Ahn, Jin Hee Ahn, Sung-Hee Cho and Myung Ae Bae
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021, 22(3), 1285; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22031285 - 28 Jan 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3081
Abstract
Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders, and it is characterized by spontaneous seizures. In a previous study, we identified 4-(2-chloro-4-fluorobenzyl)-3-(2-thienyl)-1,2,4-oxadiazol-5(4H)-one (GM-90432) as a novel anti-epileptic agent in chemically- or genetically-induced epileptic zebrafish and mouse models. In this study, we investigated [...] Read more.
Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders, and it is characterized by spontaneous seizures. In a previous study, we identified 4-(2-chloro-4-fluorobenzyl)-3-(2-thienyl)-1,2,4-oxadiazol-5(4H)-one (GM-90432) as a novel anti-epileptic agent in chemically- or genetically-induced epileptic zebrafish and mouse models. In this study, we investigated the anti-epileptic effects of GM-90432 through neurochemical profiling-based approach to understand the neuroprotective mechanism in a pentylenetetrazole (PTZ)-induced epileptic seizure zebrafish model. GM-90432 effectively improved PTZ-induced epileptic behaviors via upregulation of 5-hydroxytryptamine, 17-β-estradiol, dihydrotestosterone, progesterone, 5α -dihydroprogesterone, and allopregnanolone levels, and downregulation of normetanephrine, gamma-aminobutyric acid, and cortisol levels in brain tissue. GM-90432 also had a protective effect against PTZ-induced oxidative stress and zebrafish death, suggesting that it exhibits biphasic neuroprotective effects via scavenging of reactive oxygen species and anti-epileptic activities in a zebrafish model. In conclusion, our results suggest that neurochemical profiling study could be used to better understand of anti-epileptic mechanism of GM-90432, potentially leading to new drug discovery and development of anti-seizure agents. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers in Macromolecules)
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13 pages, 4916 KiB  
Article
Facile and Safe Synthesis of Novel Self-Pored Amine-Functionalized Polystyrene with Nanoscale Bicontinuous Morphology
by Qilin Gui, Qi Ouyang, Chunrong Xu, Hongxue Ding, Shuxian Shi and Xiaonong Chen
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2020, 21(24), 9404; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms21249404 - 10 Dec 2020
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2202
Abstract
The chloromethyl-functionalized polystyrene is the most commonly used ammonium cation precursor for making anion exchange resins (AER) and membranes (AEM). However, the chloromethylation of polystyrene or styrene involves highly toxic and carcinogenic raw materials (e.g., chloromethyl ether) and the resultant ammonium cation structural [...] Read more.
The chloromethyl-functionalized polystyrene is the most commonly used ammonium cation precursor for making anion exchange resins (AER) and membranes (AEM). However, the chloromethylation of polystyrene or styrene involves highly toxic and carcinogenic raw materials (e.g., chloromethyl ether) and the resultant ammonium cation structural motif is not stable enough in alkaline media. Herein, we present a novel self-pored amine-functionalized polystyrene, which may provide a safe, convenient, and green process to make polystyrene-based AER and AEM. It is realized by hydrolysis of the copolymer obtained via random copolymerization of N-vinylformamide (NVF) with styrene (St). The composition and structure of the NVF-St copolymer could be controlled by monomeric ratio, and the copolymers with high NVF content could form bicontinuous morphology at sub-100 nm levels. Such bicontinuous morphology allows the copolymers to be swollen in water and self-pored by freeze-drying, yielding a large specific surface area. Thus, the copolymer exhibits high adsorption capacity (226 mg/g for bisphenol A). Further, the amine-functionalized polystyrene has all-carbon backbone and hydrophilic/hydrophobic microphase separation morphology. It can be quaternized to produce ammonium cations and would be an excellent precursor for making AEM and AER with good alkaline stability and smooth ion transport channels. Therefore, the present strategy may open a new pathway to develop porous alkaline stable AER and AEM without using metal catalysts, organic pore-forming agents, and carcinogenic raw materials. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers in Macromolecules)
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18 pages, 4884 KiB  
Article
Effect of Gelation Temperature on the Molecular Structure and Physicochemical Properties of the Curdlan Matrix: Spectroscopic and Microscopic Analyses
by Barbara Gieroba, Anna Sroka-Bartnicka, Paulina Kazimierczak, Grzegorz Kalisz, Izabela S. Pieta, Robert Nowakowski, Marcin Pisarek and Agata Przekora
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2020, 21(17), 6154; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms21176154 - 26 Aug 2020
Cited by 24 | Viewed by 3459
Abstract
In order to determine the effect of different gelation temperatures (80 °C and 90 °C) on the structural arrangements in 1,3-β-d-glucan (curdlan) matrices, spectroscopic and microscopic approaches were chosen. Attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR FT-IR) and Raman spectroscopy [...] Read more.
In order to determine the effect of different gelation temperatures (80 °C and 90 °C) on the structural arrangements in 1,3-β-d-glucan (curdlan) matrices, spectroscopic and microscopic approaches were chosen. Attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR FT-IR) and Raman spectroscopy are well-established techniques that enable the identification of functional groups in organic molecules based on their vibration modes. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) is a quantitative analytical method utilized in the surface study, which provided information about the elemental and chemical composition with high surface sensitivity. Contact angle goniometer was applied to evaluate surface wettability and surface free energy of the matrices. In turn, the surface topography characterization was obtained with the use of atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Described techniques may facilitate the optimization, modification, and design of manufacturing processes (such as the temperature of gelation in the case of the studied 1,3-β-d-glucan) of the organic polysaccharide matrices so as to obtain biomaterials with desired characteristics and wide range of biomedical applications, e.g., entrapment of drugs or production of biomaterials for tissue regeneration. This study shows that the 1,3-β-d-glucan polymer sample gelled at 80 °C has a distinctly different structure than the matrix gelled at 90 °C. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers in Macromolecules)
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